Aric: The Boundarylands

by Callie Rhodes

  Hunting alphas—especially from a distance and through dense foliage—was a skill the mob hitman had clearly never developed.

  The beta squeezed off two more shots before apparently coming to the same conclusion. And being too smart to keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results, he decided to cut his losses.

  Just as before, Aric heard the rifle being disassembled and the ATV roaring to life. Seconds later, the vehicle was tearing through the woods.

  But this wasn't exactly like last time.

  The cocky beta had made too many mistakes, wasting too much time taking shots, letting Aric advance too far. And he also clearly had underestimated how deadly alphas could be when they hunted in packs. Once they focused on their target, there was little chance of escape.

  Even with the benefit of the ATV and all its horsepower, there was nowhere for the bastard to go. Fifty yards ahead was a rocky ridge overlooking a deadly drop. With alphas on all other sides, he was trapped.

  The beta was no coward, Aric had to give him that. He went down in a blaze of defiance, never taking his foot off the gas pedal as he aimed straight for Samson, apparently planning to ram the massive alpha.

  Of course, it didn't work.

  Samson easily dodged the ATV, yanking the sniper out of his seat as he flew past and slamming him to the ground, leaving the ATV to crash into a tree. The impact shattered the beta's hipbone, the white shards piercing the fabric of his pants while he screamed, unable to move.

  "Saved him for you," Samson said as Aric skidded to a stop next to him.

  Aric nodded his gratitude, knowing he wouldn't be satisfied by anything less than spilling this man's blood himself. He placed his boot in the center of the broken man's chest. At least the bastard had the dignity not to snivel or beg, every bit the professional that Jo described.

  "Do you know what happens to someone who trespasses on an alpha's property and threatens his mate?" Aric demanded in a deadly quiet voice.

  The beta regarded him with loathing, his eyes hardening as he prepared for what was to come. As a man who made his living in death, he obviously had no illusions that he would survive this.

  Keeping his boot firmly planted on his chest, Aric bent and grabbed the beta's head in both his hands.

  "This," he roared, then twisted savagely. With a sickening wet snap, the beta's head separated from his neck.

  Jocelyn had only been pretending to pay attention to the other women's conversation when the front door finally opened.

  "Aric!" she yelped, leaping up from the sofa and running toward him. Then she caught sight of the blood soaking him from head to toe and stopped short, her hands flying over her mouth. "Oh God, what happened?"

  "It's not my blood," Aric told her wearily. "It's his. I told you that I would end this, and I have."

  Jocelyn gasped, barely able to absorb the truth. A part of her hadn't been able to believe that anything could get the better of John—but he was really dead. Her nightmare was over.

  But the elation she felt was only partly because she would no longer live in fear of her old boss. To Jocelyn's surprise, her relief paled next to her pure joy that Aric was all right.

  "So, John is…" she had a hard time even saying the word, not nearly as accustomed to violence as the others.

  "Dead." Aric nodded in the direction of the porch. "His head's out there if you want proof."

  Jocelyn shuddered in horror. She definitely did not need to see that. "Why on earth did you bring it back with you?"

  "I figure I'll put it in a jar with some whiskey to preserve it," Aric said, going to the sink to wash off his hands. "Then I'll send it along with all of your evidence to the beta authorities. That way, they'll know what happens when an alpha has to do their job for them. If they're smart, they'll start working their way down that list of names before more jars start showing up in the mail."

  Jocelyn opened her mouth, then closed it again. It might be brutal, but it was still justice. And the world was a better and safer place as a result. When John's associates heard what had happened to him, she had a feeling they wouldn't exactly be lining up to come after her.

  She accepted Cassidy and Darcy's hugs and congratulations while feeling slightly numb. Zeke and Samson were in high spirits when they left to take their mates home, brushing off Aric's thanks as if they'd done nothing more than help him move a couch.

  Soon she and Aric were alone again.

  Alone…for the first time without secrets between them, without danger chasing them.

