Twin Pines Grizzlies 10 Dangerous Alpha Anitra Lynn McLeod

Twin Pines Grizzlies 10

Dangerous Alpha

Opposites may attract, but when everything conspires to push you

apart, what can possibly be strong enough to hold you together?

Ultra-rich businessman and wolf-shifter Maxwell Wallace gets what

he wants regardless of the consequences, and that includes a

mate outside his species. Claiming bear-shifter Quinn English

violates not only the laws of nature, but those of their warring

clans. Heedless of the danger, Maxwell refuses to have his lust

denied.

Quinn's life has revolved around academics and football, but

suddenly, with one foolish bet, Quinn has placed himself at the

mercy of a notorious Dom. All Quinn wanted was to explore his

submissive side. He had no idea he was part of a greater legacy of

animal shifters. By the time he finds out, it's too late to run.

Will Quinn and Maxwell learn to work together, or will they forfeit

their lives and destroy the very foundations of the Twin Pines

Grizzlies?

Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Paranormal, Shape-shifter
Length: 36,602 words

DANGEROUS ALPHA

Twin Pines Grizzlies 10

Anitra Lynn McLeod

EVERLASTING CLASSIC

MANLOVE

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DANGEROUS ALPHA
Copyright © 2012 by Anitra Lynn McLeod
E-book ISBN: 978-1-61926-390-1

First E-book Publication: June 2012

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DANGEROUS ALPHA

Twin Pines Grizzlies 10

ANITRA LYNN MCLEOD

Chapter 1

“Are you certain you want to do this?” Maxwell Wallace’s voice

was masculine, seductive, and just a shade too close to
condescending. He spoke as if he expected Quinn to chicken out.

Actually, Quinn English wasn’t sure he wanted to continue, but if

he backed out now, his word wouldn’t be worth shit. Quinn had to
feel the fear and go forward anyway. So he took a deep breath, held it
for a moment, then released it as he nodded.

“All right then.” Maxwell attached the chrome chain to the leather

collar around Quinn’s neck. “Let’s see how you look.” Maxwell kept
a hold of the end of the leash as he stepped back and looked Quinn up
and down. “Wonderful.”

Quinn didn’t need a mirror to know what he looked like. All he

wore was the thick black leather collar and his tribal tattoos. At six
foot two and over two hundred and twenty pounds, he was a muscular
fullback for the Grizzlies. But tonight, he was a possession. Maxwell
was going to lead him around like a prize, and Quinn couldn’t say a
damn thing about it. In fact, if Quinn said anything, he’d violate their
agreement and he’d have to start all over at ground zero.

“Ah, yes, the finishing touch.” Maxwell contrasted Quinn in his

custom tailored black business suit, a crisp white shirt, and a sedately

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printed tie that probably cost more than all of Quinn’s textbooks
combined. From his pocket, Maxwell extracted another black leather
object that puzzled Quinn, until Maxwell slipped it around Quinn’s
cock and balls. Maxwell kept his intimate touches to a minimum, but
his thick fingers still managed to put Quinn to half mast.

“You arouse very easily.” Maxwell peered up at him with his

hazel eyes. While watching him intently, Maxwell adjusted the device
so that once Quinn was fully hard, he would stay that way.
“Comfortable?”

“No.”
Maxwell lifted one brow.
“May I?” Quinn asked.
“By all means.”
Quinn pushed a few hairs back and down, breathing a sigh of

relief when he managed to ease the pinching. Now he could wear the
device comfortably. Well, more comfortably than he could with it
tugging on his pubes all night.

“You can see now why I have my submissives shave.”
On the tip of Quinn’s tongue rested the question of whether

Maxwell shaved or not, but he kept his mouth shut. He’d find out the
answer soon enough. Sometime during the next twenty-four hours
Quinn would probably have Maxwell’s cock in his mouth. He could
wait until then for the answer about what he looked like below his
dress slacks.

From another pocket, Maxwell withdrew a much more delicate

chrome chain. He hooked it to a tiny chrome loop on the cock ring
then attached it to the large chrome circle at the front of Quinn’s
collar.

“I want it very clear that all of this”—he swept his hand from

Quinn’s face to his feet—“belongs to me.”

“For one night,” Quinn reminded.
“Twenty-four hours,” Maxwell clarified. He cupped Quinn’s chin

possessively. “And that’s one night and one day of you being

Dangerous Alpha

submissive. Right?”

“Right,” Quinn snarled.
Maxwell’s grip on his chin tightened a notch. “Don’t make me

punish you because you know I will.” He drew a deep breath. So
deep, in fact, it was almost as if he were tasting Quinn’s scent. “And
you know I would love to discipline you.”

Even though it just about killed him, Quinn took the snark out of

his voice and said, “Yes, Maxwell.” When he let go of his chin,
Quinn kept his face low.

“Perfect. Now, are you ready?”
“Yes, Maxwell.” At least that was one blessing. Maxwell Wallace

didn’t demand to be called master or some other lofty title. He wanted
Quinn to call him by his name. But Maxwell had also made it clear
that though he didn’t subscribe to all the clichés of a dominant, he did
demand submission. Quinn had no doubt that in his leather briefcase
were all kinds of toys that could push Quinn higher or torture him into
that curious state of painful arousal.

Reminding himself that he only had to do this for one night and

one day, Quinn followed Maxwell into The Tool Box. As soon as the
door opened, thumping bass assaulted Quinn, making his entire body
throb, including his cock, which bounced with each step he took.

Since Maxwell owned the club, they were allowed to use the back

door, thus bypassing the frantic push at the main entrance. In order to
get to the front, where Maxwell could show off his prize, they walked
past the offices and supply rooms that lined the hallway they traveled.
When a waiter saw Maxwell, he offered a modified bow and probably
said hello, but the music eclipsed any conversation. As Quinn went
past him, the waiter’s gaze ate up Quinn’s form as a dirty smile
twisted the features of his face. Quinn did his best to ignore the look,
but he had a feeling he’d be seeing it a lot more on a lot more faces.

The closer they came to the heart of the club, the more flashing

lights cut the shadows with glittering jewel tones in green, blue, red,
and purple. Quinn winced and thanked the stars he wasn’t epileptic. If

Anitra Lynn McLeod

he was, he’d be seizing all over the floor right about now. But he
wasn’t. He just didn’t care for these types of clubs. If Quinn was
going to go out with a bunch of guys, he preferred sports bars where
he could talk to people and share a game.

Once they were out in full view, Quinn knew the drill. Walking

five paces behind Maxwell, keeping his head tilted down
submissively, meant that Quinn was only able to see Maxwell’s broad
back and amazing fanny. If things had gone differently, Quinn would
be in the front of this little parade. But he wasn’t. So he contented
himself with watching Maxwell’s muscular ass sway with his steps.
The cut of his jacket teased right across the middle of his butt. Quinn
would like nothing better than to part those powerful cheeks and
plunge his cock deep while grasping a handful of Maxwell’s slightly
too long hair. To hear that polished professional scream like a bitch
would be music to Quinn’s ears. But that was not to be. Much more
likely would be Quinn making that noise for Maxwell.

Ironically, that all too brief mental image caused Quinn’s cock to

swell even more. Goddamn it but he was hard as hell and the night
had just barely begun. If he wasn’t careful, Maxwell would have him
in tears before he gave him release.

Quinn’s heart took a sickening lurch in his chest.
They hadn’t actually agreed to a release. All their bet stated was

that the victor would have control of the loser for twenty-four hours.
There was nothing about playing fair. As a Dom, Maxwell could push
him endlessly toward climax but dangle the finale out of his reach. At
that thought, Quinn had another surge of lust. Why was just the idea
of being at Maxwell’s mercy so arousing? He hadn’t even done
anything, and Quinn wanted to please him so that he would in turn be
rewarded.

Maxwell took slower steps once they hit the area with small tables

that surrounded the dance floor. Even though the music was
deafening, Quinn heard a roar of applause. Breaking the rules, he
lifted his head slightly. Maxwell waved and nodded to the crowd, but

Dangerous Alpha

he never stopped moving across the floor.

When Quinn followed him up the glass steps, he was able to see

the crowd around them. Mostly young, hot men dressed in everything
from full nudity to full leather. All of them greeted his gaze with eyes
that flashed from the light show. Their hungry gazes lingered over
him and Maxwell. Quinn wondered how many would want to trade
places with him, and how many would just about die to be in
Maxwell’s shoes.

Once they gained the upper floor, Quinn couldn’t see anything but

the carpet. It was a pattern of some kind, but with the flashing lights,
he had no idea what color it was. Probably something that hid stains
and burns, given the nature of the club. It was probably high grade
industrial carpet that they could hose down nightly. And Quinn
realized he was only focusing on the floor to keep himself from
panicking. He had no idea what Maxwell was going to do to him once
they got to wherever they were going.

Maxwell took him up another short flight of stairs, and Quinn

realized they were at the apex of the club. Up here he smelled alcohol,
cologne, and the heat was almost too much. But all that changed.
Suddenly there was a breeze of cool, crisp air.

“Kneel.”
Without looking, Quinn knelt beside Maxwell, who was seated at

a clear glass table. Using his peripheral vision, Quinn noticed two
other men at the table, but he had no idea who they were.

The music was less pounding up here, but it was obvious Maxwell

wasn’t conducting business with the two men. Conversation would be
limited to one or two words.

Unsure what he was doing, Quinn realized it didn’t matter. He

was going to do whatever Maxwell told him to do. So for now, he
stayed on his knees and tried to see more of the club from his
extremely limited field of vision.

And then he felt Maxwell’s hand upon his head. Fuck. He was

stroking his hand over Quinn’s short black hair the way one would pet

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a favored dog. Enraged, Quinn felt his face turn red, but there was
nothing he could say or do but suck it up.

When he felt Maxwell’s hand cup his chin and force his face up,

he couldn’t stop himself. He glared up at Maxwell.

Maxwell considered his face for a long time. Amazingly, he didn’t

get angry, or laugh, or show any reaction at all. It was unnerving in
that Quinn had no idea what he was feeling. When Maxwell turned
and spoke to one of the men at the table, Quinn couldn’t hear their
conversation, but he saw them exit the area out the corner of his eye.
And then Maxwell returned his attention to Quinn’s face.

While holding his chin steady, Maxwell traced his thumb over

Quinn’s bottom lip. He managed to do this speculatively, like he
pondered all the things he could make Quinn do with his mouth.
Quinn also considered all the things he could do with his mouth, and
right now, he’d be more than willing to do most of them to Maxwell.

Shit. Maybe I really do have some twisted submissive bent in me.
What made the moment terrifyingly seductive was that Maxwell’s

expression never changed. He continued to observe Quinn with the
most dispassionate gaze Quinn had ever encountered. One look into
those eyes explained why Maxwell Wallace was the most sought after
Dom in all of the Rockies. He had the dangerous look, he gave the
formidable impression, but most of all he had the attitude of power
barely contained.

Quinn swallowed hard.
If there had been anger in his gaze at being petted like a dog, it

was gone now. All Quinn felt at this moment was anticipatory dread.
Maxwell was going to do something to him, but Quinn had no clue
what. Something to do with his mouth, perhaps, given the way
Maxwell continued to rub that lone bit of flesh with the pad of his
thumb. Into Quinn’s mind came the image of him on his knees
sucking Maxwell’s cock while all around them the men of the club
cheered. What made matters worse was that Quinn wanted to. Hell.
He wanted to suck Maxwell’s cock, and he didn’t give two shits about

Dangerous Alpha

anyone who wanted to watch him do it.

Maxwell turned in his seat so that Quinn was now kneeling

between his spread legs. Expensive black fabric cupped muscular
thighs like a prayer all the way up to his crotch. There, the fabric
bunched around a bulge that riveted Quinn’s attention. Lord almighty,
but Maxwell had to have the biggest cock Quinn had ever seen. He
frowned. Technically, he hadn’t seen Maxwell’s prick. Yet. He had a
feeling he was going to know every bit of Maxwell’s amazing body
intimately by the time this was all over.

A tug upon the leash shot Quinn’s attention back up to Maxwell’s

face. He realized he’d let his gaze wander down when he shouldn’t
have. Quinn realized he didn’t make a very good submissive. But as
Maxwell peered at him, Quinn wanted to please him. He wanted
Maxwell to be satisfied not only because they’d made a bet, but
because Quinn honestly wanted to see some expression come into
those hazel eyes. Not anger because the blinding glare of that might
be too much, but pleasure. Ah, yeah. Enjoyment would transform his
features by putting a smile on the man’s face and crinkling the skin
around his eyes. Or lust. That would lower his lids, make his gaze
smoky, and perhaps pout his lips just a bit. Just enough for Quinn to
have an image he could save up for a fantasy about Maxwell
wrapping those lips around Quinn’s aching cock.

Slowly, inexorably, Maxwell tugged upon the leash, wrapping the

excess around his fist as he drew Quinn ever closer to that terribly
interesting bulge in his expensive trousers. It took all Quinn’s will to
resist looking down, and truly he tried, but the closer he came, the
more he caught the essence of Maxwell’s scent. There was the smell
of something on the fabric of his trousers, something like fabric
softener, but the closer Quinn’s head came to his crotch, the more he
smelled sweat. Not old, nasty sweat, but fresh sweat that came from a
man bundled up in the trappings of civility when his true state was
naked and free. Quinn wanted to bury his nose in Maxwell’s lap and
sniff deep, and then he wanted to kiss that bulge until he made the

Anitra Lynn McLeod

man mad with lust.

“Open.” Maxwell said the one word as a command.
Quinn obeyed. He opened his mouth and kept his gaze locked

with Maxwell’s. Nothing happened. Quinn kept his mouth open while
the rest of his body tensed. Had he done something wrong? Was he
supposed to keep his gaze lowered? He was almost frantic by the time
Maxwell lowered a drink with a straw down to his face.

“Suck.”
Quinn wrapped his lips around the straw and pulled the liquid into

his mouth. He had no idea what the drink was until it hit his tongue.
Water. Plain old water. But that wasn’t quite right. It was extremely
cold and almost sweet. Imported water, perhaps. Strangely, as he
continued to drink, Quinn envisioned high pine mountains with rough
craggy peaks and clear running streams. The forest was alive with the
sounds of animals, and Quinn had a violent urge to hunt. After a long
chase that engaged all his senses, he wanted the taste of coppery
blood gushing against his gums for his finale. Recoiling from that, he
then had another urge to hunt through bushes for berries and dig
under logs for bugs.

Quinn closed his eyes, desperate to dislodge both images from his

mind. There was something similar about them and yet something
terribly foreign between the two. The idea that he had to choose
alarmed him.

Another surge of panic washed through him at the thought that

perhaps Maxwell had drugged the water. They hadn’t discussed limits
like that. The last thing Quinn needed was some whacko drug in his
system that might show up on a screening test. From what he’d heard,
Twin Pines College, along with other schools in their region,
submitted their players to random drug tests. One dirty result and
Quinn would lose his place on the team. Next to studying
communications, playing football for the Grizzlies was his life.

Still, he drank because along with that fear was a deep-seated

desire to please his master.

Dangerous Alpha

“Stop.” Maxwell pulled the drink away. While looking Quinn

right in the eye, he lifted the cup to his lips then drank from the same
straw.

Quinn realized that wordlessly, Maxwell conveyed he wouldn’t

make Quinn drink anything he wasn’t prepared to drink himself. His
actions eased Quinn’s mind. He wouldn’t drug him. A man like
Maxwell didn’t need chemical enhancements to work his magic.
Quinn had been under his control for about half an hour now, and he
was willing to do anything he wanted, bet or no bet.

After taking several swallows, Maxwell set the water on the table,

cupped Quinn’s chin, and returned to his thoughtful rubbing of
Quinn’s lower lip.

Below them, the music and the pulse of the lighting changed, but

Maxwell continued to ponder Quinn’s mouth. The press of his thumb
changed tempo, slowing down to the point the sweep across his lip
seemed to take forever.

And then Maxwell did the last thing Quinn would have ever

expected. He grasped the leash tightly in his fist, pulled Quinn up, and
then kissed him.

Quinn closed his eyes against the sensations that assaulted him.

Maxwell’s lips where hot and firm, meshing perfectly against Quinn’s
sensitized mouth. When Maxwell parted his lips, Quinn followed suit,
and then Maxwell’s tongue was exploring his mouth. He tasted of the
sweet water, steamy longing, and a barely coiled violent need.

As Maxwell ate at his mouth like a hungry animal, Quinn realized

why he’d brought him to his club. Maxwell needed the constraints of
a public place. Alone, he wouldn’t have been able to control the
appetite he had for Quinn.

Was it arrogance on his part to imagine such a thing? How full of

himself did Quinn have to be to believe that he could bring a master
of the art to such extremes? Quinn thought all this was just made up
in his mind, intensified by his own fear, but then Maxwell yanked on
the leash, forcing Quinn’s neck forward and his head back.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

In the same motion, Maxwell moved forward on the chair so that

his cock—his hard, thick cock—was pressed against Quinn’s chest.
The realization that he was just as painfully hard as Quinn was at
once both pleasing and frightening. By their deal, Maxwell could seek
release without asking while Quinn had to be granted the same right.

After deepening the kiss, Maxwell broke away, placed his mouth

against Quinn’s ear, and said, “You’re right. I brought you here to
protect you from my lust.” He lifted away, and that curious dispassion
rendered his features unreadable. “Alone with you, I do not know
what I would do.”

From some unknown part of Quinn’s soul, he dared to lean closer

to Maxwell, tilt his face up, and catch his gaze. To his own shock, he
said, “Let’s find out.”

Perfectly sculpted black brows lowered over hazel eyes. Rather

than tug him close with the leash, Maxwell dropped the chain and
grasped the ring at the front of Quinn’s leather collar by slipping his
middle finger though. Maxwell pulled him close and considered
Quinn’s face so attentively it was as if he studied him with the
intention to paint him later. No one had ever examined him so keenly.

“Before we go anywhere, I have to tell you the truth.” Maxwell

hesitated about three seconds, but to Quinn they were the longest
three seconds in the world. They felt more like three days and amped
his anticipation up to an alarming degree. Adrenaline galvanized his
muscles, making his entire body taut.

Without dropping his gaze or showing one iota of remorse,

Maxwell said, “I cheated.”

Dangerous Alpha

Chapter 2

“You cheated?” Quinn asked.
“I did.” The relief Maxwell felt at confessing was tempered by his

determination to keep Quinn not just for twenty-four hours, but for a
lifetime. However, had he told Quinn of his ultimate goal, he
seriously doubted Quinn would have agreed to the bet. And he
certainly wouldn’t have allowed himself to be paraded naked into The
Tool Box in a collar and cock ring with Maxwell holding the end of
his leash. Rather than explode with anger, which Maxwell was
actually prepared for, Quinn only frowned up at him.

After a very long pause, Quinn asked, “Is this a test?” Quinn kept

his tone respectful.

Normally, Maxwell couldn’t hear anything over the pounding

bass of the techno dance music, but he was so attuned to Quinn he
knew what he said without fully hearing him. Reading his lips was
part of it, but moreover, Maxwell was able to brush the edges of
Quinn’s mind. But that pathway only went one way. Quinn did not
seem to be able to read Maxwell, not fully. There were insights and
gut feelings, but that was easily dismissed by Quinn’s rational mind.
As a thinker, a realist, and one who hoped to sway others with his
words someday when he obtained his degree, Quinn was remarkably
disenchanted with anything beyond his most basic senses. Maxwell
realized he had a second chance right here. He could say that it was a
test and continue with his oh so limited time, but Maxwell knew if he
took Quinn under such false circumstances, it would never work
between them. So he braced himself, and once again he told the truth.

“No.” Maxwell didn’t elaborate. There was no need, really. “I

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cheated.”

Quinn considered him for the longest time. Another song came

on, but the pulse was the same, and still Quinn just peered up at him.
Anger, confusion, fear—a gamut of emotions crossed Quinn’s
expressive face, a face that had fascinated Maxwell for years, and
then, to Maxwell’s shock, Quinn lowered his face submissively but
kept his pale blue eyes on Maxwell.

“I want you to finish.”
Maxwell couldn’t believe what he’d heard. Quinn wanted to

continue with their deal even though it was based on a lie? Maxwell’s
heart was pounding in his chest. The bass of the music only enhanced
his arousal yet added the spice of genuine fear. What if all of this was
a mistake? What if by pushing for an encounter instead of waiting for
his mate to come to him, Maxwell had irrevocably ruined his
chances?

“I need what you can give me.” Quinn kept his head bowed, and

the spinning lights danced over his short shorn black hair. His wicked
black line tattoos that covered his left shoulder, his arm, and halfway
down his chest seemed to pulse in time to the black strobe light.
Maxwell remembered when Quinn had gotten those marks. He’d been
enraged that anything would dare to mar the perfect bronzed skin of
his mate, but he had no say, so he turned away. Later, much later,
once the fury receded, Maxwell had come to appreciate the strong,
sharp lines as they enhanced Quinn’s powerful form.

“And what’s that? What do you need that I can give?” Maxwell

was almost desperate to hear the answer. What in the world did he
have to give this man who literally had everything in the palm of his
hand?

“Discipline.”
Lust surged testosterone throughout Maxwell’s body. Dominating

other men was something he’d fallen into almost accidentally, but
Maxwell had never tricked a man into his clutches. When all his
efforts to snag Quinn ended in failure, Maxwell became obsessed.

Dangerous Alpha

He’d carefully coordinated events so that Quinn would place the bet
over some trivial sports game, and Maxwell would hear, and then
they would go back and forth, puffing their chests, posturing, and then
ultimately, Maxwell would emerge the victor. And now that he had
his chance in hand, he couldn’t take advantage. But then, he’d
confessed his scheme, and Quinn still wanted him to discipline him.

Stunned because Maxwell knew that Quinn was as alpha as

Maxwell himself, Maxwell stared down at the head of his beloved.
His body was pure muscle. As a fullback, Quinn was a powerhouse
with both running speed and power blocking. Watching him on the
gridiron was the highlight of Maxwell’s week. He paid handsomely to
send a man to clandestinely tape the practices and games just so he
could watch Quinn.

Maxwell hesitated again not only because he’d admitted to

cheating at the bet, but he’d also been stalking Quinn since he was a
senior in high school. A fluke had brought Maxwell to the game, but
once he’d seen him play, and then Quinn had wrenched off his
helmet— Maxwell hardened at the memory. From that moment on
Maxwell had known his desire was perverse. The very idea of
bonding to Quinn violated the laws of nature, and Maxwell knew that,
but he also couldn’t stay away.

Quinn had been eighteen and far too young in Maxwell’s

estimation of things. And the pairing of the two of them was simply
wrong on many levels. So Maxwell did everything he could to forget
Quinn. No matter what he did, though, Quinn returned to his mind in
some way every single day, and then he starred in his dreams at night.
Tossing and turning and using stand-ins to ease his frustrations didn’t
help exorcise Quinn from his mind. Desperate for some kind of
surcease, Maxwell had soothed himself with occasional reports, and
then he’d arranged for a scholarship to Twin Pines so that Quinn
would be close enough for him to keep more personal tabs on him.
Even then, Maxwell waited until Quinn was twenty-one. That was old
enough to make Quinn an adult in any sane person’s estimation. Yet

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Maxwell still couldn’t shake his shame at what he’d done.

Lust, longing, and love all collided into a need so profound

Maxwell couldn’t believe he hadn’t just plucked Quinn off the
campus and secreted him away. What stopped him, what always
stopped him, was the simple fact that Quinn had to be willing.
Forcing him to his knees, compelling him to play this meaningless
game, that was surface dressing. The heart of the matter demanded
genuine submission. And try as he might to convince himself
otherwise, Maxwell did not have that.

