Vega Brothers: Alexander: BBW Paranormal Romance Reluctant Bride (The Bear Shifters of Vega Ranch Book 3) (10 page)

“Alright, Chuck Norris,” Bailey said with a frown. “Let’s hear the
real
story.”

Khan sighed and told the real story of how he was at a college party doing keg stands and got fall-down drunk. Julius, Hannibal, and Alexander helped fill in the embarrassing parts that he kept leaving out. The women, including Bailey, were laughing their asses off.

“And then,” Julius said, taking over the story. “They flipped Khan upside on the keg for his twelfth keg stand and the college boys, who were as drunk as him, dropped him and he fell down, splitting the side of his face on the keg.”

Bailey shook her head while she laughed. “And here I thought it was a noble and valiant scar.”

“It is,” Khan protested. “Someone had to drink that beer so the underage kids wouldn’t be able to.”

Bailey wrapped her arm around his thick bicep. “My hero,” she said, batting her eyelashes at him.

“What do you guys want to do this afternoon?” Ava asked when the laughing died down. “We should all do something as a group.”

“We could play Trivial Pursuit,” Hannibal said.

“No,” Alexander said. “You always smoke us.”

Hannibal shrugged. “I can’t help it that I’m smarter than all of you combined.”

“Let’s go fix up your father’s vegetable garden,” Ava said. “All we eat around here is meat. Some fresh veggies would be nice for a change.”

“That sounds great!” Julius said enthusiastically.

Ava jerked her head towards her husband in shock. “You like to garden?”

Julius smirked. “I love any activity where you have to bend over.”

Her cheeks flushed as she smiled and swatted his arm.

Alexander’s heartbeat thumped as Elena slid her hand into his under the table. This was nice. For once he was enjoying being around his brothers and sharing laughs with them rather than being the source of their laughs as he hid in his cabin.

This was a perfect meal. He had his mate, his brothers, and his new friends. He only had two days left and he had to enjoy every moment with everything that he had.

Liam jumped down from the table and ran to the large window, spreading his ketchup-covered fingers on the thick glass.

Alexander had to spend possibly years away overseas and the memories of the next forty-eight hours had to carry him through it all.

“Cool truck,” Liam said, staring out the window towards the driveway. “I love silver.”

Alexander’s stomach sank. He only knew one man who drove a silver truck and he wasn’t supposed to be here for another two days.

Khan joined his cub by the window. He turned around and looked at Alexander with a gulp. That look could only mean one thing. He was here early.

General Samson was there to bring him off to war.

nine

“General,” Alexander said, feeling his stomach rolling with nerves. “I wasn’t expecting you for another two days.”

General Samson stared at him with hard eyes as the rest of the Vega brothers and their mates came outside to join them. “I need you somewhere else first.”

Alexander’s chest tightened. “Where?”

“Wherever I want to send you!” the general snapped, looking at him with a fierce expression on his face. For a human, he was scary as hell. “Now get in the truck before I lose my patience.”

Alexander swallowed hard as he turned and glanced back at his mate. Tears were flowing down Elena’s cheeks. It broke his heart to see his mate cry.

“I’m sorry,” he mouthed to her.

“General Samson,” Julius said, stepping forward. “My brother Alexander has decided to opt out of service.”

The general whipped his head towards Julius. “That’s not an option.”

Julius crossed his arms across his muscular chest and raised his chin. “It is now.”

General Samson’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the shifter who was challenging his authority. “Private Vega,” he said, turning back to Alexander. “Get in the truck.”

Alexander felt trapped. He bit the inside of his cheek as he weighed his choices. He really didn’t want to go but he couldn’t put his mate and brothers in danger by refusing.

Khan stepped in front of him, placing his powerful body between him and the general. “We said no,” he said in a threatening tone. “We’re not going to be your slaves anymore.”

Hannibal stepped forward beside Khan. “Never again. Leave our ranch and don’t come back.”

The general straightened his jacket and raised his chin as he glared at the Vega brothers. “You boys know who you’re messing with,” he said coldly. “Alexander, I’m going to give you one last chance to get in the truck and drop this foolishness.”