  Jocelyn felt suddenly unsure of herself. Aric watched her hungrily, as if he wanted nothing more than to carry her off to bed and ravish her. Oddly, Jocelyn was ready, undaunted by the blood on his clothes and the violence he'd just taken part in.

  What would it be like to touch him now that she was finally safe from harm? Now that she could focus completely on her alpha, would things change? There was nothing to hinder the bond that was now free to grow between them, nothing to ever keep them apart again.

  The thought lit the embers of Jocelyn's nature, its heat unleashing the ache between her legs and causing her slick to flow. Inhaling its scent, Aric took a step toward her, the predatory look in his eyes deepening.

  Then he caught himself, looking down at his blood-stained clothes.

  "I need to wash," he growled, plainly frustrated with the delay.

  Jocelyn gave him a coy smile and slipped past him, making sure to brush against the hard bulge in his pants. "I'll draw your bath," she murmured.

  She closed the door behind her and turned on the taps. The water supply came from a thermal spring halfway up the hill, and as the huge antique tub filled with steaming water, Jocelyn removed her clothes with trembling hands. After testing the temperature, she rose from the floor to find Aric standing in the doorway watching her, his hands stalled on the buttons of his shirt.

  "God, you're beautiful," he muttered and, no longer bothering with the buttons, ripped off his shirt. His gore-splattered pants were next—and then Aric disappeared into the living room.

  Jocelyn was momentarily confused until she heard him open the fire grate. He was burning the clothes, something she had to agree made the best sense.

  By the time he returned, Jocelyn had perched herself, mermaid-like, on the side of the tub, letting her long hair cascade over her shoulders. She'd never played the vamp before—and she wasn't now. She was presenting herself to her alpha, following her own sensual instincts, teasing and inviting.

  But she wasn't sure how long she could keep it up. Before, she had been too preoccupied by fear and blinded by her heat to really take in the breathtaking sight of Aric's naked body. Now, she feasted her eyes on everything she'd been missing. Slick streamed down her thighs at the sight of his sculpted chest and shoulders, the hard, flat plane of his abs.

  And moving lower…

  Jocelyn already knew very well just how massive and powerful that part of him was.

  Aric allowed her to look only for a moment longer before picking her up in his arms and lowering her into the water. The heat of it was delicious, bringing relief to her chafed skin and sore muscles. She found herself at eye level with his cock, and need erupted inside her.

  But she forced herself to wait. She took a natural sponge from the ledge beside the tub and dipped it under the surface.

  "Come here," she said huskily, no longer posing. Her mouth watered and her pussy screamed for attention, but what she needed most right now, what she ached for, was to serve her alpha.

  Aric obliged, stepping into the huge tub and easing into a sitting position, watching her the whole time. Jocelyn raised the dripping sponge to his shoulders and slowly wrung it out, letting the warm water cascade over his skin.

  Aric groaned. His eyelids fluttered closed. His hands twitched with the need to touch her, but Jocelyn stilled them.

  "Not yet," she whispered.

  She took her time washing him, starting with his shoulders and his chest, then his back
. She gently dabbed his face and neck, taking care around the cuts and bruises he'd gotten from tearing through the woods, until he seized her hand and rubbed the sponge hard over his face.

  She lathered his hair, sighing with pleasure at the woodsy, masculine scent as she kneaded his scalp and rinsed it clean.

  The whole time, Aric kept up a rumble so low it was almost a purr, leaning into her touch. When she was done washing his hair, she slid the sponge down over the hard, muscular ridge of his belly, and then lower, to his huge cock, as stiff and hard as she'd ever experienced it. Sliding her hand around it, some deep, hidden part of her came to life.

  An animal part.

  A primal part.

  One that wouldn't be denied.

  Aric must have felt it too, because he caught her wrists in his huge hands, almost hard enough to hurt. "Look at me," he ordered her, and she found herself gazing directly into dark eyes ablaze with raw want.