Not yet.
But he could.
If Quinn were willing to explore the power between them, then

Maxwell had his opening. He had his shot. For the first time in over a
hundred years, Maxwell had a chance to have the love of a mate. A
true partner. Together they could defy the laws of nature but only if
they were willing to suffer the repercussions. Maxwell didn’t know
exactly what consequences they would have to deal with, but he
imagined by the time they saw their way through they would have
earned their right to be by one another’s side.

This was not the place to discuss the issue, but Maxwell knew if

he took Quinn somewhere private, he was going to lose whatever
semblance of control he possessed. They were safer in public.
Correction. Quinn was safer in public. Maxwell honestly didn’t know
what he would do to the man in private. Keeping a lid on his lust here
was difficult enough. Alone, with little to hold him back, Maxwell
didn’t honestly know what he would do. Oh, he would never hurt
Quinn, but by pushing for his most secret longing, he might damage
him irreparably.

“I couldn’t forgive myself if I hurt you.”
Quinn continued to hold his gaze, but something in his eyes

sharpened. “If you’re going to hurt me, you better hurt me good.”

Maxwell’s cock swelled at the thought. There was a part of him

that wanted to push young, tender Quinn to his limits. Testing the

Dangerous Alpha

mettle of this man would serve Maxwell well, but going too far was
his biggest concern. As tough as Quinn might appear, what with his
fierce tattoos and bulging muscles, he was, essentially, untested.

“I wouldn’t want to break you.”
“Try.” Quinn kept his face submissively low, yet his eyes, his pale

blue eyes that should seem so frail, were strong orbs of challenge.

“Not here.” Maxwell didn’t have to look around for Quinn to

understand why The Tool Box was not the optimal place for such an
encounter. Neither one of them could enjoy themselves if they could
barely hear one another.

“I’ll follow you.” Quinn shook his head like a horse first trained

to the bridle, which rattled his leash, shaking it all the way to
Maxwell’s hand.

Hungry for the taste of him, Maxwell gathered the chain in his fist

so slowly as to be maddening. When Quinn was close, Maxwell
stood. Quinn’s face was now at the level of Maxwell’s bulge.
Deliberately, he pulled link by link until he plastered Quinn’s face
against his cock.

“Open,” Maxwell demanded.
Obediently, Quinn parted his lips.
Knowing he could slip his aching prick into Quinn’s willing

mouth actually cautioned him against such an act. As good as the hot
hollow of his mouth would feel, it would be ever so much better to
have him hungry to provide such a service. Maxwell wanted Quinn
famished to taste him. So, against his baser instincts, Maxwell pulled
Quinn to his feet and plastered his lips against his.

The second kiss was better than the first. Quinn was pure,

untouched, so sweet as to almost pucker Maxwell’s lips. His taste
sparked another bout of dangerous appetite deep in the pit of
Maxwell’s being. Ignoring that beast would become ever more
difficult. But Maxwell would manage. Because if nothing else, when
he claimed his mate, and there was no question now that he would,
Maxwell would have him writhing in begging need to feel the

Anitra Lynn McLeod

completion of their bonding.

Dangerous Alpha

Chapter 3

Quinn had kissed his fair share of men, but not a one made him

feel the way Maxwell Wallace did. How could he do that with the
simplest of contact? They said kissing was more intimate than
fucking, and Quinn had never believed that. Until now. Kissing
Maxwell was like kissing the sacred god of lust. His mouth was
masculine, knowledgeable, and yet there was this innocence that
Quinn identified with. Crazy. Maxwell was no virgin. Not in anyway
was the man pure. Yet there was something so clean about the taste of
his mouth. Quinn wanted to drink from him with the same thirst with
which he had sucked from that glass of imported water.

When Maxwell pulled away, Quinn gasped, “More.”
Taking pity on him, Maxwell pulled him tighter and kissed him a

third time. As they often said, the third time was the charm. Quinn
lost sense of everything other than Maxwell. In their heat, they lined
up perfectly. Maxwell matched Quinn in height, in weight, and as
they plastered their powerful bodies together, their cocks rubbed up
on one another. All that stood between them was that thin weave of
Maxwell’s dress trousers. If Quinn had such powers, he would
evaporate all Maxwell’s clothing so that they would be flesh to flesh.

When Maxwell dropped his hands to Quinn’s buttocks and pulled

him close, Quinn allowed himself to be pressed against his master. He
offered no struggle, not even when Maxwell parted his cheeks and
showed off his virgin hole to any and all who happened to be
watching. There was a surge of lusty pride that Maxwell only
displayed him because he would never allow anyone to take what
he’d already determined was his.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“I’m going to claim you, Quinn.” Maxwell’s voice was rough

with need but smooth with longing, almost like sandpaper soaked in
premium whisky. “I’m going to mark you in every way a man can
mark another.”

Quinn shivered, but not in fear. His entire being quivered in

anticipation. He wanted Maxwell to put his brand upon him. He
wanted to be bound to him in every way that he could be.

“Tell me now if you want me to stop.” Maxwell pulled back, his

hazel eyes focusing on Quinn’s face. For the first time, he wasn’t
unmoved. This time, when Quinn looked into Maxwell’s eyes, he saw
a craving so deep it was almost terrifying. Almost. If not for Quinn’s
own crazy hunger for Maxwell, he might have run, or protested, but
he couldn’t. Not when this was right. Not when they both had the
same unmitigated need.

“Claim me.”
A slow smile spread Maxwell’s lips across his stern face,

transforming him from a no-nonsense businessman into a gleeful
child. Only for a split second. Only for that barest bit of time. But
Quinn would swear to his dying day that he had given Maxwell
Wallace a brief, shining moment that made him as merry as a kid on
Christmas morning.

When the glee disappeared, and the indifferent master took over,

Quinn didn’t despair. He thrilled inside. This was what the secret spot
inside him craved. This, the harsh unemotional master, was what he
needed to reach that curious blank spot inside his soul. Maxwell
would make that secret center bloom.

“You realize what permission you’re giving me.”
Quinn was surprised that he was able to hear Maxwell easily over

the music. It was almost as if his voice spoke directly inside Quinn’s
head. After a moment, the question caught up to his brain, and Quinn
nodded.

“You have to speak, Quinn. There can be no games if we go down

this road.”

Dangerous Alpha

And something from that secret spot in Quinn’s soul whispered

that the way to open up his mind was by surrendering completely to
Maxwell. “I want you to claim me.”

Maxwell still wasn’t satisfied. “Do you realize what that means?”
“Yes. You’re going to take me bareback and breed me.”
Again, for the briefest moment, Maxwell grinned, but then his

businessman persona resettled over his features. “Are you certain
that’s what you want?”

“I am.” Quinn leaned incrementally closer even though Maxwell

didn’t seem to have a problem hearing him. “Be gentle. I’m a—”

“Virgin,” Maxwell finished for him. “Yes. I know.” There was no

smile this time. The look was all hunger and base animal need.

Quinn’s eyes went wide. “How did you know?”
“Because you’re my mate.”
Before Quinn could ask for an explanation, Maxwell turned him

so that his hips were against the table, and then he forced him down,
so his chest was pressed against the glass. Cool and slick, the surface
smoothed against his lightly oiled muscles. When Quinn looked
down, he saw a sea of faces, but the details were indistinct. He closed
his eyes, determined to know nothing other than Maxwell’s
possession.

Large hands that were perfectly manicured stroked over Quinn’s

back and buttocks. Maxwell traced along the lines of his tattoos then
over the ridges and valleys created by his muscles.

“Your body is a work of art.”
Quinn surged with pleasure. He’d worked hard to keep his body in

shape and found being appreciated was almost as enjoyable as
Maxwell’s kiss.

Onto the table, Maxwell placed the other end of the leash, coiling

it close to Quinn’s head. Was it a warning that Quinn was still bound,
or did he simply not need to keep control that way when Quinn was
quite willingly his captive? All thoughts left his mind when
Maxwell’s exploring fingers traced over Quinn’s bottom.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“Such a beautiful, tight, virgin ass.”
Quinn shivered. Somehow he was able to hear Maxwell so

clearly. Into his mind came a perfectly formed image of Maxwell bent
over his body, inspecting him, like the way an experienced merchant
will scrutinize goods before offering payment.

Into his massive hands, Maxwell cupped Quinn’s buttocks, and

then he parted them. The innocent hole he’d shown to the others he
now considered. For the longest time, Maxwell held very still behind
him, and all Quinn could do was speculate that he was examining his
hole with the same critical eye he’d used on the rest of his body.
There was a momentary panic that he might reject him, but Quinn
didn’t know why he should think such a thing. The longer Maxwell
kept his cheeks apart without speaking, without moving, without so
much as a breath of explanation pushed Quinn’s anxiety higher.

“My beautiful, tight, virgin ass.”
Quinn felt the words spoken against his pucker, which caused his

entire body to flex. Maxwell never lost his grip on Quinn’s buttocks.
He spoke the words again, whispering his hot breath over Quinn
seductively, causing his body to quiver with longing. And then,
Maxwell stroked his thumb over Quinn’s hole.

Against the table his cock twitched, and he moaned so loud that

surely everyone could hear him over the music. Not that he cared.
Maxwell teased his thumbs in a synchronized rhythm between
Quinn’s cheeks then against his hole, tipping the edges down so that
he almost, almost but not quite, penetrated.

“So sensitive. So sweet.” His breath added to the feeling of his

constantly moving thumbs.

It was almost as if he massaged that one tiny area. Maxwell

seemed determined to relax him completely before he launched a
pounding assault. When he changed the direction of his stroking
thumbs, Quinn tensed, which pressed his cock against the slick glass
of the table.

“Relax.”

Dangerous Alpha

Quinn tried to do as he was ordered but curiosity kept a low-level

tension in his entire frame. To distract himself from Maxwell’s
ministrations, Quinn tried to picture what he would look like to
someone below. If they looked up they could see his muscular body
and his cock-ring trapped prick through the glass table. And they
would see that he was utterly splayed out while Maxwell took his
time.

Quinn was ready for him right now. But he knew Maxwell wasn’t

finished teasing him. By the time Maxwell mounted him, Quinn
would be practically in tears begging for his prick.

Maxwell stepped between Quinn’s legs, nudging them wide with

his powerful thighs. Then he stepped back again. Quinn waited
breathlessly. He couldn’t see him, but Quinn sensed when Maxwell
lowered his face.

“All this is mine.” He rubbed his trim beard and mustache along

the now exquisitely sensitized flesh of Quinn’s bottom. Unable to
move or even to barely breathe, Quinn held himself so still he lost his
mind when Maxwell parted his cheeks almost viciously wide and then
buried his tongue in Quinn’s pucker.

Lifting his head, Quinn whimpered and arched his back,

presenting himself for mounting. He wanted Maxwell inside him so
desperately he moaned.

Maxwell ate at his ass the same way he ate at his mouth. His

tongue was hot and so slick, but all Quinn could think of was that he
needed his thick cock to claim him. Maxwell refused to be rushed. He
continued to tongue Quinn until his whimpers turned guttural. At that
point, Maxwell slid one finger inside.

“Is that good?”
Unable to speak, Quinn growled his pleasure. His thick finger felt

better than good. Rocking that digit in and out caused Quinn to hump
against the table. His tormented cock was only aggravated more when
pre-cum slicked against the glass, removing what little friction there
was.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“Tell me that you want me.”
“I want you.”
“Tell what you’d be willing to do to have me.”
Quinn was dumbfounded by the question, but an answer popped

readily to mind from some place, maybe that secret place, in his soul.
“I would give anything to have you.”

“Would you be willing to risk your life to be with me?”
“Yes.” Quinn didn’t hesitate. The answer tumbled from his lips as

he lifted his ass higher.

“Then I will tell you a little secret.” Maxwell continued to stretch

that tight ring of flesh until he was able to slip another finger inside.

Quinn uttered a long gasping cry of need. As distracted as he was

by what Maxwell was doing to his body, his mind waited desperately
to hear the Maxwell’s secret.

“I would willingly risk my life to possess you.” Maxwell slowed

the thrust of his fingers. “In fact, I think that is exactly what we will
both have to do.”

Awash in the powerful sensations Maxwell created in him, Quinn

felt no fear. If he had to suffer some challenge to have Maxwell, he
would. His entire life had been filled with trials. Why should this be
any different?

The music changed again, and most of the flashing lights stopped.

Now, all the slashes of light were the darkest of purple. When he
looked down and saw that anything white glowed eerily, he realized it
was a black light. Quinn wondered if Maxwell’s employees had
dimmed the lights to offer their boss some privacy, but then again, he
didn’t care if people watched. There was something so private about
what they were doing that even if those men below observed them,
they wouldn’t really see what they were doing. Almost as if what they
did together went beyond anything in their mortal world.

He’s a god, and he’s going to make me one, too.
And then, Quinn felt Maxwell moving behind him. There was a

long moment where he was alone, spread on the table like a banquet,

Dangerous Alpha

waiting for the king to select where he would start. When Maxwell
rubbed his cock into the crevasse of Quinn’s buttocks, he startled at
the sheer size of him.

“I won’t hurt you.” Maxwell placed a steadying hand low on

Quinn’s back. Rather than hurry, he rubbed his prick up and down in
time to the pulsing music until Quinn felt the beat down to the cellular
level. Each pass caused him to press the head against Quinn’s pucker,
but then he slid away. So close and yet so far. Whimpering and
squirming caused his cock to rub against the table, but when Maxwell
forcefully grabbed his hips and snarled for him to hold still, Quinn
complied instantly.

“I will take you when I am ready.”
Maxwell continued to rub his shaft against Quinn’s bottom, but

now he eased the head just a bit deeper each time. How in the world
did the man possess so much self-control? Each incremental press
inside drove Quinn into madness, but Maxwell seemed able to keep
going for days.

“You think this isn’t costing me? You think this doesn’t push me

to the brink of insanity? I’ve waited for you for years. I’ve hungered
for you for a lifetime. I would have sold my soul for just one kiss and
now, now I have your tender bottom tilted up for me, ready for my
cock, and you think it costs me nothing to hesitate?”

Quinn shook his head. He didn’t ask how Maxwell knew what he

was thinking. He’d been reading him clearly all night. Perhaps what
he’d thought earlier was true, that Maxwell was a god and he would
take Quinn with him. To bring him up to his lofty height, Maxwell
would first have to strip Quinn of his mortal body, and that included
taking a part of his rational mind away so that he could believe in
magic.

“That’s right.” Maxwell pressed harder this time and the knob

almost went inside. When it glanced past, Quinn whimpered, and
Maxwell met his cry of anguish with a growl of remorse. “You have
to surrender more than your body, Quinn. Give me your heart, your

Anitra Lynn McLeod

soul, the very secret recesses of your mind.”

If he knew how to do all that, he would, but Quinn could only lay

submissively on the table in front of Maxwell, digging his fingertips
into the cool glass to keep himself steady.

“Tell me.”
Quinn couldn’t believe it would be that simple.
“Tell me.”
Hesitantly, Quinn murmured, “I want you to claim my body with

your body. I want you to take my heart with your heart, and I want
you to bind my soul up with yours until we’re one.” Quinn had no
idea where the words had come from, but they were exactly what
Maxwell needed to hear.

On the next pass of Maxwell’s cock against the split of his

bottom, the head of his prick pressed into Quinn’s hole.

The invasion startled him, causing him to buck, but Maxwell

pressed his hand against Quinn’s lower back, holding him steady.
Maxwell’s breath came in short, sharp bursts that washed cool air
against Quinn’s overheated flesh. More and more of his cock slipped
inside, making him whimper at the pressure while Maxwell growled
with the pleasure of filling him.

Quite suddenly, Maxwell withdrew, and Quinn howled in dismay.

He turned his head to look back, and what he saw stunned him silent.
Maxwell’s jacket had been torn off and tossed aside. His crisp white
shirt was undone and glowed under the flashes of black light. His lips
were peeled back, exposing his gleaming teeth as he snarled. In this
moment he was part man, part god, part animal, and then he yanked
Quinn to the edge of the table, planted his cock to his hole, and
shoved.

Maxwell’s growl filled the entire club and shook the building

right down to the foundation. Lights exploded, showering sparks over
the stunned club goers who screamed and fled. Maxwell never missed
a beat. He stroked his cock in and out of Quinn as he held his hips
steady with his massive hands. While chaos erupted all around them,

Dangerous Alpha

Maxwell continued to claim Quinn, and Quinn remained passive,
luxuriating in the power of his mate. There was no pain. Only the
most powerful pleasure radiated through his body.

“Don’t you come, Quinn. I forbid you to climax.”
Quinn felt a tightening around his cock and balls, but both of

Maxwell’s hands were still on his hips. To do as Maxwell wanted,
Quinn paced his breathing. He didn’t know what Maxwell had in
mind, but he was bound to do as he desired.

Maxwell leaned over him, pressing him down into the table with

the power of his body. He placed his mouth against Quinn’s ear,
demanded his total surrender, which Quinn gave, and then Maxwell
bit his neck, below the thick collar, as he rocked his hips as fast as he
could go.

“That’s it, that’s what I need, that’s—oh, God!” When Maxwell

climaxed, he lifted his head and uttered a deafening howl. This time
the building shook so violently the windows shattered. Into his
upturned bottom, Quinn felt the powerful gushing tide of his lover’s
pleasure. Aftershocks caused Maxwell to pump a few more times in a
desperate bid to get his seed deeper, and then all went silent.

Breathing hard, Maxwell lifted himself up and off Quinn’s body,

pulled out his still-hard cock, and then turned Quinn over so that he
was now face up on the table.

In the dark, Quinn could only make out the outline of Maxwell,

but he didn’t need to see him to know what he was doing. Without
preamble, Maxwell yanked off the cock ring, wrapped his lips around
Quinn’s cock, and sucked him into a climax so powerful he passed
out.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Chapter 4

Maxwell wasn’t certain how he was going to explain the

destruction of his club to the insurance adjuster, but he figured he
would deal with that later. Right now, his mate was exhausted, and he
needed Maxwell’s tender loving care. After what he’d done to him, he
owed him a month of plush recovery. Sadly, they would have only
hours. Maxwell had to get him to the nexus, or everything they’d
done would be lost.

If he had stuck to his plan, Maxwell would have waited until he

and Quinn were closer to the man who could twin their souls, but
once Maxwell had laid his gaze on Quinn’s perfect ass, he hadn’t
been able to resist a taste. He’d wanted just one sample of that
delectable bit of flesh. And that was all he was going to do. Just lick
him and indulge in that sweet essence, but one taste had broken any
sense of self-control. He had to claim him as soon as possible. And
now he had to deal with what his impulsive decision had wrought.

From his pocket, Maxwell extracted his cell and called for his two

bodyguards. By the time they arrived, Maxwell was dressed and he’d
removed the leash and leather collar from Quinn’s neck. Maxwell
couldn’t help a satisfied grin that Quinn had turned out to be
beautifully submissive despite his status as an incredibly powerful
alpha male. That was just another part of what attracted him to Quinn.
Maxwell didn’t want to break him from that. No. Maxwell wanted
him alpha and submissive as that was the rarest of all creatures.
Knowing that he would want to play with the items again, Maxwell
placed all the accouterments into his briefcase and snapped it shut.

With the help of his men, he was able to carry Quinn down the

Dangerous Alpha

stairs and out the back to his waiting limo. As gingerly as they could,
they got Quinn in the back, and then they stayed behind to attend to
the disaster that Maxwell’s claiming had caused. He didn’t need to
speak, not when he’d told the two men what to expect earlier when he
and Quinn had arrived.

Maxwell chuckled. He’d told them what might happen but only

because he’d honestly thought he could control himself. Apparently,
three years was more than too long. Maxwell wetted a rag and then
gently cleaned up his mate. His powerful body was now so weak he
couldn’t even hold his head up. Seeing how drained Quinn was wiped
the smile right off his face. Even though Maxwell had been prepared
for this, the results were still shocking.

The only reason they hadn’t destroyed the building completely

was that Maxwell had preventing Quinn from climaxing with him.
Had he orgasmed at the same time, the power drain would have been
potentially devastating. By holding Quinn back, and taking his climax
into his body, Maxwell had equalized a bit of the energy. It wasn’t a
power exchange, exactly, but it was close.

“I promise to protect you from everything without and everything

within.” Maxwell covered Quinn with a blanket, cleaned himself up,
and then settled back for the long drive to Lone Pine. To get to their
destination, they had no choice but to pass through Twin Pines. The
men there would feel his and Quinn’s arrival. Once they realized
Maxwell’s intentions with Quinn, they would have no choice but to
try to stop him.

“This was why you weren’t supposed to claim your mate until you

were in Lone Pine.” Maxwell knew that berating himself now served
no purpose. Had he waited, their journey would have been an easy
one, but now they would have to fight off the members of Quinn’s
original sloth to get to the men of Maxwell’s pack.

Shame caused Maxwell to squirm in his plush leather seat. He

should have given Quinn a choice, but he was too afraid that he would
reject the idea of animal shifters all together. Quinn wouldn’t be the

Anitra Lynn McLeod

first. Somehow, in some way, Maxwell had to get Quinn to Lone Pine
and twin their souls without utter chaos breaking out around them.
Maxwell had no idea how he was going to manage that, but he would.

Quinn stirred, and Maxwell was at his side in an instant. “I’m

here,” he soothed, cupping Quinn’s head to his chest. “I’m here.”

“I feel sick.”
“I know, and I’m sorry.” Maxwell had expected Quinn to become

ill when their different beast souls bonded, but he hadn’t anticipated
something this dire. “It’s the tugging of our souls.”

“I gave my soul to you.” Quinn tilted his head and blinked up at

Maxwell with dreamy eyes.

“I know.” Maxwell kissed his forehead, startled by the heat and

sweat that pressed into his lips. “But there is another step we must
take to be together.”

“What step is that?” Quinn tried to sit up, but he was too weak to

do much more than lay limply in Maxwell’s arms.

“What we just did bonded our souls. Now, with the help of a

nexus, we will have our souls twinned.”

“Twinned?”
“Once that is accomplished, everything will become clear.”

Maxwell kissed him again. “You know that secret spot in your soul?”

“Yes. I thought you were going to open that up.”
“I will, but we have to twin our souls first.”
“Why?”
It was a simple question, but Maxwell couldn’t give him a better

answer than, “That’s the way it has always been with our kind.”

“Are you a god?”
“I am.”
“Will I be one, too?”
“You will.” To stop any further discussion about what they were,

Maxwell removed a bottle from the minifridge, opened the cap,
popped in a straw, then commanded Quinn to drink. He did so
eagerly.

Dangerous Alpha

“This water is so cold and sweet.”
“It comes from the mountain where our beasts’ souls were born. It

will help you acclimate to our bond.”

“I can feel others.”
“I know.” Maxwell felt them as well. Some were friend, and some

were foe. The closer they came to Twin Pines, the stronger that
sensation would become. Again he wondered how he would get past
them, but he thought he would simply have to deal with the situation
when it occurred. There was no sense trying to figure out what they
would do until they were confronted.

“Why are they angry?”
“You can feel that?” Maxwell surmised that they were furious, but

he couldn’t actually feel their ire.

“I feel like their hands are pulling at me, and their touch is red.”
There was a name for a blending of the senses. Synesthesia, if he

remembered correctly. There were those who could taste sounds or
see music as dancing spots of color. To him, it appeared Quinn was
experiencing the mental pull of his brethren as colors.

“Does it hurt?”
“It burns.” Quinn drank until the bottle was empty.
Maxwell would have given him more but feared he’d only throw

it up. When he felt his forehead again, he discovered that Quinn was
still so hot. Unfortunately, since the origin of the fever was mystical,
he didn’t think manmade chemicals would do a thing to lessen his
misery.

“What can I do, Quinn? What can I do to make you feel better?”
But Quinn was now incomprehensible. Maxwell wetted the cloth

and wiped him down, but he doubted his efforts did much to ease
Quinn’s suffering.

