Alpha Beast (The Alpha Shifter Collection Book 10)(32)
Author: Sam Crescent

 

Having a woman was high on his list once upon a time, now, he just wanted to continue cutting his wood and not living in a land of fairy tales. He’d hit the big forty not long ago. Wouldn’t he have found his chosen mate by now? Caleb was tired of wolf lore and the idea that one perfect woman was out there for him.

 

After lifting his axe, he brought it down on the wood and it came apart. He didn’t need the axe. With his unique strength alone, he could go around tearing pieces in half, but then he wouldn’t be able to feel normal.

 

He was a strong wolf, but for some odd reason, the fates had decided to grant him an even bigger burden. According to the gossip, he was a monster, an abomination because of his sheer size and strength.

 

In his old pack, he was feared, even when there was no reason to. He’d been a large child, strong even before his transition. The moment he first turned into a wolf, everything had changed.

 

Within two months, his alpha had cast him out. He’d deemed him too much of a risk. For such a young alpha, he wouldn’t know how to properly manage a large pack. Of course, he’d been frightened. Eighteen years old, alone, and lost in the world. There hadn’t been anyone to care for him, to help him understand all the hungry cravings. From food to sex and everything in between. After two years of living from town to town, doing odd jobs, trying to curb all of his cravings, he’d finally been able to be free. Only this didn’t always feel like freedom.

 

There were times he couldn’t believe that had happened twenty years ago.

 

Finishing with the wood, he turned to the three men at his back. They should be paroling the perimeter. Rumors were flying that bears were making an advance on all wolf packs. He’d yet to encounter a bear nearby. He’d dealt with a coyote who lived a few miles down-stream, a rather pleasant man, even if he was a little eccentric, constantly talking to himself. He liked him.

 

“Are you girls finished watching?”

 

“We’ve heard of a storm coming, Alpha,” Reese said. “We need to head into town for supplies.”

 

There was no storm. “You mean head into town where all the females are. You’re hoping I’ll take a chance with one of them.”

 

“What harm would it do?” David asked.

 

“I’ve been to town many times. I’m telling you there’s no female destined to be mine. This is getting old.” He also didn’t want to delve into all the trouble women could cause. He wasn’t in the mood, not today. Was he growing old and bitter? He didn’t give a fuck.

 

“New women are arriving daily,” Brian said. “The old town is growing.”

 

“You’re kidding, right?”

 

“Come on, let us help you.”

 

He couldn’t criticize them and their need to find a woman of their own. They also wanted to have children. He was constantly holding them back. In their view, he was punishing the entire pack by not mating. But it wasn’t about choosing just any woman, it was about finding his fated mate.

 

“Fine, fine,” he said. There was no harm in giving his men what they wanted.

 

He placed the axe next to the tree stump and pulled off his gloves.

 

“Are you going to change?”

 

“Not a chance,” said Caleb.

 

“But you’re dirty.”

 

“Then the woman who’s going to be mine better get used to me being dirty. I’m not changing, not for anyone.”

 

He walked into the house, well, it was more than a house. This place had ten different rooms. He took the master bedroom on the top floor with the amazing view while his pack had their own rooms. They were a small group but fierce nonetheless. He hoped their pack would have grown by now, but four was still fine by him.

 

In their own way, they were all outsiders. All outcasts and drawn together to bring one new pack together.

 

After grabbing his keys, he walked over to his truck. He rarely liked to be in metal cans, but his truck was his pride and joy. He’d turned her from a rust bucket into a machine that purred to life.

 

This was the dream. He loved this damn truck. It was stupid, he knew that, but there was nothing wrong with admiring a good car.

 

Pulling on his seatbelt, he waited as Reese, David, and Brian all rushed to the truck. He only had room for two so he let them fight it out. David ended up traveling in the back, not that he minded.

 

One thing about being a wolf, the outdoors was the best place to be. No one held them back. No one told them what to do.

 

Feeling the crisp air and relishing the sensations that Mother Earth had to offer, it was a heady experience. Even without the full moon, they loved being part of the world.

 

He drove into town, which was a twenty-minute ride by car. It was faster to get there in wolf form, but he rarely ventured near humans in his fur unless he had to. In some towns, there were hunting parties that liked to scope out the woods and forests for big game prizes. He didn’t know if humans were aware of werewolves or if they even suspected men turned into beasts around the full moon.

 

Either way, he did what was necessary to keep his pack safe. He never risked exposure.

 

Even the coyotes didn’t risk it. The last thing their world needed was humans hunting them for sport. Humans always feared the unknown, and discovering men turning into animals once a month wouldn’t exactly go over well.

 

He parked near the diner and as he got out, Caleb paused. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to hide what he’d already detected.

 

Brian took in a deep breath. “She’s close,” he said.

 

Another little pesky problem—his pack could apparently detect his mate.

 

They could be so fucking irritating. It was why one or more of them insisted on coming with him whenever he went to town. They believed he would purposefully avoid his mate. He wouldn’t dream of doing that. It had just never happened for him.

 

This scent though…

 

It was sugar and cinnamon and all things sweet. His mouth watered, not to mention how his dick reacted to it. He wanted her instantly and he didn’t even know who she was or what she looked like. It didn’t matter.

 

For all he knew, it was a damn good cinnamon roll.

 

“Enough,” he said to his men.

 

He was drawn to the diner. Without waiting for his men, he stepped through the door and found a table right in the back.

 

He had no idea why humans always wanted to be the center of attention. All his life, he’d tried to hide his size and strength. None of it had done him any good. He couldn’t change who he was, and now with his pack, he didn’t want to.