  Jo's entire body spasmed with anticipation. She knew now that she didn't have to understand why she wanted him so badly—the only thing that mattered was that she did.

  And that he wanted her back.

  Without another word, Aric pulled her on top of him and wrapped his hand around the back of her neck. Then he kissed her hard.

  Jo lost herself in the kiss, unconcerned about the water sloshing over the side of the tub. The rest of the world could go straight to hell as far as she was concerned.

  She was exactly where she was meant to be.

  Aric lifted her up above his hard cock.

  There was no need to wait any longer. They were ready—beyond ready. As if their entire lives had led them to this precise moment.

  Jocelyn felt her slick rush to welcome the first thrust of his cock, crying out as he buried himself completely inside her. She lifted herself up and matched his rhythm, riding him as long and hard as she could. And when her strength gave out, and she collapsed against Aric's chest in a fog of pleasure, he took over and drove her frenzy higher.

  Jocelyn had no idea how many times she came. There was no point in keeping track. All she knew was that when she finally felt the swell of his knot starting to form inside her, something changed.

  She felt a new urge, one she'd never imagined.

  A need to cement her place in Aric's home. To accept him into her life, totally and completely. To pledge herself to him forever.

  Before Jocelyn even understood what she was about to do, her mouth had closed around the top of his shoulder. And then she bit down with the force of every bit of strength she had left.

  Aric erupted with a primal roar that whipped the water, and then he lowered his head. A half-second later, she felt the sting of his own bite.

  But it wasn't over then.

  Oh, hell no.

  Even after his knot had faded, Aric picked her up and carried her to their bed, where he continued to make love to her for two heavenly days straight.

  And Jocelyn didn't mind at all.

  Chapter Seventeen

  As the second month of Jocelyn's new life in the Boundarylands came to a close, Cassidy told her admiringly that she had earned an honorary degree in the study of alphas and omegas.

  It was true that Jocelyn had learned more than she ever thought possible in such a short time. She now grasped the true meaning of territorialism, in which a man's property was second only to his mate in terms of how hard he'd fight for it. She understood the sacred nature of the alpha brotherhood, which ran so deep that even those who didn't like each other wouldn't hesitate to come to each other's aid when needed.

  The omegas were much the same way. With them, Jocelyn had found the sisterhood that had been lacking in her former beta life. Before, she had acquaintances, women who dressed and talked alike and invited her to the occasional dinner party or bridal shower.

  Now Jocelyn had true friends with all sorts of different backgrounds and personalities whose generosity never ceased to amaze her.

  Jocelyn had also learned that Aric was telling the truth about alphas not caring much about money. Everyone lived off their land, hunting for food and crafting just enough to barter with the local betas for the few necessities they couldn't make themselves.

  Of course, that didn't mean that cash was useless. Far from it.

  For the first few weeks, Jocelyn had been afraid to dip into the stacks of hundred-dollar bills in her bag for fear that the cops would come to collect it as evidence—maybe against John and his clients, or maybe against her for stealing.

  It took time, but they finally heard from the San Francisco police. The letter stated that they had received more than enough evidence from Aric, and they would take care of the rest of the case without any more help from him.

  Apparently, receiving one head in a jar was enough to quell the department's ardor for pursuing justice Boundarylands style.

  After that, Jocelyn had been able to breathe a little easier. No one was coming to murder her or haul her off to jail…and she still had a giant wad of cash.

  It didn't take her long to decide to use it to benefit the community that had helped her when she was at her lowest point. She'd already bought supplies to fix a flooding problem at Zeke's house and a new timing belt for the owner of Evander's Bar. She'd even sent away for a bundle of new toys for all the pups in the Boundarylands to play with during the omega's weekly tea gathering.

  None of that had put a dent in the stockpile of cash. Jocelyn figured at this rate, she and Aric would be able to cover any issue, big or small, that popped up in the community for the next fifty years.