What made matters worse was that all of this was Maxwell’s fault.

If only he’d waited. If only he’d given Quinn a choice by telling him
exactly what he wished to do. If only he hadn’t been so greedy for a
twin that he was willing to steal one from another group of shifters.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“If I could trade places with you, I would.”
And then Maxwell realized he could take Quinn’s place. He’d

have to abandon everything he’d worked all these decades for. His
soul rebelled, which caused Quinn to moan low and cling helplessly
to Maxwell’s shoulders.

“Make it stop.” Quinn weakened more with each passing second.

“Please. Make it stop.”

The more Maxwell resisted the idea, the more he hurt Quinn. He

had no idea it would be this difficult to pull him from his destined
sloth. Had he known...oh, who was he kidding? He would have
continued anyway. Lust, longing, and love were powerful motivators.
And since he was the one who couldn’t resist, it was only fair that he
should have to pay the price.

Maxwell shook his head. “I’m going to make it stop.”
As much as his mind, body, and soul resisted, Maxwell dropped

all his shields and surrendered to the leader of the Twin Pines
Grizzlies. His yielding to Danny Jones startled him so much that
initially he withdrew, but eventually, he marched into Maxwell,
invading every recess of his mind. Danny’s anger was profound and
utterly justified. Haltingly, Maxwell explained what he had done, and
why. His goal was never to hurt Quinn or even them. All Maxwell
wanted was a mate. But to keep his mate alive, he needed their help,
and he needed it now. Maxwell threw himself on Danny’s mercy for
the sake of Quinn.

For a moment, Maxwell didn’t think he was going to help him,

but then their leader softened. Danny Jones had to forcefully cut off
the others from their rabble.

“It’s done,” Danny said to all the men who were mentally

connected. “We can’t undo their soul bond. We all know what
happened when two soul-bonded men tried to stay apart.”

Maxwell wasn’t privy to that information, but the other men in the

Twin Pines Grizzlies sloth seemed to know what Danny was referring
to. Apparently, it hadn’t been pretty.

Dangerous Alpha

“What’s done is done, so now we have to look at a way to fix this

mess.” Maxwell couldn’t see him, but he felt Danny Jones place his
hands on his hips. “And I don’t think Quinn is going to survive the
ride to Lone Pine, let alone a soul bonding with your group’s nexus.”

Maxwell reluctantly agreed.
“You’re going to come here.” Danny then told Maxwell where to

meet them.

“Thank you.” Quinn’s voice was stronger, and the high color had

faded a bit from his face. Apparently, just knowing that they were
joining his brothers was enough to reverse the energy drain. But
sadly, for every ounce of strength that Quinn gained, Maxwell lost the
same amount.

Through the intercom, Maxwell gave his driver new instructions,

and then he pulled Quinn close and rocked him as they sped through
the night toward Twin Pines.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Chapter 5

Quinn recognized the road that led into the valley of Twin Pines.

He swore that there had been a different plan, but then everything
went blurry when he tried to recall what had happened after the epic
claiming in the club. Not ever in his life had he expected them to
almost level a building. At first he had thought that perhaps Maxwell
had arranged for the events to impress and delight him, but Quinn
knew now that the exploding lights and shaking building were
entirely real. As to why the events occurred, well, he was still really
confused on that point.

“Maxwell?”
Maxwell was sitting next to him, but he was slumped in the seat,

pressing against the door. His face was red, his brow was sweaty, and
his body was as limp as the blanket swaddled around Quinn’s hips.

To cool him off, Quinn removed Maxwell’s jacket, his tie, and

then opened up his shirt. He tried not to run his fingers over the patch
of dark hair that begged for his touch. Now wasn’t the time to be
fondling him.

When Maxwell’s eyes fluttered, Quinn knew he was on the right

path. He looked around the back of the car, saw the minibar, found a
bottle of water, and opened it for Maxwell. At first he resisted, but
then he was drinking it down in mere gulps.

“Thank you.”
“What’s wrong with you?” Quinn fought off a feeling that he

shouldn’t ask because he really didn’t want to know.

“I cheated.”
Quinn frowned. They’d already been over that at the club. Quinn

Dangerous Alpha

had forgiven him because it didn’t really matter. He wanted to be with
Maxwell, and if that happened as the end result of a stupid bet, who
the hell cared? Certainly not Quinn.

“I told you then, and I’ll tell you now. I forgive you.” Quinn

found a moist cloth, poured fresh water on it, then held it against
Maxwell’s forehead. “I wanted to belong to you.”

Maxwell smiled. “I should have given you a choice.”
“You did.”
“No.” Even though the movement cost him dearly, Maxwell

turned so that he was facing Quinn. “I saw you when you were in
high school, and I knew then that I had to have you even though you
had a destiny apart from me.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” The first time Quinn had

ever seen Maxwell was in that sports bar in Denver. Had he seen him
before then, he certainly would have remembered. A man like
Maxwell didn’t step into his life every damn day.

“That secret spot of information, the one that you thought I could

open for you? There was actually another who was destined to unlock
your potential, but I took you before he could.” Maxwell shook his
head. “I’m so sorry. I’ve made a mess of this. I thought I could
balance out the energy, but I can’t.”

“Okay, you’re clearly hallucinating. I’m going to tell your driver

to get us to the hospital.”

“No!” Maxwell pushed Quinn’s hand away from the intercom

button. “We have to go to Danny.”

“Danny?”
“Danny Jones.”
“The waterboy for the football team?” Quinn knew Danny, loved

him as equipment manager, but what the hell could Danny do about
Maxwell’s illness?

“He’s going to try to fix the mess I made.”
“What mess?”
“I should have let you go.” Maxwell cupped Quinn’s chin.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Everything he’d felt in the club came rushing back. “But like an
animal, I couldn’t resist the lure of a prime mate.”

“I don’t understand.” Yet in some crazy way, Quinn almost did. It

was like the answer was right there, hovering just beyond his grasp.
But he realized that the more he questioned Maxwell, the weaker he
became, so he stopped. “Whatever happened, I forgive you. Okay?
Just relax. We’re going to be fine.”

As the limo made its ponderous way up the steep mountain drive

above Twin Pines, Quinn had no clue where they were going. For the
life of him Quinn couldn’t figure out why Danny would be all the way
up here. From what he remembered, looking up at the ridge in the
dark, there was only one house up here.

Glancing down at himself, Quinn realized he wore only a blanket.

He touched his neck and breathed a sigh of relief that Maxwell had
removed the collar. Explaining this to his teammates might be a little
awkward. Quinn looked all over the back of the limo, but he didn’t
find any extra clothing. He remembered having some when the night
began, but once he’d climbed into the enormous SUV that had come
to pick him up, he’d read a note from Maxwell that told him to
disrobe. He was pretty sure that Maxwell had some plan to clothe him
afterward, but that had changed when the situation changed. Quinn
looked toward the back of the limo and wondered if their might be
clothing for him in the trunk.

“Hell. Like it really matters.” Quinn felt like slapping himself. His

teammates had seen him naked in the shower about a million times.
And there was no way he was going to convince anyone that rough,
kinky sex hadn’t been a part of the evening’s events. They’d
practically leveled a building for God’s sake. Moreover, Quinn felt
the bite mark Maxwell had placed on his neck, and he was lightly
coated in oil. Obviously, the two of them hadn’t been out at the
movies.

At the top of the winding road, they entered a circular driveway

and pulled up to an enormous house. Quinn whistled lightly, which

Dangerous Alpha

roused Maxwell.

“Sorry.”
“It’s okay. The time has come to pay my due.” Maxwell leaned

close and kissed Quinn softly on the lips. “You were worth
everything.”

“Please tell me what’s going on.”
“Remember when I asked if you’d be willing to give up your life

to be with me?”

Quinn nodded.
“I’m willing to give up mine to be with you.”
“Please stop talking like that and tell me what’s going on.”
“Inside.” Maxwell pointed, and before Quinn could turn and see,

the door came open.

“Here, put these on.” Danny handed Quinn a pair of black sweats

with the Grizzlies’ logo on the hip. “We’re going to need you to bring
him inside.”

There were three guys behind Danny who could certainly help,

but when Danny leaned in and got too close to Maxwell, Danny and
Maxwell growled at one another. To his ever-loving shock, Quinn
snapped at Danny like a dog.

“I don’t want this to get ugly, but I think we’re probably too late

for that.” Danny moved back from the car door so that an elegant man
could bring a wheelchair forward.

“This was in the basement with some general clutter. Phillip

suggested the wheelchair might help the situation so that you don’t
have to touch him.”

“Thank you, Wilkins, you’re a godsend.”
Wilkins beamed.
“Would you help him?” Danny asked. “I think you’re the only one

who can get close without having a reaction.”

Dutifully, Wilkins, who Quinn suspected was the homeowner’s

butler, parked the wheelchair by the open car door then assisted
Quinn in getting Maxwell into the seat. The man didn’t so much as

Anitra Lynn McLeod

blink funny at Maxwell. Quinn had no urge to snap at him. Odd.
Quinn hadn’t felt like snarling at Danny until he’d growled at
Maxwell.

“Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?” Quinn

climbed out and pushed the chair, rolling Maxwell toward the double
hung doors of the entrance way. He noticed that Danny and the others
kept their distance from him and Maxwell as they all trooped into the
house.

“This is probably going to get really ugly, Quinn. But you have to

let us help you.” Danny sounded and appeared concerned. He also
seemed to be in charge, which Quinn found at once both fitting and
strange.

“Help me?” Quinn’s eyebrows rose. “I’m not the one who needs

help. Maxwell—”

“Caused this fucking mess by trying to claim a man from our

sloth!” Ryan Stone was so angry he was shaking. “He was trying to
turn you into a pet!”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Quinn was getting more

confused by the moment while Maxwell seemed to be getting sicker.

“Why do you think he put the collar on you and led you around in

front of his lupine friends?” Ryan took a step toward Quinn, which
started another round of growls and snaps. Quinn had heard about
alpha males behaving like animals, but he didn’t think of it in quite
such literal terms.

“Ryan, come along inside.” Quinn didn’t recognize the man, but

he was just a shade shorter than Ryan and extremely refined in
appearance. If Quinn had to guess, he figured he was the owner of the
estate. From the way he wrapped his arm around Ryan, he was also
obviously his boyfriend.

Quinn kept trying to get answers, but no one was forth coming.

Once they were inside the house, Quinn discovered that there were
even more men, most of them members of the football team. He
wasn’t so surprised to see them all hanging out together, just a little

Dangerous Alpha

stunned to see them all in these fancy digs. Quinn was also baffled as
to how they all apparently knew why Maxwell was sick, and why
Quinn kept snapping at them like a dog, but they wouldn’t tell him.
Feeling like he was the lone outsider was about to push him over the
edge. Quinn felt his hackles rising and his adrenaline flowing, tensing
his muscles. Curiously, this was the same feeling he’d had during that
vision when Maxwell had given him the water at the club.

“Calm down,” Danny said, lifting his palms open and out toward

Quinn. “We can help you, and we can help Maxwell.”

“Why do I sense a big but coming?” Quinn drew deep breaths

through his nose in an effort to tame his baser instincts. He wanted to
fight and run in fairly equal measures.

“Probably because we can help, but it’s going to get worse before

it gets better.” Danny kept his hands out. It was an odd posture for
him to take. It wasn’t submissive, and it wasn’t aggressive. Danny’s
posture seemed to find a perfect neutral balance between the two
stances.

“Goddamn it. Stop speaking to me in platitudes! That’s exactly

what Maxwell was doing on the way here.” And then part of Quinn’s
muddy memory clarified. “Wait. I was sick like he is now, and then
something happened, he did or said something. After that, he started
getting sick, and I started feeling better.”

“Because rather than trying to pull you into his pack, we’re going

to try to pull him into our sloth.” Danny tucked his longish hair back
behind his ear.

“Which is ridiculous.” Ryan Stone placed his hands on his hips.

His posture was all hostile and defensive. Quinn suppressed an urge
to snap at him, which he did, but only by gritting his teeth.

“I don’t see another choice.” Danny sighed. “We can’t undo their

soul bond. If we don’t do something, one or both of them might die.”

Would you be willing to risk your life to be with me?
Maxwell’s question at the club tumbled through Quinn’s mind.

Quinn had answered yes even though he didn’t understand. Even

Anitra Lynn McLeod

here, now, with no answers, Quinn was still willing to risk anything to
be with Maxwell. He’d wanted him before they’d fucked like wild
animals on that table, and he still wanted him even if he had to dance
in fire to get him. This craving for Maxwell started long before they’d
bonded their souls. If that’s what they’d done on that glass table.
Quinn had a gut feeling that’s exactly what he and Maxwell had done,
but he need more than feelings. He needed clear, definitive answers.

“If someone doesn’t start making sense, I’m leaving here and

taking Maxwell to a hospital.” Quinn glanced behind him and saw
that Maxwell’s limo was sitting right where they’d left it.

“Normally, men like you, like me”—Danny pointed to himself—

“we have a twin.”

“I don’t have a brother,” Quinn pointed out.
“Not that kind of twin. More like twin as in part of a pair. Men

like us have a soul mate, a man we’re destined to soul bond with.”

“Like what Maxwell and I did in the club?”
“Yes. After we’ve done that, we have our souls twinned to that

mate. This locks us together and gives us certain abilities.”

None of that sounded bad at all. Still, Quinn felt there was a lot

more coming. “Abilities like what?”

“Like shifting into an animal form. In our case, bears.”
And then Quinn remembered a grizzly bear in the back of the

equipment truck at their first away game. A bear that had been sitting
on its big, shaggy butt, and then it turned into Danny and Matthew.
Quinn hadn’t recalled that event until now. It was almost as if he’d
hidden the incident away, burying it like a repressed memory.

“So, to fix this, all we have to do is have our souls twinned?”

Quinn felt the inherent truth of that, but again, he felt there was a
catch.

“The problem with you and Maxwell soul bonding is that

Maxwell isn’t your twin. He’s your mirror.” Danny spoke as if they
were discussing something as normal as the weather when it was
anything but.

Dangerous Alpha

“My what?” Quinn was getting a headache.
“We’re still piecing this together, so bear with me.”
There was a snicker in the back, and someone elbowed Derek,

jostling him hard enough to tousle his platinum-blond hair. “He said
bear with me, and we’re bear shifters. Come on. We need to lighten
this up.”

“Derek is warped, but right.” Matthew stepped forward and

slipped his hand into Danny’s. “We need to get Dylan over here and
see what he can feel.”

“Finish explaining!” Quinn felt that curious secret place in his

soul quiver as if the barrier was ready to burst open.

“Just say it, Danny,” Tyler Morgan encouraged. “See what

happens.”

“And if it kills him?” Whatever argument they were having,

Danny had just won.

“You’re part of our sloth of bear shifters, Quinn. Before a man

becomes a member, we start to feel him and his twin tugging on one
another. We didn’t feel your soul. We had no idea you were one of us
until tonight.” When Quinn opened his mouth to interrupt, Danny
waved him off. “Please. I’m doing my best to explain.” After a deep
breath, Danny continued. “Maxwell is part of a similar group of men,
but he belongs to a pack of wolf shifters.”

“He’s a wolf, and I’m a bear?” Quinn looked down at Maxwell.

He was out cold, slumped in the chair, breathing shallowly. Quinn’s
heart broke to see him so sick.

“Apparently, and again, this is the best we’ve been able to piece

together since Maxwell contacted us. He is in your same position in
his pack. That’s why he’s more your mirror than your twin.” Danny
shook his head, apparently frustrated at his inability to explain.
“Maxwell mirrors you in position, drive, ability—the only real
difference is age.”

Quinn peered down at Maxwell. They were both six foot two and

two hundred and twenty pounds. They were both dark-haired and

Anitra Lynn McLeod

light eyed and had very similar features. But, for all he could tell,
Maxwell was only a few years older than he was.

“I think he is from one of the original packs that was formed when

my original sloth was formed.” It was the refined man who was dating
Ryan Stone. “I believe Maxwell is over one hundred and sixty years
old.”

Quinn felt his eyebrows climb. Out of everything he’d been told,

why was he having the hardest time accepting this one fact? Bear
shifting? Sure. Soul bonding and twinning? You bet! But the man
who’d fucked him senseless and practically demolished a building
was almost eight times as old as he was? This was the fact where his
ravaged brain drew a line.

“I know this is a lot to absorb in a very short time.” Danny

seemed on the verge of stepping forward but stopped himself at the
last moment. “I need you to trust me.”

“Why should I? You and Maxwell growled at one another. That

can’t mean anything good.” Of course since Danny was a bear and
Maxwell was a wolf, their reaction to one another made a lot more
sense. However, it begged the question, what the hell was Quinn?

Danny took a step and asked Quinn to take one toward him. After

a moment to consider, Quinn took that step. Danny took another, and
so did Quinn. When they were about three feet from one another,
Danny reached out and Quinn took his hand.

“Do you feel a need to snap at me?” Danny asked.
“No.” Quinn squeezed his hand. “I want to protect you.”
Danny smiled gently. “I feel that way toward you. So you see, we

are brothers.”

“So I am a bear?”
Danny nodded.
“Then what was that with Maxwell in the car?”
“He’s not my brother,” Danny said. “He’s competition.”
“Maxwell wouldn’t hurt you. He wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
“It’s not him, exactly. It’s his inner beast. In the wild, wolves and

Dangerous Alpha

grizzlies compete for resources.”

“But we’re not in the wild.”
“No, but we still have that animal in our souls. We think now,

rather than competing in the wild, we compete on the gridiron.”

“We play football to compete with other shifter groups?”
“That’s one of our guesses. We’re not really certain at this point.”

Danny gave his hand a last squeeze and let go. “There’s a lot we don’t
fully understand.”

“Then why is it I don’t want to growl at him if I’m a bear?”
“That would be one of the things we simply don’t know. You two

shouldn’t have been attracted to one another. It’s like a cat and a dog
hooking up.” Danny shrugged. “It’s not supposed to happen, but
somehow the lines got crossed.”

“Maxwell asked if I’d be willing to risk my life to be with him.”
“And you said yes.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because Maxwell surrendered to me. I’m the leader of my sloth.

Had he not surrendered, I would have had no choice but to fight him
to get you back. But he surrendered, putting himself at my mercy.”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Chapter 6

“And are you going to show him mercy?” Quinn’s voice trembled

ever so slightly, giving anyone with half an ear a clear indication of
his emotional vulnerability.

As much as Maxwell wanted to hear Danny’s answer, he was also

concerned that what Danny said and what he actually ended up doing
could be two different things. Danny wasn’t a fool. He was a strong
leader with the full backing of his men. But Danny was also a
thoughtful leader. He didn’t dictate or order the others around. By
respecting their opinions and giving them fair weight, Danny
cultivated the respect of his men. Maybe that was part of Maxwell’s
pack’s problem—a leader who was a little too enchanted with
himself. But that was an issue better left alone at the moment.

“I gave Maxwell my word that I would do my best to find a way

to resolve this.” There was a long pause, and then Danny finished, “I
am a man of my word.”

Maxwell gave an internal sigh of relief. He believed Danny. He

wasn’t like any man Maxwell had ever met. Even though they were
two different species, and they were destined to be at odds, Maxwell
discovered he’d rapidly developed an abiding respect for Danny
Jones.

“What are we going to do?” Quinn came back to Maxwell’s side.

When he did, Maxwell felt instantly stronger. Just as Danny said,
there was no undoing their bond. One way or another, they had to see
this through to the end.

In an effort to protect himself in the only way he could, Maxwell

played sicker than he was to present the weakest possible target. He

Dangerous Alpha

didn’t want to do anything to make a volatile situation worse. With
Danny’s gentle declaration, though, Maxwell didn’t feel a need to
continue with his charade.

Reaching out, Maxwell clasped Quinn’s hand.
Instantly alert, Quinn dropped to his knees and peered into

Maxwell’s face. His pale blue eyes were filled with worry, making
him even more vulnerably beautiful.

“Are you feeling better?” Quinn pressed his free hand to

Maxwell’s forehead.

“Much. I just need to be near you.”
“I won’t let go.” Quinn squeezed his hand.
“You might have to.” Maxwell casually looked up at Danny

Jones. “I take you at your word, but even I know what you’re thinking
might not work.”

“Well, Mr. Interloper, if you have a better idea, why don’t you

spit it out?” Ryan Stone was still so angry he practically vibrated.
Maxwell had picked out his name from the tentative connection he
had to Danny Jones. By giving Danny the right to infiltrate all of
Maxwell’s thoughts, he was also able to read Danny’s surface
thoughts. Only simple things, though. Like names and such. Maxwell
wasn’t able to read anything that would give him an advantage, not
that he was feeling the need to find one. Right now he had to trust that
he’d done the right thing in coming here.

Maxwell lifted his free hand, mimicking the open-handed gesture

that Danny had made. “I don’t have a better idea. And I’m sorry for
what I’ve done.” Maxwell turned his attention onto Ryan’s boyfriend.
Without reading Danny’s thoughts, Maxwell knew Phillip Remson.
Phillip, like Maxwell, was the last of their kind from the first shifter
groups. “I waited so long for a mate. When I saw Quinn, there was no
hope of turning my eye anywhere else.”

Phillip gave a curt nod.
“What the fuck?” Ryan took a step away from his twin. “Are you

agreeing with what he’s done?”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“No, but I understand.” Phillip sighed. “He was compelled by

forces beyond what we can grasp.”

“He was compelled by getting himself one of us as a pet!” Ryan

took a half step toward Maxwell. Phillip yanked him back before
Quinn could react.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake! He wasn’t trying to make me a goddamned

pet. He was dominating me, you moron.” Quinn turned red and glared
at the floor. “I wanted him to.”

“He cheated on that bet,” Ryan pointed out.
“I know. He told me. When I made the bet, I knew I was going to

lose.”

There was a long stretch of silence.
Quinn glanced at Maxwell. “I knew. I didn’t care. I wanted to be

with you just as much as you wanted to be with me. But if I would
have just come out and said so, I couldn’t keep that little feeling in the
back of my mind that you were making me do something that I
secretly wanted to do.” Quinn shook his head. “And yes, I know how
utterly asinine that sounds.”

“No. Not at all.” Maxwell lifted and kissed their joined hands.
“So,” Quinn said, turning back to Ryan. “Can we drop this pet shit

and get on with fixing this so neither one of us has to die?”

There was a look a cold, dead fury on Ryan’s face. Maxwell

recognized that look. That was the expression of an animal that
simply wasn’t going to stop. One way or another, Ryan was not going
to rest until he’d destroyed Maxwell. A flash of insight clarified why.
“He was supposed to be part of your bear twin.”

“What?” Ryan tried to take that half step again, but Phillip

forcefully cut him off. For all his refined looks, Phillip was no pansy.
There were just as many muscles lurking under his dress clothes as
there were under Maxwell’s.

“Quinn would have been part of your quatrain bond. With me

stepping in, you can’t have that with him.” Maxwell felt that truth
down to his toes. “Or, maybe you still can. However, to have him,

Dangerous Alpha

you’ll have to accept me. That’s what’s got you so riled up. You don’t
want to accept me because I’m a wolf.”

Ryan’s face twitched, and his fists opened and closed in rapid

succession.

“Jesus.” Danny stood directly in between Maxwell and Ryan.

“Ryan is going to force Phillip to shift!”

Maxwell dropped Quinn’s hand, stood, and tried to run for the

door, but he was too weak to get more than ten feet before he
collapsed again. Well, at least there was one benefit. The marble tile
was blessedly cool against his overheated body.

“Get Ryan out of here before we have a blood bath in Phillip’s

foyer,” Danny commanded.