Elena marched in front of the shifters, walking right up to the general. “Hi, General Samson,” she said, thrusting her hand into his. “I’m Elena King, a reporter for the New York Gazette.”

He furrowed his brow as he stared at her. “I know who you are,” he said in a low voice.

“Good,” she said. “What an interesting story this would make. Forcing shifters to fight and die against their will in the US military. I wonder how the American public would react to your special shifter program.”

The general took a deep breath as he stared at her. He was unusually quiet. Alexander had seen General Samson in the most deadly of situations but he never looked nervous like he appeared to be now.

“I can see it now,” Elena said, looking up at the sky. “I’d get the cover of the newspaper for sure. What could be the headline? Slavery in the US Military, or General Samson: Slave Master, or Shifter Slaughter: The Real Truth of the Military. That last one has a nice ring to it. That story would be everywhere. TV, magazines, radio, even documentaries. How would you like to be a household name, General Samson? I can make you famous.”

He glared at her with his body still.

“No need for that, Miss King,” he said, taking a step back. “I fear I don’t have the pretty looks necessary for television.”

“That’s too bad,” Elena said, shaking her head with a pinched mouth. “If you change your mind please let me know. I’d love to dive into your shifter program and introduce it to the public. I’m sure they would be intrigued to know all about it.”

“I’m sure they would,” he said, glaring at her. “I think it’s best to keep it out of the public’s eye at this time, however.”

“Oh that’s too bad,” Elena said, tilting her head while she crossed her arms. “I guess you won’t be needing any of the Vega brothers after all.”

The two humans stared each other down, each waiting for the other one to back down first. To Alexander’s surprise, it was the general who cracked. He lowered his head and softened his expression. “I’m sure I can arrange something else,” he said, with a tight smile on his stern face.

He bowed his head to Elena as he glared at her. “It was nice meeting you Miss King,” he said. “I trust that I won’t be seeing my name in the newspaper anytime soon.”

“I hope not,” Elena said, bowing her head back. “If these four boys stay here then I’ll have nothing to write about.”

General Samson turned towards the four brothers and straightened his body as his eyes narrowed on them. He walked over and raised his chin in the air. “You’re making powerful enemies,” he whispered.

“No,” Alexander grunted. “You are, General.”

General Samson hissed out a breath. “We’ll see.”

He straightened his military jacket and walked back to his truck with a clenched jaw. The group didn’t say a word as the truck started and the general drove off of the Vega Ranch and back onto the main road, disappearing in a cloud of dust.

“What did we do?” Alexander whispered as the enormity of what just happened began to hit him. They had just sent one of the most powerful men on the planet packing with his tail between his legs.

“We did the right thing,” Julius said, walking over and placing his hand on Alexander’s shoulder.

“He’s right,” Khan said, nodding. “He would never have left us alone until the day we all died. We had to stand up to him.”

“He’s going to come back at us,” Alexander said.

“Yup,” Hannibal nodded.

“And he’s going to want our heads this time,” Alexander said, watching the empty road.

“Fuck yup,” Hannibal said.

Khan crushed his hands into fists. “We’ll be ready for him.”

Alexander sighed as his stomach rolled. He glanced back at his amazing mate who had just saved him from years of torture.

I just hope nobody gets caught in the crossfire
.

ten

Elena tapped the pen to her lips as she watched Alexander’s huge polar bear swimming in the lake. She watched her man dunk his huge bear head under the water and then lowered her eyes to her notebook and started scribbling down words.

Seeing her man always gave her inspiration. He was definitely her muse.

A gust of cool wind blew over her on the hot summer day and she closed her eyes and smiled. She was really starting to love it here on the Vega Ranch.

After the confrontation with the general, a week ago, Alexander had invited her to extend her trip. He actually had invited her to move in but she wasn’t ready at the time. She was quickly getting there now, though.