  Though right now, she'd give every penny away if it meant that she didn't have to listen to Zeke and her omega friend Faith argue about who had won their damned pool game.

  "You cheated," Zeke howled, his booming voice turning every head in the bar. "You touched my stick."

  "I did not," Faith shot back. For a generally soft-spoken and graceful woman, she could certainly hold her own. "You're lying, and you know it."

  "Don't call me a liar."

  "And don't accuse my omega of touching your stick," Faith's alpha Troy snarled, inserting himself into the argument with a menacing glare.

  "Oh my God, how many times do you think we're going to have to sit through this same argument?" Jocelyn whispered to Aric.

  "Until one of them gets a decisive win."

  Jocelyn rolled her eyes. Apparently, these two had been battling it out to see who would be the crowned the best pool player in the Boundarylands since the day Jocelyn had arrived. The trouble was that they were so evenly matched that they alternated wins, never managing a lead of more than a single game—and never without an argument. Some imaginary foul would be brought up right at the end, and the whole bar would have to suffer through the argument.

  Secretly, Jocelyn had a feeling that Faith and Zeke were better friends than either of them would ever admit.

  She was just about to order another beer to help her endure the squabbling when the front door of the bar flew open, and an unfamiliar alpha strode in. He wore his long dirty-blonde hair loose and his beard was untamed and greasy. He had the beginnings of a paunch, an unusual attribute for an alpha.

  Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch. You didn't have to have an alpha's finely tuned senses to notice the simmering fury that propelled the stranger through the room. Jocelyn instinctively moved closer to Aric.

  The stranger reached the bar and slammed a hand down on it while the bartender, Ty, looked on warily.

  "Name's Sloan," the alpha said, his voice as harsh as his demeanor. "My land's near the northern boundary."

  "You're a long way from home," Ty said mildly, but Jocelyn could see the tension in his shoulders. If the man had come looking for a fight, he'd find himself tossed out the door.

  "I came 'cause I heard you had omegas here."

  Every alpha in the place stiffened, those with mates moving protectively between them and the stranger.

  "Calm down, brothers," the stranger sa
id. "I don't want your women. I have my own sorry excuse for one, and I was thinking yours could talk some sense into her."

  Jocelyn's attention had been drawn to the stranger's hands. The knuckles bore unmistakable red marks—the kind that came from throwing punches.

  Oh, shit. This wasn't good.

  The omegas in the room—Faith, Darcy, Mia, and Jocelyn—acknowledged each other silently, united in their concern. They all knew what this meant: one of their own was in trouble.

  Big trouble.

  "Where is your omega now?" Jocelyn asked.

  "Out in the truck," Sloan snarled without sparing her a glance. "Whaddya say, brothers? Mind if I borrow your women long enough to teach mine how a real omega acts?"

  A chill ran down Jocelyn's spine as she realized that this must have been how Darcy felt the night she'd discovered her falling apart behind the bar—knowing she needed to intervene, but not knowing how.

  A few of the alphas were up out of their chairs, a low rumble filling the room when the door was flung open again.

  Not a stranger this time—but Jocelyn wasn't much happier to see this alpha than the first one. Cade was the sort of hot-headed young alpha who always seemed to be itching for a fight.

  "You Sloan?" Cade addressed the stranger from the door, not bothering to keep the contempt out of his voice.

  The stranger turned around and sneered, showing off yellow teeth. "Who the fuck wants to know?"

  "The alpha who's stealing your goddamn omega," Cade roared before pulling back his fist and knocking the son of a bitch to the floor.

  Welcome to The Boundarylands Omegaverse!

  Thank you for reading ARIC, Book 7 in the series. There are so many more hot alphas from the Boundarylands waiting to meet you.

  Keep reading for a sneak peek of the next book in the series, available here: CADE (The Boundarylands Omegaverse)

  If you want to spread the word about the Boundarylands, please consider leaving a review. The more reviews a book has the easier it is for new readers to find it.