Mathew Edwards, Danny’s twin, walked right over to Ryan, bent

down, and flipped him over his shoulder. Ryan struggled but there
wasn’t much he could do against the massive linebacker. However, it
was Phillip who calmed Ryan with murmured words. The three of
them went off down the hall and the tension in the entranceway
dropped by more than half.

“I’m sorry.” Maxwell felt idiotic. It seemed to be all he could

offer them. He’d made a mess of their lives and all he could do was
give them a pathetically weak apology.

“The situation is what it is. Getting angry and frustrated isn’t

going to help matters.” Danny turned and watched as the three men
disappeared. “But that does explain why Ryan has been so furious.
You do realize what you’ve cost him?”

“I do now.” Maxwell had cost Ryan a potential mating partner. If

Quinn had gone along on the path fate had in store for him, Quinn and
his bear-shifting twin would have mated with Ryan and Phillip. Now
that Quinn was mated to a wolf, there was no guarantee that the four
of them—Maxwell, Quinn, Phillip, and Ryan—could mate in animal
form. With Quinn’s help, Maxwell got back into the wheelchair.

“Okay, let’s give this a try. If anyone else has an issue with trying

to merge Maxwell into our sloth, I want you to leave now. I don’t

Anitra Lynn McLeod

want Dylan distracted by anyone.”

None of the other guys left. They did, however, keep their

speculative gazes on Maxwell. He had a feeling if he did anything
untoward, they were going to eat him. Swallowing hard, Maxwell
reached up and clasped Quinn’s hand.

From behind the row of men came Dylan Peterson. He was big,

bald, and looked very unhappy at having to come within striking
distance of Maxwell. He edged toward him, waiting for Maxwell to
growl at him, but Maxwell didn’t feel any urge to do so. In fact, the
closer Dylan came, the better Maxwell felt.

“What is Dylan going to do?” Quinn asked.
“He’s what we call the nexus. If your soul and Maxwell’s soul are

clamoring to twin, he’ll feel it.”

Tentatively, Dylan came another step closer.
“Well?” Tyler asked.
“Give him a damn minute to get situated,” Danny snarled. When

he realized what he’d done, Danny closed his eyes and shook his
head. “Oh, shit. I’m sorry, Tyler. I’m edgy. Just please, give him a
chance to cut through his fear and see what he can feel.”

“I’m not afraid,” Dylan said, glaring at Danny.
“Again, my apologies. Just please, tell me when you’re ready.”

Danny’s worry was starting to show. This could hurt a member of his
sloth, but it might also destroy his nexus. Without one to twin souls,
their sloth would stagnate and die. From what Maxwell was able to
gather, that’s what happened to the original animal-shifting groups.

“I feel a tugging, but it’s different.” Dylan moved closer at such a

slow pace Maxwell had to bite his lips not to growl at him to hurry
up. Being impatient wasn’t something Maxwell felt often, but right
now, he felt like his soul was practically screaming to fully connect to
Quinn. That Dylan felt only a mild tugging was not a good sign. Well,
there was one bright spot. If Maxwell really had fucked this up
beyond repair, he wasn’t going to live long to regret it. Before he
could feel relief at that thought, he realized Quinn wouldn’t live long,

Dangerous Alpha

either.

Maxwell tightened his grip on Quinn’s hand.
Quinn gave him a squeeze then turned his attention onto Dylan,

who took another step.

“It’s stronger, but there’s something really odd about the energy.”
“Yeah, he’s a wolf,” Derek said. “Bears and wolves don’t mix

well.”

“I don’t know if that’s it.” Dylan came closer and his frowned

deepened. “Do you feel anything from me?”

Since Dylan posed the question to Quinn, Maxwell kept his mouth

shut. Quinn shrugged and said, “Not really, but I don’t know what to
feel for. Does it burn or tickle or what?”

Dylan couldn’t answer as he didn’t know and none of the guys

behind him seemed able to explain what the sensation was like, so
Maxwell cleared his throat and said, “I feel more peaceful when
you’re closer, Dylan. However, I don’t feel like I did the first time I
was twinned.”

Quinn’s hand tightened against Maxwell’s. “You’ve done this

before?” He looked and sound pissed off. “Then where’s your soul-
bond-twin-love-of-your-life now?”

Maxwell looked Quinn right in the eye. “He’s dead.”
“Oh.” Quinn’s ire evaporated instantly. “I’m sorry.”
Maxwell nodded then turned his attention to Dylan. “Can you

twin us?”

“I can try.” Dylan didn’t sound that enthusiastic.
“Wait.” Derek stepped forward. “Why are we risking our nexus?

Doesn’t his group have one?” Derek pointed at Maxwell.

There was a long pause of consideration.
“Why don’t we get him to try?” Derek suggested.
“Because that might pull Quinn into their group and we’d lose

him.” Danny’s brows lowered in thought.

“But it might not,” Tyler said.
“There are too many buts and maybes and I-don’t-fucking-knows

Anitra Lynn McLeod

with this.” Danny sighed. “This is why—” He cut himself off from
finishing, but Maxwell had a pretty good idea of what Danny had
been about to say. This is why I didn’t want to be the leader. Because
sometimes the leader had to make the tough calls that got people hurt.
Maxwell didn’t envy Danny in the least. Although, he had gained a
new appreciation for the leader of his pack. Dealing with a bunch of
testosterone laden alpha males had to get wearisome if not downright
dangerous.

Matthew returned and wrapped his arm around Danny’s shoulder.

“What can I do?”

As clear as it was that Danny wanted to lean on his much larger

twin, he didn’t. He hugged him and drew strength from him, but
Danny no more expected Matthew to fix the situation than he
expected anyone else to.

“Get everyone together. We’re going on a road trip.”
“Woo-hoo! Road trip!” Derek punched his fist in the air.
“I don’t think it’s going to be that kind of road trip,” Brandon

murmured.

“Okay, look, just because this is all tense and different doesn’t

mean we have to be a bunch of quivering dipshits.” Derek looked
around at his brothers. “I get that this is serious, but I also get that
being all uptight is only going to make it worse.”

“Again, he’s warped, but right.” Danny hugged Matthew. “We

need to contact your pack leader.”

“That’s where you want to go?” Maxwell’s eyebrows rose. “If all

of you go stomping into Lone Pine, there really is going to be blood
bath.” Only when there was a football game underway were
competing shifter groups allowed into another group’s territory.

Danny shook his head. “We’re not going to stomp into their

territory. We want to meet them in a neutral area. Somewhere halfway
between our two territories.”

“And what good will that do?” Maxwell already knew there was a

heap of bad feelings over the fact the Twin Pines Grizzlies had bested

Dangerous Alpha

the Lone Pine Wolves. Not just once, but twice. And by a massive
margin both times. Maxwell’s brethren were proud creatures, and
those losses were embarrassing. In fact, several of the men had
dropped out of college just to get away from the shame that marked
the football team at Lone Pine College.

“I think if we have our nexus and your nexus work together, we

might be able to twin you.” Danny kept his voice even. He wasn’t
dictating a decision but offering out a solution.

“That’s fucking brilliant!” Matthew kissed the top of Danny’s

head. “See? This is why you’re the leader.”

“Just because it’s a good idea doesn’t mean it will work,” Danny

pointed out, but it was clear he loved Matthew’s support.

“Yeah,” Maxwell said. “For all we know, it will kill both nexuses,

Quinn, and myself.” As soon as the words left his mouth, Maxwell
wanted to slap himself. Danny’s idea was a good one, and he’d just
crapped all over it without offering up a solution of his own.

“You got a better idea?” Derek strode forward but stopped when

Matthew lowered one massive arm like a toll booth lever. “I’m all for
lightening up but not at the expense of you taking potshots at the guy
who is busting his hump trying to clean up your fucking mess.”

“Derek, back off.” Danny kept his voice light. “I can fight my

own battles.”

“I know, but he’s being an ass.” For as easygoing as Derek

presented himself, he was still fiercely loyal.

“I’m sorry.” Maxwell sighed. Maybe he should just write that on

his forehead so rather than saying it he could just point. “I do think
it’s a good idea. And I honestly appreciate everything you’ve done.”

“Good.” Danny nodded definitively. “Then we’re decided.” He

turned and looked at Derek. “Would you please get Phillip? We’re
going to need enough cars for all of us.”

“Let’s all just pile in the fancy limo there.” Derek pointed out the

stained glass doors.

“Not if we don’t want to have a blood bath in there. I think it best

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if only Dylan ride with them.”

“What? Why?” Dylan didn’t look thrilled with the idea.
“It might strengthen your connection to them.”
“But, well, what if...”
“It’s clear they aren’t going to hurt you,” Danny reassured Dylan.
“It is?” Dylan gave Maxwell a wary once over.
“You’re our only hope,” Maxwell admitted. “I would no more

hurt you than I would hurt Quinn.”

Dylan’s gaze shifted to Quinn, who said, “You’re my brother. I

don’t want to hurt you, especially not if you can help us.”

Obviously still worried, Dylan softened a bit. For all that the man

looked like a skinhead or a thug, he was remarkably tenderhearted.

“Okay.” Dylan retrieved his book bag and coat from the front

closet. “Let’s get you in the car.”

Quinn pointed to the pack. “You’re going to study on the way?”
“I have a test tomorrow, and while all this is fascinating, I want to

go on to medical school.”

“Hey,” Quinn said lifting his hands. “I was just asking.”
“Sorry. Everyone always thinks I’m a moron and a homophobe

when I’m neither.”

Maxwell kept his mouth shut as he was helped into the back of his

limo. He understood how people could make such a knee-jerk
assessment of Dylan. It was sad, but people made mistakes like that
all the time. If Maxwell was dressed in one of his impeccable suits,
people never considered him dangerous. But should he happen to be
wearing his workout gear, he was mistaken for a thug. Something
about his size, or maybe it was the beard and mustache. Dressed in his
custom suits, he still gave people the willies, but they were less likely
to think he was a criminal. And Quinn, God. With his almost bald
head and decorative tattoos, he probably scared the crap out of people
who didn’t know him.

“Sadly, there isn’t much any of us can do about those erroneous

first assumptions.” Maxwell looked at Dylan but then swept his gaze

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back along the entrance way until he caught Danny’s attention. “All
we can do is show who we are by how we behave and how we treat
others.”

Danny offered him a slight nod.
“We’ll need to be closer for me to communicate with my group.”
Again, Danny nodded. It was clear that Matthew wanted to say

something, but he refrained. Frankly, Matthew didn’t have to state
what they were all thinking.

They as a group had no reason to trust Maxwell. By the same

token, Maxwell as an individual had no reason to trust them as a
group. At the moment, they had a tremulous agreement because they
both wanted the same thing.

“I will do anything to protect Quinn.” Maxwell kept his gaze

locked on Danny. “Even if I have to sacrifice my life for him.”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Chapter 7

Quinn settled into the limo across from Maxwell. “I’m not going

to let you do that. You’re not going to die to save me.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” After even the minor effort

of getting into the car, Maxwell was exhausted and slumped against
the door.

Dylan looked at all the room in the back then climbed in. He

chose a part of the smaller bench seat near the driver that put him the
greatest distance away from where Quinn and Maxwell were. Quinn
wasn’t sure if he did this to give them privacy or to maintain his own
sense of safety. Not that the detail mattered. Even though they were in
the same car, Dylan was far enough away that Quinn and Maxwell
had a certain amount of privacy. Such was the advantage of a stretch
limo.

In short order, the other men of Quinn’s sloth exited the house and

filled up a regular-sized limo, a town car, and a sports car. Quinn
noted that only Ryan and Phillip got into the sleek sports car. Even
through thick steel and glass, Quinn felt Ryan’s fury at what he’d
been denied. Quinn didn’t understand all the details, but something
about not being able to bond to him ruined something extremely
important to Ryan. As sorry as Quinn was for that, he also didn’t have
any control over matters of the heart.

Quinn knew without one doubt that if he were handed a chance to

go back in time and change what he’d done by surrendering to
Maxwell, he wouldn’t do one damn thing differently. Quinn had
fallen in love with Maxwell the moment their eyes locked across that
loud, crowded, and smoky sports bar. Something beyond the ordinary

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compelled him to Maxwell’s side. Oh, there was the bet, that they
both now openly admitted was crap, but there was something else
driving them toward one another.

A bear and a wolf. Quinn pictured the two animals in his mind. In

some ways, they couldn’t be more different, but in other ways, they
couldn’t be more similar. Wrapping his head around the difference
between he and Maxwell, using the example of a cat and a dog, made
Quinn grasp what happened at Maxwell’s club. They had literally
defied the laws of nature to be together. Quinn couldn’t stop a
triumphant smile from working its way across his face.

“You’re not going to die for me. And I’m not going to die for

you.” Quinn moved so that he was sitting next to Maxwell. “That
would be stupid after everything we went through. Well, more you
than me. But now that we’re in this fix, we’re in this together.”

Maxwell turned his head. He gazed at him with that same oddly

detached expression just like he had while rubbing Quinn’s bottom
lip. Determined to provoke a reaction, Quinn placed his hand on
Maxwell’s thigh. Ever so slowly Maxwell’s lids lowered and the
depth of his hazel eyes turned smoky.

“You are playing with fire.” Maxwell kept his eyes riveted to

Quinn’s.

“Am I?” Quinn challenged.
After giving instructions to his driver, Maxwell closed the divider

with the press of one thick finger. Quinn realized it was probably the
same digit Maxwell had used to prepare his tight ass for Maxwell’s
cock. Quinn had no doubt that Maxwell had cleaned up after their
adventure, especially since he had vague memories of Maxwell
tenderly cleaning him before wrapping him in the blanket.

Maxwell casually glanced toward Dylan, and Quinn followed his

gaze, but Dylan was turned away, tucked behind the edge of the bar,
with his nose buried in a book. Just to make it real clear he wasn’t
remotely interested in them, Dylan pulled an MP3 player from his
pocket and popped ear buds in his head. In effect, Quinn and Maxwell

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were alone in the back of the enormous limo.

“So, about this fire.” Quinn slid his hand up to the juncture of

Maxwell’s thigh.

“Are you taking advantage of me when I’m weak?” Maxwell

moved closer to the door, cutting them off from Dylan’s sight line
entirely.

“I am.” Quinn leaned into him. “Are you going to cry foul?”
“Maybe.” Maxwell settled his back against the door and then

steadied his stance by planting his legs with his feet flat on the floor.
It was a fighter’s position, a defensive combatant’s posture. “Depends
what you have in mind.”

Quinn had a sudden image of Maxwell bent over a table, bare, his

body splayed out for Quinn’s lustful hands. Parting his cheeks, Quinn
would slide his tongue along the cleft of his bottom in taunting
strokes until Maxwell angled up submissively. Once he did, Quinn
would do to him exactly what Maxwell had done to Quinn in his club.
Quinn would tongue fuck his ass until Maxwell whimpered in
surrender, and then he’d slide in a finger, then another, all leading up
to the ultimate slipping in of his cock.

My virgin cock up his virgin bottom.
The thought echoed around in Quinn’s brain and clearly filled

Maxwell’s, too, given how his eyes went wide and he leaned forward
suddenly.

“Keep your inner voice down.” Maxwell looked back at the cars

following behind them.

“You’re a virgin?”
Maxwell didn’t answer. Instead, he kept his gaze directed out the

back window of his limo.

“After all these...decades?” For some insane reason, Quinn still

couldn’t wrap his head around Maxwell’s age. How could this man,
who looked no older than him, but for maybe a handful of years, be
over one hundred and sixty?

“I’m a Dom. What did you expect?” Maxwell tried to plaster that

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unemotional mask on his face, but he couldn’t this time. Little edges
of the truth kept slipping through. His lids would lift fast then settle.
His head would duck, and then he’d lift it defiantly. But most telling
of all was how he squirmed against his rich leather seat, almost as if
he were settling himself down to protect that most sacred area.

“I guess I didn’t know what to expect.” Quinn deliberately slid

away from Maxwell. “But I guess you’re going to stay exactly as you
are.”

Maxwell looked at the distance between their powerful bodies,

frowned, then turned his attention back out the window without
saying a word.

“How very strange,” Quinn pondered aloud.
“What?”
“You swore you’d give up your life for me, but you would really

rather die than lose your virginity.” Quinn paused for just a second.
“Well, the very last bit of your virginity.” He sighed. “Not that I
blame you. I imagine hanging on to something like that for over one
hundred and some odd years must mean it’s damn important to you.”

There was such a long stretch of silence between them Quinn

thought that the issue was at an end. Maxwell wasn’t going to say
anything, and Quinn had no other ammunition to lob. So rather than
push, he retreated. Crossing his arms over his chest, Quinn pondered
silently to himself what good twinning their souls would do when
Maxwell was bound and determined to keep himself one step above
the man he supposedly loved?

“You want my unmitigated surrender?” Maxwell didn’t outright

reject the idea, which gave Quinn hope. At the moment, he seemed to
be toying with the notion of giving in to Quinn. Not because he was
in anyway submissive. Maxwell verbally agreed to explore the idea,
almost as if by even considering the notion he were doing Quinn a
favor. That condescending attitude sparked something very dark in
Quinn’s erotic soul.

“I don’t want your surrender.” Quinn laughed and moved

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incrementally away.

“No?” Maxwell’s brows collided, and he turned his intense gaze

onto Quinn’s face.

“No.” Quinn shook his head. “I won’t demand anything from

you.”

Maxwell’s frown only deepened.
They were silent for a long time. The limo was unbelievably

smooth. To Quinn, it was almost as if they slicked over ice on skates.
He considered the elaborate display of wealth that rocketed him
through the dark toward a destiny that he was just now beginning to
grasp. For the first time, Quinn understood that fate only had so much
of a say in his destiny.

“There’s no breaking our soul bond, is there?”
Maxwell startled at the question then settled back. “No. None that

I or any of the others know of.” He waited for almost a full minute
before he hesitantly asked, “Why?”

“It’s a forever kind of thing, this bond that we’re planning on

doing, right?”

“Yes.” Maxwell slid across the seat toward Quinn. “I thought you

wanted that. I thought—”

“I thought we were going to be equals.”
Maxwell didn’t move forward or back. It appeared to Quinn that

the closer they came to the midway meeting point between Twin
Pines and Lone Pine, the more energetic Maxwell felt. Quinn noticed
a tugging on his energy, but by the same token, he felt an increase in
his testosterone. Fight or flight played havoc with his nerves.

“What do you want from me, Quinn? Don’t play games.”
Quinn closed the distance between them and put his hand back

where it had been earlier, right against the juncture of Maxwell’s
thigh and hip.

“I want you to give me exactly what I gave you.”
“You want my virginity?”
Truculently, Quinn lifted his head. “I do.” Quinn placed his palm

Dangerous Alpha

possessively against Maxwell’s cock.

Maxwell’s nostril’s flared.
“Are you going to fight me?” Quinn asked.
Hazel eyes narrowed as Maxwell focused intently on Quinn’s

face. “What if I say yes?”

“Then I’ll take you down.” Below his hand, Maxwell’s cock

twitched. For the life of him, Quinn didn’t think Maxwell had ever
been challenged like this. Not if he still had his ass cherry after
sixteen decades.

“Do you think you can take me down?”
Giving him a squeeze, Quinn murmured, “I know I can.”
“Only because I’m at a disadvantage.”
“Oh, Maxwell.” Quinn leaned over as if he would kiss Maxwell,

but at the last moment he veered off and chuckled into his ear. “Is that
what you’re going to tell yourself to salvage your ego?”

Maxwell snarled and grasped Quinn’s hand. With very little effort

he managed to press Quinn against the opposite door and hold him
there with his powerful body. Quinn offered not one ounce of
resistance.

Puzzled, Maxwell let him go then retreated to his side of the

bench seat. “What the hell is this?”

“I’ve changed my mind.” Quinn stretched then leaned over to

grab a bottle of water out of the minifridge. He wrenched open the
cap and then sipped it as if he had all the time in the world because,
he realized, he did.

“Changed your mind about what?”
“I’m not going to fight you to claim what’s rightfully mine.”

Quinn took a long drink. “You’re going to give it to me, or this isn’t
going to go any further than it already has.”

Maxwell startled forward then caught himself. “You’ll put

innocent people at risk.”

Quinn shrugged.
“All of your brothers are following us toward what should be the

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first peaceful interaction between our kind.”

Again, Quinn shrugged.
“You could start a chain reaction that—”
“You started this,” Quinn said, pointing his finger. “You swore

that you would give your life for mine, that I was worth all the years
of denial. But now, now suddenly, there is something that’s more
valuable to you than anything else on the planet?” Quinn practically
laughed in Maxwell’s face. “Ironically what you are so fucking
protective of is only an idea.”

“It’s not to me.”
Quinn nodded. “Right. I had to lift my ass and spread my legs so

you could lay your claim to me in public, but you want to deny me the
same right because...?” Quinn paused. “Go on, Maxwell. Fill in the
blank. Why is your virginity more important than mine?”

“Because I had to fight to keep mine.”

Dangerous Alpha

Chapter 8

Maxwell wanted to scream at Quinn that he could never

understand his past, never grasp what drove him to be the man he was
now, but the truth was, as soon as they were twinned, Quinn would
see it all. But by that point, it would be too late for Quinn to abandon
him. Maxwell had pushed so hard to get to that end, but he realized
that there was no guarantee that they would stay together after that.
His last twin had killed himself rather than spend one more moment
with Maxwell. The thought of losing Quinn before they even started
was heartbreaking.

“Tell me what that means.” Quinn dropped his false indifferent

act. “Tell me how you had to fight to keep your virginity.” Quinn
recapped his water, set it aside, and then took Maxwell’s hand.
“Better yet, tell me why.”

Memories flittered through Maxwell’s mind, but he kept them

corralled in that one little dark mark against his soul. Blocking his
brethren from discovering his shame had been easier the second time
around, especially when he wasn’t a full member of their pack yet.
Maxwell was far older than they were, and he knew tricks they
wouldn’t grasp for decades. But if he didn’t tell Quinn the truth, and
the whole truth, they were never going to even get their chance to be
together.

“I was attending Princeton when we were issued a challenge by

Rutgers to play a new type of game. Back then it was more rugby than
football, but it’s still considered by many to be the very first football
game.”

“What year was this?”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

“November sixth, 1869. I recall the date so clearly because it’s the

first time I saw Adam Rothschild.” Maxwell allowed those initial
flashes of his form fill his mind. “Adam was so tall, so blond, and so
gangly.” Maxwell laughed. “He ran so fast as to be a blur, and when
he asked me if I wanted to study with him, I knew at once that book
learning wasn’t what he was interested in.”

Quinn moved closer. “He was your lover.”
“He was my first in so many ways. My first love, my first lover,

my first twin.” Maxwell tried to soften the impact of that, but there
really was no way that he could. “I fell so deeply in love with him,
just as I did with you.” Daring to look up, Maxwell was surprised that
Quinn didn’t seem to be pulling away or making jealous eyes. If
anything, Quinn seemed sympathetic and understanding. His open
and accepting demeanor encouraged Maxwell to continue. “Adam
and I were together for quite some time before we were twinned. We
didn’t understand what was happening.”

“And?”
“Adam grew distant after we were twinned. He would shield

himself as soon as he saw me. His refusal to let me in was
devastating. I couldn’t imagine what secret he had that could be so
vile. But, up until we were twinned, the sex we had...oh, by today’s
standards it would be considered very tame. Hand jobs, blow jobs,
lots and lots of kissing.”

“You never penetrated him?”
“Once. I went slowly and it was satisfying to me, but Adam didn’t

enjoy it. But that’s what he was hiding from me. I wanted to fuck him
again almost desperately, and he was terrified of the very idea.”
Maxwell took a deep breath, and though he felt the fear, he told the
truth anyway. “He saw the beast in me. He saw my naked lust. I had
visions of tying him up and tormenting him until he begged me to
fuck him. Adam saw these visions as something I would actually do
when they were just dark fantasies. I never would have hurt him or
forced him to do something he didn’t enjoy.”