She had spent the last week starting to write a novel and enjoying the company at the Vega Ranch. Julius, Hannibal, and Khan were a riot to hang out with and she had a great time with her sister and getting to know Bailey and her adorable kid, Liam. But Alexander was her favorite. She loved every minute that she spent with the huge bear shifter with the heart of gold. He was so good to her, encouraging her to write her books and always begging her to stay. He had even carried the huge walnut desk and chair over to the lake so she could write outside with a nice view of the water. He was great.

She was just finishing up her chapter when the polar bear lumbered out of the lake with water pouring off his white fur. He stopped in front of her and lowered his head.

“No!” she screamed snatching her notebook off the desk and hiding it behind her back. The enormous bear shook, sending water flying all over her.

“I hate it when you do that,” she laughed, dripping with water.

She turned away as the bear began to shake and phase back into its human form. After a few seconds of hair-raising sounds, Alexander was standing in front of her, completely naked. She moaned as she gazed at his naked body.
Fuck, he’s hot.

“Please tell me you’ve changed your mind,” he said, pleadingly.

“What are we talking about?” she asked with a grin. She knew what he was talking about. It was all that he ever talked about.

“About you moving in,” he said, stepping into his shorts.

“You’d have a better time convincing me with your beautiful dick in view,” she said with a smirk as he tightened his belt.

“How are you going to go to New York and live without it?” he asked. “Please stay.”

She bit her bottom lip and glanced at the lake. She had fallen in love with the ranch and the people living on it. She forgot how much she loved to be around her sister, Ava, and Liam, the cute bear cub, was quickly growing on her. She loved walking out in the quiet morning and watching the sunrise with a hot mug of coffee in her hand. She loved looking at the mountains and riding a horse whenever she desired. She loved working on her novel and escaping the crazy city. It was very tempting what he was offering. She could still work at the newspaper from a distance. She might lose her top position but she didn’t really care about that anymore. Elena had more important things in her life now. Like the sexy shifter in front of her, begging her to stay.

“Ava told me something interesting this morning,” Elena said, tilting her head as she watched Alexander.

“What?”

“You, sir, have to get married in a few months or all of this will go away.”

Alexander took in a deep breath. “You heard?”

She nodded. “I’m a little insulted that you haven’t asked me yet,” she said, biting down on the back of her pen.

“Will you marry me?” he spat out before she even finished her sentence.

“You’re just saying that,” she said with a grin.

“No. I’m not,” he said, shaking his head in a panic. “That’s all I want is to have you, Elena. You know that. Please. Move in and marry me.”

She smiled as she glanced down at the desk. Alexander had carved a heart with their initials in it. She traced her finger over the carved A of his name and she knew that it was the right decision.

“Okay,” she whispered.

“Really?!?” he asked, jumping to his feet.

She laughed at the happy, shocked look on his face. “Yes.”

He sprinted around the desk and kissed her with a frenzied passion. “Easy there big guy,” she said, pulling away from him. “Save some of that for the wedding ceremony.”

Alexander grabbed her hand and yanked her out of the desk. “Let’s go right now,” he said, pulling her back towards the house. “I’ll call the minister.”

“Wait,” she said, laughing as she tried to pull back but she couldn’t. He was way too strong. “Let’s wait until the weekend at least.”

He let go of her hand and dropped his face in disappointment. “Okay,” he whispered.

She grinned as she stepped up to him and pressed her open palm against his cock. “We can practice the wedding night until then,” she said, sliding her hand up as she smirked at him.

His dick hardened under her hand, making her wet as she felt his stiffening erection.

“That’s a great fucking idea,” he said, kissing her neck.

“It’s a
fucking
idea, alright,” she said as she unbuttoned his shorts and let them drop to the ground. She glanced around the area and there was nobody in view. That was another thing that she liked about the Vega Ranch: it was so private.

Alexander stepped out of his shorts, grabbed her ass with a firm grip and picked her up in the air.

“Oooh,” she laughed as she wrapped her arms around his thick neck. He carried her back over to the desk and sat her down on top of it.

Elena spread her legs and he stepped between them, laying his lips on hers in a deep kiss. She pulled him closer feeling his hard erection press against her aching pussy.