Dangerous Alpha

Hesitantly, Quinn asked, “What happened?”
“Adam killed himself.”
“Oh, God. Maxwell.” Quinn slid closer. “I’m so sorry.”
“Before he did, he told my brothers what he had seen in me. They

were furious. Rather than ask, they were convinced that I had driven
Adam to such an act of desperation to escape me when that was not
the case.” Maxwell looked out the back window at all the men
following behind. If his own brothers had been willing to kill him for
just the thoughts in his head, he couldn’t believe these men had let
him live after what he’d done to Quinn. “My pack brothers
determined that they should do to me what they thought I was going
to do to Adam.”

“They tried to rape you?”
Into Maxwell’s mind came all the details of that night. The feel of

snow against his face, the smell of his own sweat-drenched body, the
pounding of his heart that literally blocked his hearing as he ran. The
freezing night air had been filled with their yips and howls. Even
though he was in front of them, when the wind was right, Maxwell
smelled their blood lust.

“Maxwell?”
“I ran, and they gave chase. Without Adam, I couldn’t shift, but in

my human form I sought shelter where they couldn’t go in their wolf
bodies. By the slimiest margin, I kept my life, my virginity, and I’ve
never fully trusted anyone since then. Eventually I became a Dom to
have a way to express the darkness Adam saw.”

“Maxwell.” Quinn’s mouth was open to say more, but nothing

came out for a long time. When he did eventually speak, he kept his
voice very low. “I would never rape you. I was being bold and
aggressive and—God, I’m an ass.”

“You didn’t know.”
“Well, now that I do...” Quinn’s voice trailed off.
Nodding, Maxwell looked down at the floor. “Now that you do,

this will become an issue between us.”

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“No. Yes. I don’t know. We’ll work it out, okay?”
“We have to work it out now.” Maxwell would rather they both

die than feel trapped with one another. Frankly, he had only himself
to blame. “I can’t give you that. I’m sorry. Just the thought of being
that vulnerable makes me feel sick with dread.” Maxwell shivered
and pressed his back against the door protectively.

“Maxwell, please, I—”
“Adam saw the monster in me, and he killed himself.”
“And you think that I’ll do the same?” Quinn squeezed his hand.

“You paraded me naked through a club full of men, tossed me down
on a glass table, and then fucked me so hard you damn near brought
down the building. I’m sorry, Maxwell, but if I wasn’t afraid of you
then, I don’t think I’m likely to be afraid of you in the future.”

Maxwell couldn’t help himself. A wry grin twisted the very edges

of his mouth. “But the other.”

“So you want to keep your butt cherry.” Quinn shrugged. “We’ll

just have to find other things to do.” He fumbled at his pocket then
laughed. “Crap. I forgot these aren’t my pants. Well, if I did have my
pants, I would remove my smartphone and then show you about a
bazillion websites with toys, costumes, and all kinds of fun and freaky
ideas of things we can do with our sex life. None of which involve me
sticking anything up your ass.”

Maxwell frowned.
“What? I don’t get to just let this go? You’re not into it. My

interest in doing that to you has faded in direct proportion to your lack
of interest in having it done to you.”

“It’s that easy?” Maxwell still couldn’t believe that Quinn had just

dropped the issue, but then again, Quinn wasn’t Adam, and he didn’t
have the other issues that Adam had. To this day, Maxwell thought
that Adam had really killed himself over his fear of his family finding
out about his orientation. Hanging the guilt on Maxwell was just
easier than adding another coat of shame to himself.

“Let me put it this way. Do you like it when someone sticks their

Dangerous Alpha

tongue in your ear?”

“Ew, no. The sound alone is nauseating, and then the wetness is

just—yuck.”

“Me, either. Can’t stand it. Does that mean we should force

ourselves to do it because someone says we’re supposed to?”

“I see your point.”
“Good. So, now, let’s move on to something that we do like to do

together.” Quinn slid closer. “Maybe something mildly taxing in light
of your limited energy.”

“I’m feeling perkier by the moment.” In fact, the closer they got to

Lone Pine, the better Maxwell began to feel. When he looked into
Quinn’s eyes, he saw his true acceptance. It wasn’t just something he
said to put an end to the argument. Quinn accepted his reasons, and
the issue was done. Maxwell pulled Quinn close and kissed him with
slow, gentle nips. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Quinn eased his hand back against Maxwell’s

cock. He’d lost some of his fire during the discussion, but it all came
rushing back as soon as Quinn stroked him. “God, but your hand is
skilled.”

“Yeah? Let’s see what we can do to each other with just our

hands.” Quinn waggled his brows as he eased down Maxwell’s
zipper. “Commando. I should have figured with how fast you got
naked at the club.”

“I didn’t get naked.” Maxwell pulled down Quinn’s sweats,

revealing his beautiful prick. “I fucked you with my pants on.”

“Oh, God.” Quinn wrapped his fist around Maxwell’s cock and

stroked. “Shirt on or off?”

Maxwell matched Quinn stroke for stroke. “Does it matter?”
“I’m trying to create a mental picture here.”
“Ah.” Happy to help him do so, Maxwell confirmed, “I had my

shirt on but unbuttoned.”

“And your trousers dropped down, but they didn’t fall because

you had your legs spread.”

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“You’re very good at this.” Maxwell moved a little closer and

cupped Quinn’s cock a little harder. “I needed a wide stance so I
could power fuck you.”

Quinn moaned into his mouth. “I can see you drilling your cock

into me.”

“I had to push your legs wide to give me room.” Remembering

how Quinn had surrendered surged electricity straight down to
Maxwell’s cock and balls.

“Every time I lifted my ass a little bit more, you just poured your

prick into me harder.” Quinn stroked his hand down as he spoke,
which caused Maxwell to flick his hips up.

“Yeah.” Maxwell mimicked his movements, and Quinn mimicked

his.

“Faster.” Quinn tightened his grip and moved his hand more

quickly.

“Yeah.” Maxwell rocked his hips so hard he was fucking Quinn’s

fist.

“Until you were slamming me against that table.”
“Fuck, yeah.”
“Harder and faster and deeper—oh, God!” Quinn’s grip made a

tight decent all the way to the base of Maxwell’s cock, causing
Maxwell to climax. When he did the same to Quinn, he lost control
and came.

Maxwell used his free hand to grab the back of Quinn’s neck, pull

him close, and kiss him with raw, naked need. Panting in between
kisses, they eased their grip on one another but didn’t let go until their
heartbeats returned to normal.

“That was very, very hot.” Maxwell rubbed his nose to Quinn’s.

There was still a lingering note of concern over the issue of his
virginity, but Quinn not only told him he’d let it go, he showed him.
“Tell me we’re okay.”

“We’re okay.” Quinn met his gaze. “I want to be with you.

There’s a hell of a lot more to that than just sex. And, while I grant

Dangerous Alpha

you that sex is important, it’s not the only thing we’ll share.”

Maxwell nodded. “That’s true.”
“I mean, realistically, a much more important issue is where we’ll

live.”

Before Maxwell could answer, Quinn went on. “Oh! And what

will our day-to-day life be like? Me in school, you doing...well, let’s
leave that alone, too. And then—”

“I get it.”
“Do you?”
“I do.”
“Good. Now, I know we have a lot to work through, so let’s get

cleaned up, put away, and then—”

Maxwell cut him off with a soft, sweet kiss. When he pulled back,

Quinn’s eyes had gone unfocused and dreamy. “That’s the look.”

“The look?”
“The look that softens my heart and makes me realize how much I

love you.” Maxwell hadn’t realized what he was going to say until the
words tumbled out. Rather than let Quinn respond in kind, or perhaps
find another issue to distract him with, Maxwell kissed him and kept
on kissing him until Quinn was breathless.

By the time Maxwell let him go, he had to contact the leader of

his pack, which effectively forestalled a discussion about whether or
not Quinn loved him in return. Quinn had seen the very depth of his
sexual animal and embraced that beast, but he had yet to see
Maxwell’s emotional side. What if accepting that from a man like him
turned out to be more difficult?

In order to give him the necessary focus to make contact, he and

Quinn cleaned up, dressed, and moved away from each other.

Maxwell closed his eyes and pictured Grayson, the leader of the

Lone Pine Wolves. Grayson matched his moniker in that he was very
pale and had gray eyes and completely gray hair. When Maxwell had
first seen him, he’d thought the hair and eye color were affects
created with dye and contact lenses. But they weren’t. Grayson had

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started turning gray at fifteen and was completely gray by the ripe old
age of twenty-five.

Grayson was six foot and one hundred and eighty pounds of

swaggering arrogance. He dressed all in black, and he ran the wolves
with an iron fist. Maxwell had dreaded having to eventually join the
pack, but he’d left himself no choice when he’d claimed Quinn.

Most animal shifters never realized their legacy until they found

their true mate. In that, Maxwell was different. He felt the formation
of the new pack of wolves long before they had any idea he existed.
At the moment, only Grayson knew of Maxwell, and that was only
because right as Maxwell claimed Quinn, Grayson would have felt
Maxwell’s drive to infuse Quinn into his pack.

Grayson hadn’t blocked the energy flow, but he was astounded

that Maxwell was pulling in a bear shifter. But their energy line was
severely damaged when Maxwell surrendered to the leader of the bear
sloth. In Grayson’s shoes, that would smack of a bitter betrayal.
Grayson had only just discovered Maxwell existed before he was
throwing himself on the mercy of their biggest competitor.

Contacting him now was not going to be pleasant. When the first

brush of mental contact stroked the outer edges of Grayson’s mind, he
threw up a shield so fast he pushed Maxwell away so violently he
tumbled back into his own body with a jerk.

“You okay?” Quinn reached out to him, but Maxwell held him

off.

“Grayson, the leader of my pack, isn’t quite so happy to hear from

me again.” Maxwell shook his head and tried not to let Quinn see how
painful that mental bitch slap had been.

“We are on the way to meet with this man, and he’s not going to

be happy to see you?”

“Not exactly.” Maxwell sighed. “They didn’t know about me until

tonight when I claimed you.”

“Oh.” Quinn gave him an incredulous look. “And then you turned

right around and surrendered to the leader of their most hated foes.”

Dangerous Alpha

“Yes.” Maxwell took a deep breath.
“Why the fuck didn’t you mention this before we all piled in the

cars? Wait, no, back up further. You told Danny that you had already
arranged the meeting. That you had set up the place, which is where
we’re all going. You’re now telling me that this guy has no idea we’re
coming?”

Maxwell winced. “Well, when you put it like that, it sounds really

bad.”

“Put it a way where it doesn’t sound as bad as I think it is.”
He would if he could, but he couldn’t. “Besides, that’s not as

important as getting the meeting arranged, right? So let me have some
peace while I try again.” Maxwell closed his eyes and reached out to
Grayson once more.

This time when Maxwell connected, Grayson did the last thing he

ever would have expected. As effortlessly as Maxwell reached for a
bottle of water, Grayson reached for Maxwell and pulled him right
out of the back of his limo and dumped him in a cage.

When Maxwell shook off the shock of moving over a hundred

miles in the blink of an eye, he looked around and realized he was a
wolf. He was also in a cage surrounded by members of his pack.

“Well,” Grayson said, striding up to the cage, his gray hair

streaming back from his face. “Look what we have here. Our traitor.”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Chapter 9

Quinn was sitting there waiting to see what would happen the

second time Maxwell reached out to his pack leader when poof!
Maxwell vanished. He didn’t melt away, burn away, fade away, no.
He disappeared.

For almost an entire minute, Quinn stared at the place where

Maxwell had been, waiting for him to reappear. Eventually Quinn
realized that the leader of Maxwell’s pack and stolen him.

Grayson had plucked Maxwell out of thin air and took

him...where? Well, Lone Pine, obviously. If Maxwell hadn’t told
Grayson about the meeting with the bear sloth, then they wouldn’t go
to whatever place his bear brothers were headed.

“Not until they get the information from Maxwell.”
Given what Maxwell had done by claiming a bear mate, then

surrendering to the leader of the bear sloth, his leader wasn’t going to
see Maxwell as a loyal pack member.

“They’re going to skin him alive.” Quinn’s heart pounded in his

chest. Even after having a slew of problems rip through the rather
blind eyes of his lust, Quinn still wanted to be with Maxwell. They
would work out where they lived and how and even any current or
future issues with their sex life. What mattered was they wanted to be
together. Working through issues was what everyone in a relationship
had to do. Just because their relationship had a mystical beginning
didn’t mean it was going to be a fairy tale. And Quinn was okay with
that.

“I just have to get my mate back.” Quinn glanced out the rear

window at the caravan of his brothers. He had no idea what Danny

Dangerous Alpha

would do about this startling development. But he also had no choice
but to tell Danny what had happened. No way in hell was Quinn
going to let his leader get blindsided.

Pressing the intercom, Quinn asked the driver to pull over at the

next wide spot in the road. When he did, Dylan came out from his
little cubby hole behind the bar.

“What’s going on?” And then Dylan noticed Maxwell was gone.
“His leader plucked him out of thin air.”
Dylan yanked the earbuds out. “He did what?”
Quinn shrugged. “I didn’t know they could do that, either.”
“We have to tell Danny.” Dylan grabbed his books and moved

toward the exit.

“That’s why I had the driver stop.” Quinn exited the limo with

Dylan right behind him. The other cars lined the side of the road.
Danny met him near the back end of the limo.

“I heard,” Danny said nodding at Dylan.
“Right. Mental communication.” Quinn sighed. “I hope you

realize I pulled over to tell you.”

“I know. I can read you, too.”
Quinn tried to read Danny, but his connection was faint.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t trust you, so you can only come in so far.”

When Danny sighed, his breath made a plume of mist into the
freezing air.

Nodding, Quinn dropped into that same palm open and up posture

that Danny had taken at the mansion. “I’m okay with that. I just want
to get Maxwell back.”

Danny frowned, and Quinn didn’t need to read his mind to see

that Danny didn’t want to go any closer to Lone Pine than he already
had. He wanted to get back in the cars, turn around, and leave.
Somehow, Quinn had to convince Danny to not only keep going, but
help him save his mate.

“Danny,” Dylan reached out and grasped Danny’s arm to keep

from falling. “I think we have another problem on our hands.”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

While Quinn and Danny stared, Dylan turned so pale he was

almost a ghost.

“What’s wrong?” Danny asked.
“His soul is screaming.” Dylan dropped his books and clung to

Danny.

“Whose soul?”
“Maxwell’s.”
With a snap of his fingers, Danny ordered everyone back in the

cars. “You’re going to turn around and go home.”

“We’re not letting you and Dylan go into their den alone.”

Matthew jogged up to where they were standing. “You can’t seriously
expect us to just go home without you?”

“Look at him.” Danny pointed to Dylan, who looked on the verge

of complete collapse. “If he doesn’t twin their souls, he’s going to
die.”

“You don’t know that.” Matthew got on the other side of Dylan

and held him up.

“Remember how sick he was when Luke and Dillinger had soul

bonded but refused to twin? This is a hundred times worse because
this time, the three of them aren’t getting sick, only Dylan is.”

All their gazes darted to Quinn. Their eyes were so intense Quinn

took a step back. “I didn’t do anything to him.”

“We know that.” Danny nodded to Matthew. “See? He’s not sick.

If we don’t get Dylan to twin them, he’ll die. If we lose Dylan, we
can’t twin future brothers. Our sloth will wither and eventually die.”

“And you know this because?”
“Because Maxwell told me.”
“What if he lied?”
“He couldn’t have. I was right there in his mind. When he

surrendered to me, that wasn’t just figurative. He gave up everything,
including a connection to him. He knows a lot. Anyway, the point is,
this is what we have to do. We have to get Dylan, Quinn, and
Maxwell close enough so that he can do his thing.”

Dangerous Alpha

“Okay, fine. Then all of us will go with you.”
“If we go stomping into their territory, they are going to treat us

as what we are, which is essentially an invading army. But if I go in
with just my nexus and the man to be twinned, they might just let us
have Maxwell.”

“They’re not going to give us a member of their pack.”
“They might if they think he’s a traitor.”
Matthew drew a deep breath, expanding his already massive

chest. He lowered his face until he pressed his forehead against
Danny’s. “I don’t want you to do this.”

“I know.”
“Let me come with you.”
“No. If there’s trouble, you’re going to pull on me and shift me

out of there.”

“We’ve never tested from what distance—”
“Tyler and Evan were miles apart when they shifted, and

Maxwell’s leader just pulled him over one hundred miles.”

“Fine.” Matthew gave in so quickly Danny showed his surprise by

lifting his brows. “If”—Danny’s brows lowered—“we are allowed to
stay here so we’re close.”

“Deal.”
Now it was Matthew’s turn to lift his brows. “If?”
“No if. You stay here. If I need you, you’ll know, but you will

stay here until I call for you.”

“You tricky bastard. You did all of that to get me to agree to let

you go alone.”

“Maybe. But the deal is done.” Danny kissed Matthew then turned

his attention onto Quinn. “Let’s get in the car.” With Matthew’s help,
they got Dylan back in the limo. He offered no resistance. When
Quinn noticed his book bag forgotten on the side of the road, Quinn
scooped it. He knew how important school was to him. One way or
another, Quinn was going to make sure Dylan made it to class
tomorrow morning.

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Once they were underway, Danny glanced out the back at where

Matthew stood, a silhouette in the headlights of his car. “Please don’t
let me regret this,” Danny said softly.

“I won’t.”
“Can you feel anything from their leader?”
“No.”
“Have you tried?”
“No.”
“Please try.”
Quinn did what he saw Maxwell do. He closed his eyes and

concentrated. After a moment, Quinn felt Maxwell, but his soul was
just screaming and screaming, forcing Quinn to retreat. When he
reached out toward another soul, he felt nothing. And then fire
exploded inside his head.

“You worthless pelt! How dare you think you’ll traipse into my

mind?” Grayson’s voice was so powerful he was like the entire sky
enveloping Quinn. “I’m going to pop your head like a zit.”

Fire rained down from the sky above him. Pain cracked along his

nerves like popcorn. Grayson tried to yank Quinn through to where he
was, but something within Quinn resisted. It was an instinctual
response. Judging by Grayson’s howl, Quinn’s ability to resist him
was utterly enraging to Grayson. Grayson got his way in all matters
relating to his pack. His position and the way he handled leadership
were in almost direct opposition to how Danny ran the sloth.

Danny grasped Quinn’s hand, and then he was there in Quinn’s

mind, throwing up a shield. The connection to Grayson was still there,
but muted. Almost as if Danny had turned down the volume.

“Who the fuck are you?” Grayson demanded.
“I’m Danny Jones, the leader of the Twin Pines Grizzlies.”
In a pompous voice, Grayson snarled, “I’m Grayson Reems, the

leader of the Lone Pine Wolves.”

“On behalf of my brother, Quinn, I’m asking for permission to

twin him and Maxwell.” Danny kept his voice low, formal, and again

Dangerous Alpha

he managed to strike that incredibly delicate balance between
dominance and submission. It was uncanny. It also had the obvious
effect of mollifying Grayson.

Dropping the attitude, Grayson said, “I don’t think I can allow

that to take place.”

He wasn’t saying yes, but he also wasn’t saying no, which gave

Quinn hope that he might be able to sway Grayson.

“I don’t know how our brethren were able to bond their souls, but

now that they have, we have no choice but to twin them.” Danny
spoke with the eloquence of a seasoned debater. Given that he was a
senior, maybe Danny had taken debate. He sure seemed to know how
to put an argument together.

“Maxwell isn’t sick.”
“Neither is Quinn. But if you look to your nexus, I believe you will

find that he is.” Danny paused, waiting for Grayson to locate his
nexus.

There was a sudden cutting of the connection.
Danny released Quinn’s hand. “Don’t worry.” He patted Quinn

fondly. “He’ll call back.”

“Is his nexus as sick as Dylan?”
“I’m certain he is. Grayson isn’t going to like the facts, but the

truth is, we have no choice but to work together to twin you and
Maxwell. If we don’t, both our groups will stagnate and die. No
nexus, no twins, no shifters.” Danny moved near to Dylan and fussed
over him until he got him as comfortable as he could. “If Grayson
wants a Pyrrhic victory, he can have one now. He can destroy the
Twin Pines Grizzlies tonight. However, to do so, he must also destroy
the Lone Pine Wolves.”

“Do you think he’ll do that?”
Danny settled on the floor next to Dylan. “God, I hope not.” He

turned his soft brown gaze onto Quinn. “I love my twin, and I haven’t
even begun to figure out all the marvelous things our legacy gives us.
I would hate to have that all wiped away because of one man’s ego.”

Anitra Lynn McLeod

Quinn nodded. “I love Maxwell. He wouldn’t let me say it to him.

I think he was afraid to let me confess that truth if he might fail to
twin us.”

“Well, it’s out of his hands now.” Danny adjusted the pillow

under Dylan’s head. “Whether or not you twin to Maxwell is now
entirely up the leader of the Lone Pine Wolves.”

Dangerous Alpha

Chapter 10

Maxwell paced the length of his cage. Considering what they

could have put him in, he thought his prison was rather plush. It was
at least ten by twenty, and it even had a water bowl. It was empty, but
at least there was one in here with him.

“Just who in the world do you think you are?”
Since Maxwell couldn’t very well answer him in wolf form, he

settled down on his haunches and stared at Grayson.

“You have known about us from the very moment Elias and I

bonded our souls, but I didn’t know about you until eight couples
deep into our pack. Imagine my shock to learn you’d soul bonded to a
fucking bear and then surrendered to his leader!” Grayson paced
along the front of Maxwell’s cage. Maxwell had an insane urge to
stand up and stride alongside him, but he resisted. It was alpha male
behavior, and it would only irritate Grayson. So Maxwell kept his yap
closed and his butt on the floor.

“And why would you want that creature anyway? From what I

saw in your mind, Quinn is as big as you are!” Grayson shuddered.
“You could have at least picked a mate with some delicate qualities.
Hell, Quinn doesn’t possess one fragile feature. Even when he
submitted you, he did so in a most aggressive fashion.”

Grayson’s mate was tiny, pale, and so frail he was almost pixyish.

Unlike the bears, who paired an alpha to an omega, the wolves had
mates who were distinctly beta. They were not treated as equals in the
pack, and there was a discrete hierarchy in the pack that didn’t exist
in the sloth.

If he could answer, Maxwell would have told Grayson that he

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picked Quinn because he was like Maxwell himself. Quinn was
Maxwell’s mirror. They looked extremely similar, and in many ways
they echoed each other, but they also mirrored each other. The only
issue had been the bending of one alpha to another, and Quinn had
surrendered. That was what had allowed them to soul bond.

“You can’t seriously expect me to let you go. By the same

measure, you can’t seriously expect me to let Quinn stay.” Grayson
stopped directly in front of Maxwell. Peering down at him with cool
gray eyes, Grayson said, “The only way out of this is to kill you.”

Maxwell couldn’t stop a visceral reaction. His eyes widened along

with his nostrils. He smelled the blood lust on Grayson. Rising slowly
to his feet, Maxwell backed away. When his furry butt hit the wall
behind him, he stopped and whimpered.

“Killing you ends the suffering of our nexus. Killing you cuts my

tie to your twin in the sloth. Moreover, killing you keeps our line
pure.” Grayson sighed. “The only problem with that is killing you is
going to make your disgusting mate’s soul scream like a goddamn
banshee. Both of you two idiots are already making a hell of a racket
that’s making the nexuses sick. If one of you dies, the other is going
to go insane and probably kill both nexuses with grief.”

Relief washed over Maxwell, and he settled back on his haunches.
“Lucky, lucky you.” Without another word, Grayson left the

room.

Maxwell wanted to call him back and demand answers. What was

Grayson going to do? If he wasn’t going to kill him, was he going to
let him and Quinn attempt to twin their souls?

Rising, Maxwell resumed his pacing of the cage. Too many

questions and absolutely no control over the situation poured
adrenaline into his system. He tried to reach out to Quinn, but as
Grayson had indicated, his soul was screaming so loud Maxwell
couldn’t get through. Tentatively, Maxwell tried to reach out to
Danny, but he couldn’t reach him, either. Since Grayson had
somehow pulled Maxwell and shifted him, he was pretty sure this also

Dangerous Alpha

gave Grayson total control over his mental abilities. In the sloth, the
pairs couldn’t shift until they were twinned. Apparently, that wasn’t
the same in the pack. Or at least not with Maxwell. Given that he’d
broken the laws of nature to claim a mate outside his species, it
wasn’t much wonder other laws were now broken against him.

All Maxwell could do was wait to see what would happen. That

alone was torture. As a powerful business man and a strong Dom,
Maxwell made things happen. Once he’d recovered from Adam, and
broke from his original pack, he’d reinvented himself. He’d never
looked back until tonight when he had to share his past to clear a way
to his future.

Maxwell had no idea what time it was when all the members of

the Lone Pine Wolves loped into the room. They said nothing. They
just peered at him with their wise and wary eyes. The alphas of the
couples flared their nostrils, gaining his scent. If ever they should
need to track him, they’d be able to follow his scent trail for miles.
The betas watched him with big eyes and fast-sniffing noses. They
would remember his scent, too, but rather than tracking him, they
would alert the alpha members to his presence.

“Do you know what a Pyrrhic victory is, Maxwell?”
Maxwell nodded his fluffy head, but Grayson explained anyway,

probably so he could enjoy the sound of his own voice, but also so he
could educate all the packmembers.

“A Pyrrhic victory is where the cost of winning the war is so

extreme that it simply isn’t worth emerging victorious. Winning
would put you at the exact same disadvantage as your foe. For
example, I kill you, but you kill me, too. That is not the way to win a
war. I would like nothing better than to wipe the face of the Earth
with the members of the Twin Pines Grizzlies, but to do that, I would
have to kill my entire pack.”

Maxwell wondered if Grayson would go forward anyway.
“I’m not about to do that.” Grayson moved just a bit closer to

Elias. The wolves weren’t as demonstrative as the bears were, but

Anitra Lynn McLeod

they were just as fiercely loyal. Maxwell realized that Grayson wasn’t
a self-absorbed prick so much as he felt the weight of the entire pack
on his shoulders. He was the ultimate alpha. Each set of twins had an
alpha and beta, but those alpha males in turn gave up their throats to
Grayson. Maxwell realized that what he’d done demeaned Grayson in
the eyes of his packmates. That was intolerable. Maxwell had usurped
his leader’s position in the pack.

Ashamed that he had not thought beyond his own wants, Maxwell

walked to the edge of the cage, putting himself as close to Grayson as
he could. Once there, Maxwell dropped down to the floor then rolled
over, exposing his belly. He extended his throat and exposed his
genitals in a show of submission.

Grayson strode to the bars. “Is this your way of saying you’re

sorry?”

Maxwell didn’t move. He stayed where he was, splayed out at

Grayson’s feet.

“I should mount you and fuck you to show every man here that I

am still the ultimate alpha.” Grayson spoke directly into Maxwell’s
mind. “I should pound your virgin ass until you howl like my bitch.”

Maxwell shivered. It was his greatest fear realized.
“As much as doing so would be my right, and my pleasure,

fucking you for any reason would also devastate Elias. He would
understand, and he would forgive me, but his hurt would be
intolerable to me.”

Maxwell uttered a sigh of relief. He realized Grayson loved Elias

just as much as Maxwell loved Quinn.

“But since you’ve willingly debased yourself in front of everyone,

I’m going to come in there and give you a different reprimand.”

Maxwell stayed on his back while Grayson opened the cage. He

stood at the doorway then slipped off his clothing. Each piece he took
off he handed to Elias. Once he was bare, Grayson shifted to his wolf
form. He was beautifully sleek with perfectly matched gray hair and
eyes. Striding like the proud creature he was, Grayson loomed over

Dangerous Alpha

Maxwell’s body. Suddenly he lunged for Maxwell’s neck, digging his
teeth into his fur as he growled ominously.

The men around them gasped. Maxwell held still. Grayson flipped

him over so that Maxwell was on his belly. With his mouth, Grayson
grasped the scruff of Maxwell’s neck, holding him still while he
mounted him. Maxwell didn’t struggle. Against his back he felt the
hard thrust of Grayson’s cock, slipping out of its protective sheath.

Panic held him still. His terror at being violated was so profound

that Maxwell urinated. With a grunt of annoyance, Grayson released
his neck, stood, lifted his leg, and then urinated all over Maxwell.

“There. You’ve peed submissively, and I’ve marked you as mine

without having to fuck you.”

When Maxwell looked over, he noticed a relieved expression on

Elias’s face. The little beta had probably thought his mate would have
to fuck Maxwell to restore order. Frankly, Maxwell had thought that,
too. But just as Grayson didn’t want a Pyrrhic victory over the Twin
Pine Grizzlies, he obviously didn’t want one over Maxwell, either. In
his own twisted way, Grayson had saved face and spared Maxwell an
even greater indignity.

As much as Maxwell was mortified that he’d wet himself, and had

been wetted on by another, this was a hell of a lot better than being
forcefully sodomized. Counting his blessings, Maxwell stayed still in
his puddle of pee while Grayson left the cage, shifted to human, and
re-dressed.

Peering down at him, Grayson flashed a predatory smile. As the

final indignity, Grayson returned Maxwell to human form while he
was laying on the floor, thus covering him in their urine. Dropping his
smile, Grayson turned and walked off.

On his way out of the room, Grayson pointed at two packmates.

“Clean him up, hose down the cage, and get him something to wear.”

The two men disappeared.
When they reappeared, the smaller one carried an armload of

clothing, while the bigger dragged a heavy hose. He tossed a

Anitra Lynn McLeod

washcloth wrapped bar of soap at Maxwell.

Cowed, Maxwell didn’t fight the hose that blasted him with

freezing water. Shivering, he soaped up and rinsed off under the
baleful glares of his packmates.

What Grayson had done restored order by putting Maxwell at the

bottom of the hierarchy. He wasn’t seen as an alpha member of the
pack but as the property of the leader. Once Maxwell made Quinn his
mate, Quinn would then, by extension, be seen as Grayson’s property,
too. The other alpha members of the pack had no urge to assert their
dominance over Maxwell. They didn’t need to. Grayson had taken
care of that.

As humiliating as it was, Grayson had actually done Maxwell a

favor. He could have fucked Maxwell and then let all the other alphas
fuck him, and then had him twinned to Quinn. At that point, Maxwell
would have been a shadow of himself.

This way, everyone saved face, Maxwell lived to see another day,

and he still had a chance to twin to his mate while he was mentally
and physically intact. Frankly, Grayson’s solution was fucking
brilliant. Maxwell literally owed the man his life, and he was truly
grateful.

As he dried himself with a rough towel, Maxwell wondered what

in the world had made him think all this—claiming Quinn, integrating
to the pack and sloth, continuing with his business interests—would
have happened effortlessly. He’d had three years to think about
Quinn, and Maxwell had, but he’d spent all that time thinking about
how he’d claim Quinn, not how they were going to assimilate into
their respective groups. He hadn’t thought about the egos, the
structure, the danger, or the multitude of minor details. All Maxwell
had thought about was being with the man he loved. The rest of it
simply hadn’t mattered to him.

Insight gave Maxwell a greater grasp of what Quinn had been

talking about earlier. The issue over him not wanting to engage in
anal sex wasn’t as important in the greater scheme of things. That

Dangerous Alpha

issue was one of many concerns that were a part of a larger structure
of their blended lives. Having the blessings of their brethren was a
hell of a lot more important because they couldn’t do this without
their help.

“Had I not been so blinded by lust, I might have made much better

decisions.” Maxwell looked up at his packmates. “I’m sorry. I’m sure
that doesn’t mean a lot.”

“It’s a start,” the taller one offered evenly.
“I’m Maxwell.”
The clear alpha with the ash-blond hair and black eyes nodded.

“I’m Brody. This is my mate, Fynn.” Fynn was ash-blond, had black
eyes, but he was half a foot shorter and a hundred pounds lighter than
Brody. Fynn didn’t speak. When Maxwell kept his gaze on him a bit
too long, Fynn moved slightly behind Brody and to the right. Brody
placed his arm protectively across Fynn’s body and cupped Fynn’s
genitals. This showed protection, possession, and passion in one
simple move.

Maxwell bowed until his face was lower than the level of Brody’s

genitals. In this way, Maxwell showed his acceptance of their pairing.
On another level, their gestures also conveyed that Brody wouldn’t
attempt to mount Maxwell as long as he, in turn, promised not to
attempt a mounting of Fynn. With that out of the way, Brody released
his hold, and Fynn resumed cleaning up the area around the cage.

Once Maxwell was dry, Brody took his towel and handed him a

pair of sweats, a T-shirt, and a hoodie. Everything was in the team
colors of the Lone Pine Wolves. In short order, Maxwell was covered
from neck to ankle in depth-of-the-night black and royal purple.
Unfortunately, everything was too short and way too tight.

“They’re the biggest pieces of clothing we could find on such

short notice.” Brody shrugged.

“I’m grateful.” And Maxwell honestly was.
“Oh, my.” Fynn giggled madly as he turned his attention to

whisking the water toward the drain in the center of the concrete

Anitra Lynn McLeod

room.

Brody frowned at him then glanced at Maxwell. “Oh.” Unlike his

mate, Brody didn’t look away. He stared right at how the sweats
plastered against Maxwell’s cock and balls, putting them on display
for everyone.

“Fuck.” Maxwell groaned. “I look moronic.” How he longed for

his custom-fitted dress slacks. Those cupped his genitals but not so
aggressively. This was so tight as to be comical.

“Try, um, covering up with the jacket around your hips,” Brody

suggested.

Fynn snickered.
Maxwell pulled the hoodie off and tried tying it around his waist,

but the dangling arms only brought more attention to his banana and
plums display.

Fynn clapped his hand to his mouth to stifle his laughter. Brody

pressed his lips together so tightly they turned white, exaggerating the
blackness of his eyes.

“Go ahead. Laugh. I look ridiculous.” Maxwell was the first to let

his amusement out. Brody let fly a laugh with Fynn following quickly
on his heels. After spewing veritable gales of hilarity, Brody sobered.

“Fynn? There must be something we can do. Our poor brother has

been humiliated enough. And I would hate to see him embarrassed
before the leader of the bear sloth.”

Fynn’s brows knitted together as he considered. Suddenly, his

brows lifted high. “Ah! I have a solution.” On tiny pixy feet, Fynn
darted from the room.

“He’s very good at things like this.”
“I’m sure his idea is a great one.” At least Maxwell was

vehemently praying that Fynn could deliver something better than
these sweats. Maxwell was afraid if he bent over, he’d rip out the
back seam. Tearing out the seat of his pants would relieve the
pressure on his junk, but would, in turn, expose his ass. Displaying
his hole would certainly send the wrong message.

Dangerous Alpha

Fynn returned and presented his mate with a square of purple

cloth. They discussed it for a bit before Brody handed the item to
Maxwell. When he did, Brody said, “It’s a table cloth. If you fold it in
half, you can tie it around your waist.”

“Like a loincloth,” Fynn suggested.
On the tip of Maxwell’s tongue rested the snipe, I’ll look like I’m

wearing a mini skirt, but he didn’t say it. This was miles above the
dick-and-balls-exposing sweatpants. Bowing, Maxwell thanked Fynn.
He shimmied down his sweats then wrapped the silken fabric around
his hips rather than his waist, hoping to avoid the silhouette of a skirt.

“Oh, my.” This time, Fynn didn’t giggle. He looked Maxwell up

and down with nothing short of appreciation.

“Yeah, that’s a lot better.” Brody didn’t seem upset by his mate’s

reaction since he admired him, too. “You’re gonna get one of those
for me, right?”

Fynn nodded. “Yes, my mate. I would be quite happy to get you

something exactly like that.”

Without warning, they turned toward each other and started

kissing.

Unsure what to do, Maxwell turned away, but Brody growled,

“Watch. It’s how we are.”

To his surprise, Brody yanked off Fynn’s shoes, his jeans, and his

underwear, then pushed him against the bars of Maxwell’s cage. “You
want me in that sweet, pink hole?”

“Yes. I’m ready for you.” Fynn wrapped his delicate hands around

two of the bars and lowered his head submissively.

“Spread your legs, little one.”
Fynn couldn’t seem to get his legs apart fast enough.
Snarling, Brody yanked down his zipper and mounted his mate

without preamble.

Surrendering with a whimper of lust and longing, Fynn angled his

bottom up as Brody pounded into him. Stroke after powerful stroke
lifted Fynn’s feet off the ground until he was clinging almost

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horizontally to the cage.

Maxwell watched, spellbound by the pleasure on their faces. Each

of them enjoyed their role to the fullest. There was no shame on
Fynn’s face at offering himself up to his mate. In fact, he looked as
blissful as Quinn had when he’d surrendered to Maxwell in the club.

Brody dug his fingers into his mate’s hips, threw back his head,

and howled. Fynn lowered his head and climaxed, splattering his seed
on the floor.

Astounded, Maxwell looked again at how they were positioned.

Brody had both his hands on Fynn’s hips. He’d managed to make
Fynn climax without touching his cock. Maxwell had heard of that,
but he’d never seen it happen. Suddenly, he visualized himself and
Quinn doing what these two did. But rather than seeing himself as the
aggressor, Maxwell pictured himself clinging to the bars while Quinn
snarled, thrust, and made Maxwell come with just the power of his
drilling prick.

As quickly as it had begun, it was over. After a last pump or two,

Brody released his frantic hold on Fynn’s hips, settling his mate’s feet
back to the wet floor. Brody pulled out, zipped up, and then helped
Fynn pull his clothing on.

All told, it had taken less than three minutes.
Fynn turned the hose back on to wash away his cream. He grinned

up at Maxwell then glanced down at his makeshift loincloth. Lifting
his gaze back up, Fynn winked, and said, “You see why we like to
watch and be watched.”

Maxwell looked down and realized his cock was lifting and

bunching the purple fabric. Everything happened so fast he hadn’t
even realized how turned on he was until it was over.

“Two strokes and you could have joined us in our release.” Brody

shrugged. “Ah, well, perhaps next time. You’ll find that when we
climax together, we ride one another’s pheromones.” Brody kissed
the top of his mate’s head. “It amplifies everyone’s climax by a
significant factor.”

Dangerous Alpha

“How were you able to be so vigorous without hurting him?”

Maxwell was astonished at how Brody had taken Fynn without any
preparation at all.

“Show him,” Brody said, nodding to Fynn.
Maxwell had a sudden image of Fynn yanking down his pants and

exposing his hole to him, but instead, Fynn removed a slender tube
from his pocket.

“They are little suppositories that keep us ready for our mates.”
“May I?”
Fynn handed him the tube. “They react to moisture and body heat,

so recap the tube right after you take one out.”

Maxwell extracted one, capped the tube, and examined the

curious item. The suppository looked like a good-sized vitamin E pill.
As he held it, it melted against his fingertips. When he rubbed them
together, they slicked against each other almost frictionless.

“A little goes a very long way.” Fynn grinned at him. “By placing

one inside me in the morning, I’m ready should my mate need me.”

“And I need him all the time.” Brody hugged Fynn from behind.
“It doesn’t leak out?”
“There’s not that much there, and it tends to cling to a mucus

membrane but slick over dry flesh. Try one.”

Maxwell blanched.
“Oh, come on,” Brody encouraged. “Even I tried one just to make

sure I wasn’t asking my mate to do something that was unpleasant.”

Brody tossed him back his moist towel. “Wipe your hands so you

don’t lose your grip on it.”

Maxwell wiped off his hands then tentatively selected another

suppository. Before he allowed himself to think too deeply about
what he was doing, he reached back, lifted his impromptu loincloth,
and inserted the suppository.

Both his brothers grinned at him.
“Can you feel it now?” Fynn asked.
When Maxwell rolled his hips, he felt the thing melt and then

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slick around inside him. “I can.”

“See? It doesn’t melt out. It sorta melts up.”
Maxwell felt the tiny thing slicking him from the entrance deep

inside his channel. “It actually feels pretty good.”

“Brody liked it, too.” Fynn turned his head and kissed his mate.
“And you say Grayson invented this?”
Brody and Fynn nodded in unison.
When Maxwell tried to hand the tube back, Fynn said, “Keep it

for your mate. Consider it a den-warming gift.”

As they ushered Maxwell out of the prison and up a long flight of

concrete steps, Maxwell wondered if the bear sloth enjoyed fucking in
front of their brethren. Hopefully, if their plans to twin worked,
Maxwell would find out.

Dangerous Alpha

Chapter 11

Just as Danny had predicted, Grayson called back. This time he

didn’t come screaming into Quinn’s head. Grayson entered with a
cough to gain Quinn’s attention without startling him.

“I wish to speak with you and the leader of the Twin Pines

Grizzlies.”

Quinn acknowledged him then called Danny to his side. Danny

took Quinn’s hand, and then he was in Quinn’s mind.

“I’m here.” Danny kept his voice blissfully gentle.
“We concur that we have no choice but attempt a dual twinning.”
“Where would you have us meet?”
Grayson showed them a tiny cabin surrounded by towering pines.

There was a lake nearby and plenty of places for each group to scatter
and hide should things go wrong.

“We will be there,” Danny said.
“We will be waiting.”
To Quinn, Grayson’s tone of voice was ominous, but Danny

shushed him from saying anything. He let go of Quinn’s hand and cut
the connection at the same time Grayson did.

“He cannot help being overtly alpha. It’s the nature of his kind.”
“You’re the leader, and you’re not like that.”
“I am the leader of a bear sloth. Grayson is the leader of a wolf

pack. Two very different creatures with very different social
structures.”

It was a valid point that prompted another round of questions to

pop into Quinn’s mind. “What will my life be like after this?”

“We don’t know. You’ll be part of the bear sloth, and part of the

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wolf pack, but as to where you’ll live, if you can shift, and if so into
what?” Danny shrugged. “None of us can answer that.”

“What did you do, read my mind?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. All those questions are right there on

the surface.” Danny cupped Quinn’s face. “Are you ready to do this?”

Much like he had earlier tonight, Quinn felt the fear and moved

forward anyway. “I can’t turn back.” He glanced over at Dylan, who
was mumbling incoherently.

Danny followed his gaze. “No.”
“Even if I could...”
“You wouldn’t.” Danny sounded so very kind and understanding.

“Love is a powerful motivator.”

Quinn’s eyes started watering, and he turned away, mortified.
“Don’t be ashamed.” Danny settled next to him on the rich leather

seat. He cupped Quinn’s head and pressed him until he rested against
Danny’s shoulder.

“I’m afraid.” Quinn hated admitting that.
“I know.”
“I don’t want to cry because it won’t do a damn bit of good.”
“It will make you feel better.” Danny stroked his hand slowly over

Quinn’s head and down along his neck.

Quinn realized that Danny was petting him in a very similar way

to what Maxwell had done at the club. But it was clear Danny was
trying to soothe him. Had that been Maxwell’s intention, too? Had
Maxwell petted him in a misguided attempt to calm him down, and
Quinn had been so amped up he hadn’t taken the touch that way but
turned it into mocking when it wasn’t?

“Relax, Quinn. We won’t know what will happen until it

happens.” Danny continued to hold and pet him. Ironically, it seemed
the calmer Quinn became, the less miserable Dylan seemed to be. “Do
you see?” Danny asked, nodding toward Dylan. “We’re all connected.
All of us want the best possible outcome to this. Everyone in both
groups is pulling for you and Maxwell.”

Dangerous Alpha

“Ryan isn’t.”
“Actually, yes, he is. You can’t feel him, but I can. By you

twinning to Maxwell, he’s losing something, or thinks he is, but he
also recognizes that we have a potential to end a long, deep-rooted
strife between two shifter groups.”

“Like the Capulets and Montagues from Romeo and Juliet?”

Quinn asked.

“That is a perfect analogy.” Danny drew Quinn a little closer.

“Maybe you and Maxwell will form an alliance between the feuding
houses of the bears and wolves.”

“Let’s hope.”
In what seemed too quick of a time, the limo stopped. Neither he

nor Danny said anything to each other as there was no point. After
telling the driver to stay with the car, Danny exited the vehicle and
then helped Quinn pull Dylan out. Dylan seemed able to walk with
help, but he wasn’t exactly cognizant. There was a lone hurricane
lamp in the window of the cabin, so they carried Dylan that way.

As soon as they neared the door, it opened. A short and

remarkably pretty young man wearing tight jeans and a snug polo
shirt bowed. His graying black hair was long and draped over his left
shoulder. “My mate bids you enter.”

The three of them walked sort of sideways into the cabin since

Dylan still couldn’t stand on his own.

Essentially, the cabin was one large room with a wood-burning

stove situated in the center. To the right of the doorway there was a
modified kitchen area. To the left there were two chairs and a small
table. Right in front of them there was a bed with one occupant on top
of the quilted cover.

“Maxwell.” Quinn wanted to run toward him, but he couldn’t, not

with Dylan on his arm. Moreover, he didn’t have Danny’s permission.
So instead, Quinn let his gaze wander over Maxwell like he would
memorize his every line. All Maxwell wore was a swath of rich
purple fabric swaddled around his hips. He looked like a man out of

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an old graphic novel, perhaps a man plucked out of time. Maxwell
wasn’t tied to the bed, but lying there, as if he were waiting for
instructions. He looked so good that Quinn got hard after one glance.

“My mate and the leader of the Lone Pine Wolves, Grayson

Reems.” The little one bowed, lifted his hand, and into the light cast
by the lamp walked a tall man with beautiful gray hair and eyes. His
skin was almost the color of moonlight.

“Go to him and kneel at his feet,” Danny spoke directly into

Quinn’s head.

Releasing Dylan from his grip, Quinn wanted to do as Danny

suggested, but he had a better idea. Quinn lowered himself to the floor
and moved slowly toward the aptly named Grayson on his hands and
knees. He stopped once he was at Grayson’s feet.

“Look at me, little one.”
Quinn lifted his head and peered up the length of Grayson’s body.

He wasn’t as tall as Maxwell or as heavy, but he commanded respect
by his very presence. He wore perfectly fitted black jeans and a long-
sleeved black shirt. Sleek, sophisticated, and most definitely
comfortable with command, Grayson stood looking down at Quinn
for a long time.

Grayson cupped his face and examined him without emotion.

When he lifted his thumb and stroked it over Quinn’s bottom lip,
Quinn held so perfectly still he almost stopped his heart from beating.
It was the exact same thing that Maxwell had done to Quinn in the
club. Over and back Grayson’s rubbing thumb tracked along Quinn’s
bottom lip.

“You are not of my kind, and yet you are.” Grayson darted his

gaze to Danny. “Does he fit in with your sloth?”

“He is different, and yet he does mesh with my brethren,” Danny

said.

Grayson frowned slightly at the term. In the hierarchy of the pack,

they didn’t quite see themselves that way. They were brothers of a
sort, but they were more packmates than family. It was a small

Dangerous Alpha

distinction in word, but in thought, it was almost entirely different to
a man like Grayson.

“I think I would be proud to have you as a part of our pack.”

Grayson released his hold on Quinn. He turned his attention to
Maxwell then asked Danny, “Would you welcome him into your
sloth?”

Danny considered Maxwell for a moment. “I would.”
“If our plan should fail, we will destroy the very foundation of our

groups.” Grayson gave a heavy sigh.

Danny nodded thoughtfully. “However, if we succeed, we will be

greater than the sum of our parts.”

A speculative flash brightened Grayson’s eyes. “You make a most

valid point. I am unaware of any two shifter groups who have ever
crafted an alliance. Not one that lasted for any length of time, at any
rate, before one broke the treaty by eating the other.”

“Perhaps,” Danny said, “you and I can show them the way.”
“Perhaps.” Grayson returned his attention to Quinn’s face. With a

gentle tug, he drew Quinn to his feet. “When we twin, we have the
pair lie together.”

Danny nodded at Quinn.
With his permission, Quinn climbed onto the bed. He wanted to

leap into Maxwell’s arms, but he didn’t. Instead, he lay down next to
him.

“Hold hands.”
When Maxwell took his hand, Quinn practically burst into tears of

joy. He couldn’t speak, but he squeezed Maxwell’s hand and was
ecstatic when he squeezed back.

“By your leave?” Danny questioned, looking at the empty spot

next to Quinn.

Grayson nodded.
Danny helped Dylan over to Quinn’s side of the bed and placed

him on his back. Weakly, Dylan clung to Quinn’s shoulders, but he
seemed to be coming around.

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Grayson snapped his fingers, and another man, a very tiny man

with long brown hair and delicate features, was laid gently on the bed
next to Maxwell.

“This is Preston, our nexus.”
“Dylan, our nexus,” Danny said.
Both leaders turned and looked at the four of them on the bed.

Quinn felt like he should say or do something, but he had no clue
what. Maxwell opened his mouth as if he would speak, but then the
little Preston plastered his mouth over Maxwell’s.

Before Quinn could object, Dylan did the same thing to him.
It wasn’t a kiss so much as Dylan was drawing out his breath.

Once he’d sucked him empty, Dylan struggled to reach Maxwell, who
lifted up to meet him halfway. When he did, Dylan breathed out into
his mouth. When Dylan moved back, Preston leaned over and
breathed out into Quinn’s mouth.

They repeated this until Quinn thought he’d simply float right up

to the ceiling. He was so light, so filled with energy, he could almost
turn himself into photons. The knowledge of how to change himself
into any creature he wanted hovered just beyond his grasp.

But it wasn’t enough. No longer could Quinn block himself from

hearing the screaming of Maxwell’s soul. The sound was as
disturbing as nails on a chalkboard and as mournful as a fog horn. All
Quinn wanted to do was soothe Maxwell’s ache.

“It’s not working.” Preston pulled back.
“No, it’s not.” Dylan pulled back.
For the first time the two men, the two nexesus, considered each

other, and Quinn thought there was a spark of recognition between
them. Dylan seemed on the verge of saying something when Preston
cut him off.

“I’m sorry. The souls are screaming, but the bond isn’t fully

connecting.” Preston kept his gaze locked to Dylan.

“I feel that, too.” Dylan reached for Preston’s hand. When the

contact came, Preston blushed and looked away.

Dangerous Alpha

As glad as Quinn was the two men seemed interested in one

another, they already had one mismatched couple to attend to. Rather
than speak, Quinn coughed pointedly, drawing their attention off one
another and back onto him and Maxwell.

“There is a part missing.” Dylan looked down at Quinn as if

whatever was wrong would show in his face. After a while, Dylan
looked back at Preston.

Silently, Preston and Dylan communicated. Then they rose from

the bed and went to their respective leaders.

Quinn held onto Maxwell, terrified that the pain would never stop

until they were dead. The only benefit to the two nexuses moving
away was that once they stopped trying to accomplish the twinning,
the screaming abated to a distant hum of static.

After some discussion, Danny, Grayson, Dylan, and Preston left

the cabin altogether.

“Why do I get a very bad feeling about this?” Quinn gripped

Maxwell’s hand even harder.

“Because this isn’t looking good.” Maxwell lifted up and rose

over Quinn. “I’m so sorry. I wanted you so much that I didn’t think
all of this through, but...” Maxwell took a deep breath. “I don’t want
to die without telling you that I love you.”

This time Maxwell didn’t try to cut Quinn off, so he smiled and

said, “I love you, too. And we’re not beat yet.”

“It was energy and light, but I felt there was this barrier.

Something was holding me back from you.”

“Do you know what it was?”
“No. If I did, I’d drop it or blow it up or whatever I had to do to

get to you.” Maxwell kissed him, and the energy the nexuses had been
feeding to them blossomed between them then equalized, stopping the
screaming.

The four men returned to the cabin.
“You see, the energy is different now because he’s willing.”

Preston pointed to Maxwell. “He’s the one who has to surrender.”

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“Surrender what?” Quinn asked softly.
“His virginity.” Grayson considered Maxwell with hardened eyes.

“You are an alpha in my pack, Maxwell. Normally that means you
mount, but in order to complete the soul bond with your mate, you
have to let him mount and breed you.”

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101

Chapter 12

Let him mount and breed you. Mount and breed you. Mount and

breed you. Grayson’s words echoed in Maxwell’s mind until he was
shaking.

“No.”
Maxwell shook his head. He hadn’t spoken. Quinn had. “It’s my

say,” Maxwell reminded Quinn gently. “Not yours.”

“I’m not doing that to you.” Quinn crossed his arms over his

naked chest. “There has to be another way. What if all four of us do
that kissing, breathing thing—”

“In order for us to do that, you have to finish the soul bond.”

Dylan flashed Maxwell an uncomfortable frown. “I don’t know what
else to tell you.”

“No. He can take me again.” Quinn made as if to roll onto his

belly for Maxwell.

“That’s not going to do any good. You already surrendered to

him.” Grayson considered them with a curious frown. “That forged
the first—leg, road, link—pick your metaphor. But that simply wasn’t
enough. You now need to deepen your bond, and that means Maxwell
must surrender to you.” Grayson grimaced. “Believe me, the very
idea of a beta mounting his alpha turns my stomach, but there it is.”

“Turns your stomach? What the fuck does that—”
Maxwell cut Quinn off. “Stop.” Maxwell pulled him close. “Can

we have privacy, please?”

“I need to know if you will submit to this or if I will have to take

more drastic action.” Grayson wasn’t being a dick. He had men who
had lives and things to attend to. This fucked-up little adventure had

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already cost too many people too much time and energy.

“Please, just give us a moment.” Maxwell directed his thought at

Grayson.

“I understand your reluctance, as that is the way of alphas in our

pack, but if comes down to you being mounted or losing Preston as
the nexus, you realize I will have no choice but to order you to spread
for your intended mate.”

Maxwell nodded. “I beg you to please let me talk him into this.”
“Allowed. But we cannot be here all night.”
When Grayson turned and left the cabin, Danny and the two

nexuses followed.

“I’m not going to rape you.” Quinn had his arms braced across his

chest so tightly it was as if he’d declared the issue finalized.

“I’m not asking you to hurt me.” Maxwell stroked his hands along

Quinn’s arms, trying to relax his body language, and hopefully open
him up to changing his mind. “I’m asking you to bond with me.”

“By doing something that terrifies you.” Quinn’s posture relaxed a

bit, but not enough.

“Quinn, if we don’t, we’re going to die and possibly kill two

innocent people.” Maxwell could not believe that their fate rested on
his virginity. However, in another way, it was as if this was entirely
fitting. “All you have to do is penetrate me and climax.”

“Like what you did to me in the club?” Quinn’s arms tightened

right back up.

“No. Do it your way,” Maxwell soothed.
“My way is not to do that to you at all!”
“I want you to.” Maxwell laid down on his back and pulled Quinn

on top of him, but Quinn resisted. “I’m entitled to change my mind. I
want you to do this.” Fear caused him to shake, but he covered that by
forcefully reaching for Quinn’s sweats. “Please. If you don’t do this,
we can’t be together.”

The look that crossed Quinn’s face was a mix of disgust and

longing.

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103

“You still want to.” Maxwell believed that no matter how much

Quinn tried to hide it.

“No, I don’t.”
Maxwell cupped Quinn’s cock. “You’re hard.”
“Stop it. It’s from the kissing we were doing.”
“No, it’s not. Just like me, you’ve got an animal inside you, and

he wants to do to me exactly what I did to you.”

Quinn frowned and looked away.
“Be honest with me. Please. Now more than ever we have to be

clear. This might very well be our last chance.”

“I can’t do that to you when I know how afraid you are.”
“I was afraid, but I’m not anymore. Fuck me, Quinn.” Maxwell

took off his makeshift loincloth and tossed it off the bed. “I want you
to, and deep down you know you want it, too.”

Rather than pounce, Quinn covered Maxwell’s mouth, kissing him

with gentle brushes of his lips. At first. When Maxwell started
whimpering low at the back of his throat, Quinn grew more
aggressive. A soft moan, a tilt of his hips, a plaintive cry all conspired
to place Quinn on top of him.

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing.” Quinn balanced

himself above Maxwell by lifting his weight onto his powerful arms.

Lowering his face just as Quinn had done, Maxwell looked up,

making his eyes big and innocent.

“Aw, fuck. Damn it, Maxwell, that’s manipulative.”
“I want you.” When Quinn resisted, Maxwell described to him

what he saw Brody do to Fynn. “He just ripped his pants off, shoved
him up against those bars, and rammed his cock in without any
tenderness at all. And Fynn loved every second of it.”

Growling, Quinn pressed Maxwell’s hands into the bed.
“Brody dug his fingers into his mate’s hips and just fucked as hard

and as fast as he could. And do you know what Fynn did? He clung to
the bars and took it. And he made this sound, this sweet little whine
like music.” Maxwell imitated the mating music of the beta wolf,

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hoping to reach the alpha wolf in Quinn. He knew he was successful
when Quinn growled and forced his way between Maxwell’s legs.
Masking his fear by talking helped, so Maxwell uttered, “That’s it,
mount me. Fuck me.”

Rising up above him, Quinn suddenly lunged down along

Maxwell’s body. To his shock, Quinn parted Maxwell’s legs,
exposing his hole.

“I’m ready for you.” Maxwell looked Quinn right in the eye and

lifted one brow invitingly.

“What does that mean?” Quinn looked down at his pucker then

back up.

“Grayson invented a lube for their betas so they are always ready

for their mates to fuck them.” Maxwell grinned. “Fynn gave me
some.”

Again, Quinn looked down then back up. “You’re slicked up

inside?”

Maxwell nodded. “I’m very ready for you.” Maxwell knew he’d

managed to mimic Fynn’s submissive tone when Quinn’s nostrils
flared.

“You look me in the eye and tell me you want me to fuck you.”
Maxwell shivered. Never in his life had he ever been submissive

to anyone. The very idea went against his nature. But suddenly his
fear twisted into something he never expected. Terror became
anticipation. Quinn wouldn’t hurt him. As much as Quinn wanted to
ram his cock deep and ride them both to orgasm, he only wanted to do
that if Maxwell was receptive. Looking Quinn right in the eye,
Maxwell said, “I want you to fuck me.”

Quinn grinned and licked his lips. “Hold yourself open for me.”
Grasping his legs behind the knee, Maxwell spread himself for

Quinn’s hungry gaze.

“Beautiful.” Quinn lowered his head, and then he breathed out

against Maxwell’s pucker.

Rather than tense, Maxwell melted. The brush of his breath felt

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105

unbelievably good. And then the slow stroke of Quinn’s tongue traced
around and around his hole.

“Oh. God.”
“Good?”
“Yes.” Maxwell’s eyes rolled back in his head. All these decades

and he’d never even let another man touch him there. Quinn didn’t
rush. He teased and taunted until Maxwell was thrashing with
longing. Inside his head he was begging for more until he realized he
needed to tell Quinn. “More.”

Working his tongue within caused another shock of bliss to relax

Maxwell further.

“Oh, that Grayson is a clever one.”
“What do you mean?”
“You taste like cherries.”
Maxwell then thought the offering of the tube with little lube

bombs was probably not as serendipitous as it had seemed. Or
perhaps it was. What did it matter? Maxwell was right where he knew
he needed to be. He was on the verge of surrendering to the man he
had always been destined to surrender to. All was exactly as it should
be.

Quinn wasn’t forcing him. Quinn was inducting him to something

he now realized he’d feared unnecessarily.

“More.”
Each time Maxwell uttered his breathless cry, Quinn deepened his

thrusting tongue, and then he slicked a finger in and out, causing
Maxwell to utter a high-pitched keening sound of capitulation.

“More.”
Delving deeper into him with his fingers, Quinn ensured Maxwell

was utterly relaxed and ready for his prick.

“Now. Please. Now.” Maxwell looked down right as Quinn

looked up.

Quinn rose to his knees and lowered his gaze to his cock.

Maxwell followed. Pre-cum glistened at the tip, glowing in the wash

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of moonlight through the window above the bed. Quinn reached out,
flicked the pre-cum off Maxwell’s cock, and smeared it with his own
slickness around the tip of his prick.

For some reason, the image of that aroused Maxwell more than

anything else Quinn had done. It was sweet, sexy, and suggestive that
they were blending their bodies.

Lowering himself over Maxwell’s submissive form, Quinn

pressed his cock to his starburst, but made no effort to fill his now
quivering passage.

Begging wouldn’t work. Pleading wouldn’t work. Maxwell did

the one thing that had worked. Softly, using more breath than sound,
he said, “More.”

Quinn eased the tip of his cock within.
Maxwell felt his sphincter stretch to accommodate him, and there

was a bit of pain, but Quinn had relaxed him so fully that it was only
a pinch, and then it was gone.

“Damn, that stuff is slick.”
“And my virginity is gone.” Maxwell held himself wider.
Quinn lowered himself over Maxwell’s body, holding himself

angled up with his elbows. Slowly, so gently, he slid fully inside. “Let
go of your legs.”

Maxwell did and then wrapped himself around Quinn. “This isn’t

anything like what we did at the club.”

“I know.” Quinn kissed him as he worked his hips in a lazy

rhythm. “That time was for your alpha wolf. This time is for my alpha
bear. Two very different creatures.”

Maxwell had thought he had to reach Quinn’s alpha wolf, but he

realized Quinn was right. This was the way to merge their two
creatures. Holding tightly to his body, Maxwell luxuriated in being
vulnerable. With anyone other than Quinn, this never would have
worked, but Quinn erased his fears, opened his body, and freed his
mind to embrace something he’d always run from.

“I think I told myself I was afraid in order to protect myself from

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107

being hurt. By holding myself away from the intimacy of this, the
vulnerability of this surrender, I kept my heart safe.”

“And now?” Quinn asked.
“I feel intimate, vulnerable, but still very, very safe.”
Quinn grinned and then kissed him. “You also feel good. Very

tight and hot.” Quinn lowered his lips to Maxwell’s neck and nuzzled
him as he increased the speed of his thrusting. When he reached the
peak, when sweat poured off his body and his cock was thrusting hard
and deep, he growled and bit Maxwell’s neck.

Whimpering, Maxwell turned his head to the side, giving Quinn

more room. Marking him, Quinn bit him harder as he bucked as
deeply as he could. Shoving his hands under Maxwell’s shoulders,
Quinn used this leverage to work his cock even deeper by bodily
pulling Maxwell down as he thrust up.

With his cock trapped between their bellies, Maxwell felt each

pounding stroke against his shaft.

“Make me come with you.” Maxwell felt his balls lifting,

tightening, and then Quinn reached the last edge before climax.

Lifting his head, Quinn uttered a deafening roar that rattled the

windows. Matching him, Maxwell whimpered and came. There was a
crash of lightning that split the sky and struck something, causing it to
explode.

Just like in the club, when they defied nature to come together, the

results were explosive. By the time they steadied their breathing and
rolled to their sides, the night was once again calm.

Quinn lifted up and glanced out the window over the bed. “Uh,

oh.”

“What?” Maxwell joined him.
“We exploded trees.”
“Damn. Is anything on fire?”
“Doesn’t look like. It’s too wet up here.”
Quinn grinned at him.
“What?”

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“Well, we’re really kinda epic, you know? Our lust is so powerful

we just about leveled a building and then blew up a forest.” Quinn
breathed on his nails then rubbed them briskly against his chest.

“And all we have to do now is see if we can be twinned.”

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109

Chapter 13

Despite what was ahead of them, Quinn felt he and Maxwell were

closer than ever. Realizing that they each had their alpha, beta, and
omega sides would serve them well not just in the bedroom, but in
everything they did together. All they had to do was take the final
step. After they’d cleaned themselves up a bit and got under the
covers, Dylan and Preston returned, climbed onto the bed, and tried to
twin them again.

This time the energy flow was smoother, almost as slick as the

ride in Maxwell’s limo. But there was another catch this time in that
the power seemed to be amplified.

“It’s so much,” Preston breathed into Quinn.
“It’s too much,” Dylan breathed into Maxwell.
Wordlessly, the two nexuses looked at one another and pressed

their mouths together.

Quinn saw a spark of power surge between their lips. He wasn’t

certain what pushed him, but he knew he had to kiss Maxwell. When
he did, he felt a new kind of energy flow between them. Now they
went around in a full circle. Each man kissed and breathed into each
man until all four of them were breathless. Together they reached a
new summit where the complexity of their twinning was breached.

Simultaneously, all four of them climaxed.
Never in his life had Quinn ever felt such joy and relief.

Maxwell’s soul was bound to his, and his soul was bound to
Maxwell’s. The bond was as unbreakable. They were true and
dedicated twins now. Even though he knew it was woefully unalpha,
Quinn burst into tears. He didn’t feel one bit upset considering the

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other three men joined him.

Softly, into his mind, Danny whispered, “Welcome to the

brotherhood of the Twin Pines Grizzlies.” Information exploded.
Quinn in turn whispered this to Maxwell, who had the same reaction.

Clinging together, they cried and laughed while they let the

residual energy equalize. And then, without an explosion or a ground-
shaking climax, they were done. Or so Quinn thought.

“You’re not finished just yet.” Grayson considered the group of

them on the bed.

“They are bonded now,” Danny pointed out.
“Yes, but what are they, exactly?” Grayson frowned. “I need to

know.”

Danny nodded. “I guess that might help us decide where they will

go.”

Maxwell’s upper lip snarled back at the idea of anyone telling him

where he would go or what he would do.

“That is part of this deal,” Quinn said, directly into Maxwell’s

mind. “We have what we wanted. We are twinned, but we still have to
pay the piper. Keeping a delicate balance between your pack and my
sloth is going to be far more difficult than this twinning ever was. So,
put on a happy face, and let’s do our best to get through this without
making it worse.”

“When the hell did you get so wise?”
“I took a class in college.”
“Ah. I’ll have to take that course.”
Maxwell dropped the snarl along with his attitude because he

recognized Quinn was right. They had to work this out. Moreover,
both of them were curious about what animal they would shift into.

“I shall see if I can still pull Maxwell to me.” In an instant,

Maxwell was at Grayson’s side in his wolf form. Quinn couldn’t help
but think Maxwell was very sleek and predatory as a wolf. His hair
was completely black and very thick. His eyes were the same hazel
color he possessed as a human. “Pull yours.”

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Danny shook his head. “I don’t have that ability.”
“Oh.” Grayson couldn’t seem to help himself. He allowed a

satisfied smirk to twist his lips. “Let us see what happens when Quinn
tries to shift.”

“How do I do that?” Quinn asked Danny.
“Concentrate on your twin and pull him to you. But wait—”
Too late, Quinn pulled and suddenly he and Maxwell were bound

together in a bear body. Looking across the room at Danny, Quinn
mentally asked, “Why did you want me to wait?”

“I was going to suggest you get naked so you didn’t lose your

clothes.”

“Oh. They’re off.”
“Right. How does it feel?”
“Good.” Quinn nodded their shaggy head. “How do we look?”
“You look like a hybrid between a grizzly and a black bear.”
When an image filled Danny’s mind, Quinn and Maxwell were

able to see themselves through his eyes. Maxwell seemed
disappointed.

“What’s with you?” Quinn asked.
“Well, we’re cute. I thought we’d be all terrifying.”
“If we stood on our hind legs and roared, I’m sure we’d strike

fear in the hearts of man and beast alike.”

“But how can this be?” Grayson considered them. “How can I still

pull Maxwell to me but my ability has no effect on Quinn?”

By pushing, Quinn was able to separate himself from Maxwell.

“You try this time.”

When Maxwell concentrated, Quinn felt himself merge into him.

When they looked up, they saw both Danny and Grayson step back.

“Holy mother of God!” Grayson’s eyes were as wide and round as

his mouth.

“That’s the biggest wolf I’ve ever seen!” Danny laughed and then

extended his hand. “Friends, right?”

Quinn and Maxwell nodded their head, and then they got an

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image of what they looked like. They were as massive as they had
been as a bear. They still had the same curious brown and black mix
of fur. They had one hazel eye and one that was pale blue, just as they
had when they joined into the bear.

“Wait.” Danny considered Grayson. “When your kind shifts, you

shift into two wolves?”

“Yes.” Grayson paused. “Don’t you shift into two bears?”
“No. We shift into one bear.”
“One bear with two minds?”
Danny nodded.
“Does the alpha partner lead?”
“No.”
“Then how do you decide what to do?” Grayson looked as

horrified as he sounded.

“It’s more us working together.”
Grayson gave him a look of utter disgust.
Diplomatically, Danny offered, “To each species their own way of

doing things. And this doesn’t really help us solve the issue.”

With effort, Quinn and Maxwell separated. “Why don’t we have a

say in this?”

“Because you’re lesser members.” Grayson sighed as if it were a

common well-known fact that he shouldn’t have to state.

“They are welcome with us,” Danny offered this kindly.
“But what if we should need him?” Grayson pointed to Maxwell.

So far, since they’d twinned, Grayson had hardly looked at Quinn at
all. It was demeaning. But before Quinn could say anything, Maxwell
spoke into his mind.

“Remember, we want them on our side.” Maxwell mentally patted

Quinn’s hand. “He doesn’t acknowledge you directly because to him
I’m the alpha in our relationship.”

“And that means you’re the boss of everything?”
“In Grayson’s eyes, yes.” Maxwell winked. “In reality, no. You

and I are a couple. We’ll decide things together.”

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“Well,” Quinn said, “apparently we’ll decide things together

after this.”

“Where would you rather go?” Grayson posed the question to

Maxwell.

“I would rather stay with my pack.” Maxwell’s answer was

automatic.

Quinn felt utterly betrayed. “And this is how we’re going to work

together?”

“I’m trying to mollify him.”
“I want to go with Danny.” Quinn grabbed his sweats off the floor

and yanked them on.

“You don’t have a say.” Grayson considered Maxwell. “I think it

would be best if they came with us.”

“I’m not going with you.” Quinn put his hands on his hips.
“Control your mate, Maxwell, or I shall have to discipline him.”
Maxwell gave Quinn a look that beseeched him to behave. After

Quinn darted a glance to Danny, and found him seemingly to be an
unconcerned observer, Quinn’s heart sank. Without asking, he knew
if he went with Maxwell to Grayson’s den, he was going to be the
lowest member of the pack.

“Why don’t we separate them?” Grayson proposed.
Quinn’s heart shot into ticking time bomb territory.
“I’m not leaving my mate.” Maxwell rose from the bed and slung

the swath of purple fabric around his hips. “We did all of this to be
together.”

“Yes, that is why you did it. I, however, only wanted to save my

nexus.” Grayson looked around. “Where is Preston?”

“For that matter, where is Dylan?” Danny asked.
The two nexuses had slipped out during the shifting tests.
With a snap of his fingers, Grayson called forth his mate and sent

him to locate Preston. “I can’t seem to feel him. Can you?”

“No, my mate.” Elias lowered his head.
“They couldn’t have gotten far,” Danny said. “I can still mentally

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communicate with my brethren, so Dylan is in perfect health.”

“When he is ill, you can’t communicate?” Grayson asked.
“No. And I already know you cannot either if Preston is ill.”

Danny grinned. “In that way, our kind are very much alike.”

“Then I do believe it would be to our benefit to locate them.”
“As for the matter of where these two will go?” Danny asked.
Grayson cast his cool gray eyes upon them. “Maxwell is coming

with me. I care not what he allows his mate to do.”

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Chapter 14

Maxwell rode in the back of the truck. It was a good thing he was

in wolf form or he would have frozen. As angry and frustrated as he
was, he was still pleased to feel the cold air rippling his fur. As they
drove through the night back to their compound, a hundred scents
infiltrated his canine senses. The world was a richer place in this
form. It would be richer still if he had been able to convince Quinn to
come with him. Not that he hadn’t tried, just that Quinn had put his
foot down.

“I’m enrolled at Twin Pines College. I’m not walking away from

my senior year because Grayson is pissed he can’t pull me to him
whenever he feels the urge.”

“Is that what you think this is about?” Maxwell had asked.
“Yes. I do.” Hands on hips, Quinn had glared at him. The others

left them alone in the cabin while they went to find Dylan and
Preston.

“I think he’s worried I’ll betray him if I go with Danny.” Maxwell

had felt that fear like a twisting in his guts.

“Betray him how?”
“I don’t know exactly. But if we just go—”
“I have a class in nine hours. I intend to be there.”
“I can’t go with you. Even if I did, where would I stay? I can’t

sleep in your dorm room.”

“So I should go with you because Grayson has a ‘compound?’”

Quinn actually made quote marks in the air. “From what I gather after
looking into your head, it’s nothing spectacular.”

“He had me in a prison.”

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“Right. Now, granted, Danny doesn’t have a ‘compound,’ which

also means he doesn’t have a jail cell, but that’s probably because he
doesn’t have a need to incarcerate his brothers to make them obey
him.”

The argument had degenerated from there, and when they reached

an impasse, they had left themselves no option but to have their
leaders resolve the problem.

To keep the peace, Quinn went with Danny and Maxwell went

with Grayson once they’d located the missing nexuses. This made
absolutely no one happy. Neither side had an advantage, which was
good, but eventually one of them would depending on where Maxwell
and Quinn ended up. And that was bad. But for tonight both leaders
were right back where they’d started. The only two who were utterly
put out by the split were he and his mate.

Maxwell sighed, causing a small puff of vapor to be whisked

away as the truck continued over the pass and into the valley of Lone
Pine. Mentally reaching out, Maxwell connected to Quinn.

“I’m sorry.” Maxwell offered the apology with a hug.
“Me, too.” Quinn mentally wrapped Maxwell up in his arms.
“We’ll figure this out.”
“I know. But damn, Maxwell, we really should have considered

this.”

“I realize that. I was blinded by lust.”
Quinn chuckled. “This is my last year. I’ll graduate this June.”
Maxwell counted on his fingertips. “Seven months? God. That

seems like an eternity.”

Quinn nodded rather glumly. “But we can do this. Given that

we’re practically eternal, seven months really isn’t that long in the
greater scheme of things, right?”

“Right.” Maxwell considered. “But Grayson is always going to

be paranoid.”

“But he can pull you to him at any moment no matter how far

away you are now that you’re a full member of his pack. If he needed

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you, he could bring you to him. Danny doesn’t have that same
advantage with me.”

It was a valid point, but getting Grayson to see that would take

some effort.

“Sleep well tonight. I swear I’ll have something figured out

tomorrow.” Maxwell ended their communication and turned his
attention onto how to solve their mutual dilemma. One thing was for
sure, neither he nor Quinn wanted to be separated for seven months
while he finished up his senior year of college. Even after that was
done, though, Quinn still wouldn’t want to live under Grayson’s
thumb. Maxwell didn’t blame him one bit since he didn’t want to live
that way, either. But for now, he was going to do his best to please
Grayson and hopefully find a way to be with his mate.

* * * *

“You’re making the other alphas uneasy.” Grayson had invited

Maxwell into his office. It was more orderly than the home of
someone with OCD and as quiet as a library. Rather than sit behind
his massive desk, Grayson had chosen to settle them near the
fireplace. With snow falling outside, it made for a much cozier
setting. Elias brought them tea and little cookies that had a curious
cinnamon-like scent. Maxwell turned down both. He wasn’t in the
mood for anything other than Quinn.

“How am I bothering them?” Maxwell had gone out of his way to

stay out of everyone’s hair. He’d informed his employees he’d be
staying with some friends in Lone Pine and they were only to contact
him in the case of an extreme emergency. With Grayson’s permission,
he’d been allowed to have some of his clothing and toiletries brought
to him, but everything had to be personally inspected and approved by
Grayson. After he rejected the custom made suits, it became
abundantly clear to Maxwell that Grayson didn’t want his subordinate
to dress better than he did. To that end, Maxwell was allowed to wear

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jeans and button-down shirts. That was fine with Maxwell. The last
thing he wanted to do right now was create more problems. He had
enough for a lifetime.

“Having an alpha without a mate is disturbing.”
“I have a mate,” Maxwell reminded.
“But he isn’t here.” Grayson sipped his tea, found it tolerable, and

then dismissed Elias with a wave of his fingers. No wonder Quinn
didn’t want to come here. If he did, everyone was going to treat him
like shit. “I think it’s time you took control of your mate.”

Maxwell had a feeling this was what Grayson had been angling

for all along. As the alpha, Maxwell was the boss. He should simply
put his foot down and make Quinn come to him.

“It’s not that simple.”
Grayson’s eyes narrowed. “When you say jump, your mate should

ask how high?” With a snap of his fingers, Grayson called Elias back
into the room.

“Yes, my mate?”
“Come here and kneel beside me.”
Elias moved swiftly to Grayson’s side and did as he was told. He

kept his eyes demurely lowered. When Grayson stroked his hand over
Elias’s head and down the expanse of his beautiful hair, Elias
luxuriated in being pet.

Maxwell blanched. He’d done the same thing to Quinn in his club.

At the time he’d been trying to soothe him, but had he subconsciously
being trying to control him, too?

“I do not like that your mate is so independently minded.”

Grayson continued to stroke Elias’s hair absently. “Quinn is much too
powerful for a beta, and that is distressing in and of itself, but the fact
that he seems more powerful than you is even worse.”

Maxwell was not going to get into a pissing match about who was

the stronger between him and Quinn because he didn’t care. To move
the conversation away from that, Maxwell stated, “I love him.”

Grayson sighed. “I love Elias.”

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Elias practically purred.
“But were I to order him to suck my cock in front of you, he

would obey.”

Frankly, Maxwell thought he’d enjoy doing it immensely given

how all his brothers enjoyed fornicating in front of him. Since he’d
been here, he’d witnessed just about every single pair fucking or
sucking— “Is that what this is about?” Maxwell leaned forward, his
excitement high. “You’re all angry because of the quid without the
pro quo!”

“I have no idea what point you are trying to make.” Each stroke

Grayson made against Elias seemed to result in increasing Grayson’s
arousal.

“My packmates aren’t nervous about me being an unattached

alpha any more than my state worries you. After your little show in
the prison cell, they consider me your property.”

“It wasn’t a little show, and if you continue to speak

disrespectfully of me before my mate, I will have no choice but to put
on another demonstration of my power.”

Maxwell nodded curtly to Grayson’s private mental rebuke.
In a much more respectful tone, Maxwell offered, “I think I

understand that my packmates wish for my mate to join us here so
that we can have sex for their enjoyment.”

Grayson’s stroke along Elias’s hair slowed considerably.

“Perhaps. But also, to have a bear shifter in our midst would be a
powerful coup.”

That was Maxwell’s concern. He firmly believed that Grayson

only wanted Quinn here so he could debase him with grunt chores and
lord his status over him. The other brothers simply wanted to watch
Maxwell and Quinn have sex as a quid pro quo for what they gave to
him. Ironically, the more Maxwell was around his packmates, the
more the idea appealed to him, but he also felt guilty for feeling as he
did. He shouldn’t want to have sex with Quinn in front of others, but
he did, and he repeatedly wondered what Quinn’s reaction would be

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to that idea. But so far, Maxwell hadn’t summoned the courage to ask
Quinn.

“Why are you so resistant to the notion of putting that boy in his

place?” Grayson turned, and without being told, or perhaps after
being instructed mentally, Elias unfastened Grayson’s trousers. After
worshiping his prick with his eyes, hands, and whimpering voice,
Elias was allowed to suck him.

Against his will, Maxwell hardened. He couldn’t help his

reaction. He was an aggressive dominant who had now been
separated from his mate for a month. Fucking his own fist wore thin
when all around him his brothers fornicated at the drop of a hat. They
didn’t care that he watched because if they did, they would simply
cease performing before him. They wanted him to give something
back. So far he’d refrained from even masturbating in front of them
because he felt like he was cheating on Quinn.

“You see how giving me pleasure provides enjoyment to Elias?

I’m not forcing him to suck my cock. I’m allowing him to please his
mate.” Grayson threaded his fingers through Elias’s silky hair, but he
didn’t force his head to bob over his cock. “Tonight, when I am
recovered from the exquisite pleasure of his mouth, I will give him
the touches that he craves from me. Do you understand this?”

“I do. But I will not force Quinn to come here and perform for you

or my packmates.”

Exasperated, Grayson ignored Maxwell while Elias quickly

brought him to climax. After he’d sucked down every drop, Elias
looked up at his mate and smiled. For all Maxwell could tell, the little
beta was rather impressed with himself. And then Grayson did the
unexpected. He pulled Elias into his lap and kissed him hungrily.
Wordlessly, Grayson told Elias that he had pleased him and that he
would return the favor, but not just now. Once Grayson finished
reassuring his mate, he let him go and watched Elias skip away on
happy feet.

“Do you see how pleased that made him?” Grayson asked as he

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zipped up.

“I do.”
“Your Quinn could become so conditioned.”
“Perhaps. But I have another suggestion.”
Clearly more relaxed, Grayson met Maxwell’s gaze over the rim

of his teacup. “You may speak freely.”

“I propose to buy a home equidistant from Lone Pine and Twin

Pines. That way, Quinn and I can be viewed as active members of
both the sloth and the pack.”

Grayson sipped his tea then plucked a cookie off the tray.
Maxwell kept silent, giving his leader all the time in the world to

consider his offer.

“And if I need you?”
“You can pull me to you at any time day or night.”
Frowning, Grayson dunked his cookie into his tea. He made a face

when the thin confectionary broke off. “And what of Quinn?”

“Since you cannot pull him to you, you would have to pull me,

and I would pull him.”

“Ah. Very clever. I had not thought of that. Perhaps I should have

you pull him here now to check if you can.”

Maxwell checked his watch. “He’s in class right now.”
“Always you find these little ways to defy me!”
“My apologies.” And Maxwell was sorry. Grayson hadn’t told

him to do it. He was only speculating out loud, and Maxwell had
jumped the gun. “I think too much.”

“Indeed you do.” Grayson looked to the second cup on the tray.

“Do you want your tea?”

“No, thank you.”
Grayson pulled the fresh cup to him and poured more tea. He

bypassed the dunking of any more cookies lest he destroy his drink.
With a grin, Maxwell wondered if he drank Earl Grey as that would
be rather fitting, but he decided not to ask.

“I find that might be the best solution to the dilemma. You are

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clearly no good to us here without a proper mate, and though I think
my men would enjoy watching you subdue your resistant beta, such
lusty charm would rapidly dwindle if there were genuine strife.”
Grayson sighed. “However, you will speak of this to no one. I will
present the idea and then tell you to follow my bidding.”

If it would get Maxwell closer to a bed where he could have

Quinn in his arms every night, he was all for it.

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Chapter 15

“Do you like it?” Maxwell pulled the brand new SUV to a stop.

They were in a freshly plowed driveway of a Tudor style house that
appeared to be much smaller than it probably was. Tucked back into
the lush landscaping, most of which was now covered with snow,
they could be somewhere in the Alps, but they were still in Colorado.

“It’s beautiful.”
“It’s almost exactly halfway between Twin Pines and Lone Pine.”
Quinn nodded. “Let me guess. The shorter distance would be

toward Lone Pine?”

“By an incremental margin.” Maxwell grinned. “Yes, Grayson

really is that petty.”

“I don’t care.” Quinn exited the vehicle. “If we can live here

together, that’s all that matters.”

From the back, they extracted Quinn’s few possessions, and

strode toward the house.

“My people made everything ready for us. There’s a maid who

will come once a week, a man to shovel the walks, and—”

Quinn cut him off. “You’ve taken care of everything. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
At first, Quinn had been a little put off by how Maxwell seemed

determined to take his role as alpha too far. He provided everything.
However, when Quinn really looked at what bothered him about that,
his issue stemmed from the fact he had nothing to give back. Maxwell
had dismissed that notion rather quickly by telling Quinn he gave
back by accepting what Maxwell gave. As silly as it sounded, it was
true. All Maxwell wanted to do was provide for his mate. He did this

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to please Quinn, not to hold anything over his head.

Inside was modest but a luxurious kind of modest. Wealth wasn’t

oozing from the walls, but everything was of the highest quality. Still,
it managed to be quite homey. Quinn felt instantly comfortable.

“It’s almost as if your decorator looked right into my mind.”

Quinn noticed that right off the living room there was a game room
with a pool table. He’d always wanted to own one.

“I looked into your mind then made that happen for you. I hope

that’s okay.”

“It’s fine. Really. I’m over my issue.”
They went upstairs to the master bedroom that overlooked the

backyard. Towering trees and a secure fence gave them all the privacy
they would ever need.

“What’s that? A play house?”
“It’s a mother-in-law’s cabin.”
“I don’t think my mother is going to want to live there, even if

you let my dad come with her.”

Maxwell chuckled. “We’ll just leave it for guests, then.”
While Quinn peered out the window, Maxwell embraced him

from behind. “We can shift and play in the yard without bothering our
neighbors.”

“As long as we keep the growling and yipping down.”
“I think we can be trusted.”
“Did Grayson accept the other offer?”
Maxwell stiffened.
“You didn’t ask?” Quinn turned. “Maxwell, we talked about this.”
“You don’t have to do that. Grayson agreed that we were to be

tertiary pack members.”

“I don’t want to be tertiary. That isn’t good for either one of us.

We need to be full members of my sloth and your pack.” Quinn
thought they had hashed this out and settled the matter but apparently
not. “It’s my way of giving back to them.”

“It’s demeaning.”

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“Not if I’m willing it’s not.” Quinn kissed him. “And it feeds your

alpha need to dominate, too. It’s perfect, really.”

“Quinn, I don’t know that I’m comfortable.”
“You had no problem at the club.”
“That was different.”
“How?”
“It just—because—damn it.” Maxwell looked away.
“The very idea of it turns you on, and that makes you feel

ashamed. Just like when I was aroused by claiming your virginity. I
told myself that I wasn’t, but we both know that I was.”

“It just seems strange that we’re giving the wolves that when

we’re not giving the bears anything close.”

“Different strokes for different species.”
Maxwell sighed.
“We have to embrace our dual natures. If we don’t, this isn’t

going to work.”

“Stop being all wise. You’re making me look bad.”
“Nothing could make you look bad.” Into Quinn’s mind popped

the image of Maxwell in his purple loincloth.

“God. I’ll never live that down.”
“It was sexy. Trust me.”
Grinning, Maxwell slid down to his knees.
“What are you doing?”
“Something I learned from Grayson.” Maxwell unbuttoned

Quinn’s jeans, freeing his rapidly hardening cock.

“Grayson taught you this?” Quinn’s eyebrows rose so high and

fast they almost shot off his head. The very idea of Grayson on his
knees placing another man above himself was as likely to happen as
Maxwell growing a vagina.

“He had Elias suck him off in front of me, but what he said was

later, when they were alone, he would in turn give Elias the strokes
that he enjoyed most.”

“And you think this meant a blow job?”

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“No, but I know that’s something you’d enjoy.” Maxwell teased

his lips and tongue around Quinn’s cock until he was straining to hold
still. “Rather than give to you afterward, I’d thought I’d give to you
beforehand.”

Sliding his fingers through Maxwell’s hair, Quinn quipped, “You

can give to me anytime you want.”

* * * *

“Are you sure you really want to do this?” Maxwell fussed with

the leather collar around Quinn’s neck.

“I’m positive.” Quinn grinned while unbuttoning Maxwell’s crisp

white shirt until it hung open, leading the eye right down to the bulge
in his faded jeans. “Make me your quivering, submissive beta.”

Lust, longing, and love filled Maxwell’s hazel eyes. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Quinn cupped his hand to Maxwell’s cock.

“You realize that this isn’t just for you or them, right?”

“I do.”
What they were doing was going to further Maxwell in the eyes of

his pack, reassure Grayson of their firm commitment to the pack, and
indulge each of them in their very darkest sexual needs. It was a
stroke of brilliance that by one act they could manage all that.

They shared an all-too-brief kiss, and then Maxwell turned,

leading Quinn by his leash. The stage had been perfectly set. Their
packmates encircled the glass table in an almost perfect semicircle,
leaving plenty of room for Maxwell and Quinn to put on their show.

Grayson and his mate had the best seats. From where they were

sitting, they’d be able to see everything Maxwell did and every
nuance of Quinn’s reactions. Strategically placed mirrors ensured that
not a one of them would have to move to view the action from
alternate angles.

With a swarm of butterflies in his belly, Quinn walked five paces

behind Maxwell, loving the way the cotton molded to his buttocks.

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Quinn kept his head demurely lowered, his gaze on Maxwell’s ass.
From what he’d been able to gather during the design phase, this had
once been a type of banquet hall for the compound back when the
hippie collective had owned the place. It suited his and Maxwell’s
needs in that it was large enough to hold the entire pack.

When Maxwell reached the table, he turned toward Quinn,

wrapping the links of the leash around his fist until he pulled him
close. Forcefully, Maxwell lifted Quinn’s head, but Quinn continued
to keep his gaze lowered.

“Look at me.”
Quinn met his gaze. Here, in his element, embracing the very

depth of his alpha wolf needs, Maxwell’s eyes turned smoky.

“You will do exactly as I say.”
“Yes, my mate.” Quinn allowed a tremulous tone to heighten his

normally low voice.

Maxwell unclipped the chrome leash and tossed it aside. “Get on

the table, on your belly.”

Quinn did as he was ordered. The glass table was cool against his

bare flesh. If he were to look up, he would be looking right into the
face of Grayson and his mate, but Quinn kept his gaze down. From
this angle, all he saw was their crotches. He suppressed a grin. So far,
their show seemed to be a hit if all the erections were any indication.
When he took a deep breath, the cloud of pheromones almost caused
him to blow his load all over the table. To stifle the impact, Quinn
breathed through his mouth.

“Show me that tight, pink hole.”
Dutifully, Quinn reached back and spread his cheeks. There was a

high excited squeal from the betas in the pack.

“You were right,” Maxwell said into Quinn’s mind. “All of them

are loving this.”

“Don’t stop now.”
“Of course not. You’re loving it, too.”
“As are you.”

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“God, yeah. Do you have any idea how sexy you look spreading

yourself for my inspection?”

Maxwell leaned closer, examining Quinn. “Wider.”
Quinn obeyed.
Tauntingly, Maxwell slid one big finger down the split of Quinn’s

bottom but stopped right at the edge of touching his pucker.

Low growls from the alphas filled the room.
“Who does this hole belong to?” Maxwell demanded.
“You, my mate. Only you.”
“Mine.” Maxwell circled his fingertip slowly around Quinn’s

starburst. “Present yourself to me.”

Quinn lifted his bottom submissively while spreading his cheeks

as wide as they would go.

Maxwell wrenched his jeans open with one hard yank, exposing

his prick. Without preamble, he shoved his cock deep into Quinn’s
quivering ass, eliciting a whimper of surrender.

Alphas growled and betas whined.
“There is no question now that I am the alpha of our pair.”
“Just shut up and fuck me,” Quinn thought back, loving the

aggressive way with which Maxwell had taken command. His actions
fed both their fantasies and those of their pack.

For the wolves, sex was fast and rough, which both he and

Maxwell had come to enjoy. There was much to be said for their
gentle lovemaking sessions, but this was good, too. Sharing this with
their packmates went a great distance to cementing relations. The fact
that both of them totally got off on it was just an added bonus.

“You like being watched, don’t you?” Maxwell asked as he

pushed Quinn’s hands away and grabbed his hips.

“I love them watching me, but more so you. I can see you through

their eyes, how animal you look in your lust with your shirt swinging,
sweat all over your chest, your lips peeled back over your teeth as
you fuck me and snarl and—”

Maxwell yanked Quinn closer to the edge of the table and

Dangerous Alpha

129

forcefully lifted his hips so that each plunge of his cock rubbed
against Quinn’s prostate.

“That’s the spot. I’m gonna make you come on that table so they

can see it.”

All around them the sounds of their sexually frustrated packmates

became too much. When Grayson hurriedly unzipped his mate’s
pants, his, and then pulled his mate onto his lap, the others followed
suit. Pheromones filled the room, increasing the intensity.

With a cry of surrender, Quinn climaxed, which spurred on

Maxwell and the others. Like dominoes, they all fell to growling and
whimpers as a most powerful group orgasm incapacitated everyone
for a full ten minutes.

When Quinn recovered, he looked up and right into the eyes of

Grayson.

“You have pleased me greatly, little one. I am honored to have

you in my pack.”

Quinn bowed his head and smiled. He couldn’t be happier with

what they had accomplished. Exhausted, he closed his eyes, loving
the feel of his mate’s brutal touch now turned tender as Maxwell
helped him stand and then helped him out of the room.

“Are you okay?” Maxwell asked.
“I’m better than okay.” Quinn wrapped his arm around Maxwell’s

waist. “Let’s get cleaned up and then join our packmates for dinner.
Grayson promised a feast if we pleased him.”

“I’d say we more than accomplished our goal.”
“Just remember next weekend we have our meeting with the

sloth.” Quinn was looking forward to getting to know his bear-
shifting brothers better.

“Too bad they don’t do anything like this.” Maxwell gently

removed the leather collar from Quinn’s neck.

“Well, maybe they’ve just never had anyone suggest such an

activity.” Quinn flashed a mischievous grin.

“Oh, we most certainly should suggest this to them.” Maxwell

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Anitra Lynn McLeod

pulled Quinn close. He sighed. “Have I told you yet today that I love
you?”

“No. You did one better.”
“I did?”
“Yes.” Quinn kissed him. “You showed me.”
Chuckling, Maxwell traced his fingers over the tattoos on Quinn’s

shoulder. “I would be happy to play show and tell with you any time
you feel the need.”

“Excellent! You see, I have this reoccurring fantasy about you in

that purple loincloth.”

As Quinn described his longing, in detail, they quickly lost track

of cleaning up and ended up fooling around in the bathroom until
their packmates howled outside the door. They weren’t so upset at the
delay, only that they weren’t allowed in to watch.

“We should just have a room here with glass walls.”
“Don’t suggest that to Grayson. He’ll do it.”
“Well, we best get out there and join them.” Dressed and ready to

eat, drink, and be merry, Quinn and Maxwell left the bathroom and
joined their packmates. Together, they had found a way to embrace
their pack, their sloth, and the very darkest elements in their souls.

THE END

WWW.ANITRAMCLEOD.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Reading, writing, and white-water rafting are the three things

Anitra Lynn McLeod enjoys the most. You can visit her at
www.AnitraMcLeod.com.

Also by Anitra Lynn McLeod

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 1:

Powerful Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 2: Driven Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 3: Kinky Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 4: Devoted Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 5: Wicked Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 6:

Passionate Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 7:

Aggressive Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 8: Strong Alpha

Everlasting Classic ManLove: Twin Pines Grizzlies 9:

Dedicated Alpha

For all other titles, please visit

www.bookstrand.com/anitra-lynn-mcleod

Siren Publishing, Inc.

www.SirenPublishing.com