Alpha’s Sun: An MC Werewolf Romance (Bad Boy Alphas Book 12)
Alpha’s Sun: Chapter 7

Sunny

I wake up to the sound of clanging metal outside the Airstream. The soreness between my legs and the wound on my shoulder brings it all back.

Titus.

My wolf.

I slip on a short, thin robe covered with roses and step outside. The air still has the bite of morning chill and the smell of pine and sage fills my nostrils.

Titus has my bus jacked up and the tires off.

“Good morning.” My voice is still rusty, which gives it a husky quality.

He looks over, his expression softer than I’ve ever seen it. “Morning to you, sunshine.”

“What are you doing?”

“Rotating your tires. One of them needs a little air. I can fill it for you next time we’re in town.”

“I know how to—” I start to say, but he silences me with a frown.

I smile. Okay, he wants to help. Let him help. It’s nice to have someone else to shoulder the burden for a change. I just don’t want to get too used to it. Because Titus has already become someone I care about very much.

Someone it would hurt to leave.

Don’t leave, then.

That’s the whisper I hear in my head.

Last time I knew Titus wasn’t ready for a relationship. And when we first bumped into each other at the bridge I still didn’t think he was. But now?

After last night, now that he sees I’ve accepted him for who he is? Maybe things really could work between us.

Except… wait. It’s forbidden for him to reveal himself to me. That probably means it’s forbidden to be in a relationship, too. I open my mouth to ask, but stop myself.

I’m too happy this morning, still warm and glowy from having him in my bed. I don’t want to ruin the moment and call an end to this thing we have going.

I’m sure it will come to its own natural conclusion. I don’t need to rush things.

Except I don’t want to lose my heart in the process.

Already lost, the whisper tells me. Well, better to have loved and lost than never have fucked at all. Never loved at all. Whatever.

I bang my hip on the doorframe as I head back into the Airstream to make Titus breakfast. Gluten-free banana walnut pancakes with fresh berries and cream. Unfortunately I don’t have any meat in the fridge, but if I make enough pancakes it might satisfy him.

I chuckle out loud thinking about his appetite. No wonder he eats so much—a wolf’s metabolism must be off the charts.

Forty minutes later, I set the picnic table with a pretty cloth and a jar of fresh wildflowers, then serve up breakfast. Titus shovels the food into his mouth enthusiastically. “This is good,” he says between bites. “Real good.”

“So are you really here on wolf business?” I ask.

He wipes his mouth with a napkin. “Yes.”

“You were sent to replace other wolves?”

“Not exactly, but yeah, sort of.” He considers me for a moment, and I can read his thoughts clearly. He wants to tell me, but he’s struggling with his sense of honor. Things are pretty black and white for this guy.

“You’ve already let me in on this much, you might as well tell me the whole story,” I encourage.

“Foxfire’s dad Johnny became part of a government research project on shifters. He died in captivity.”

“What?” My mouth drops open with horror.

“They came after Foxfire two years ago when they figured out he had a child. Who knows, maybe they were interested in half-breed genetics. Those guys who trashed your Airstream weren’t mafia. They were men looking to capture Foxfire.”

Icy prickles race down my arms and up my spine. “But Tank protected her.” I flip back to the memories from two years ago and see the pieces explode and rearrange.

“That’s right. The packs have been searching out these labs and destroying them. We had word there might be one up this way so my alpha sent me on a fact-replaceing mission. To see if I could ferret anything out.”

I generally try not to get too polarized over anything. Right and wrong, good and bad are all subjective, really. I want to be in allowance of all things. To be one with nature and the Universe.

But fuck that. These men killed a man I cared about and came after my child.

They’re definitely wrong.

And the only right I see here is to do everything I can to help seek justice and rescue any other shifters who might be in danger.

I fold my fingers together and lean forward. “Okay, so what are we looking for?”

“We?”

I sit straighter. “That’s right. These people killed the father of my child and tried to take her prisoner. Damn straight I’m going to help replace them.”

Titus nods. “I have to respect that. All right. Well, all the labs have been located in remote locations—government owned wilderness areas. The actual laboratories are concrete bunkers. They are inside fenced grounds with guard towers and security cameras.

Something about that sounds familiar. I’ve heard of a place like that in the Carson Forest. Who was telling me?

My eyes fly wide. “I’ve got it!” I stand up so quickly from the picnic table I hit the tops of my thighs on the wood. “Ouch.”

“Slow down there, sunshine.” Titus catches my casted elbow and steadies me. “What is it?”

“I had a date with this guy—”

Titus growls so loud it scares me. I mean, I know he would never hurt me, but my body reacts instinctively, freezing me in my tracks. The wound on my neck throbs.

“Stop it,” I scold, recovering. “He was an idiot and I left early. You’re not listening.”

“Sorry.” Titus shakes his head as if to recover his senses. He walks around the table, picks me up by the waist and lifts me away from the picnic table like I weigh nothing. “Tell me.”

“Um… wow. I guess you have superhuman strength, too?”

“Yep. Go on.”

I lick my lips, turned on by that show of strength and momentarily losing the thread of my thoughts. “Oh yeah—he was telling me how he got lost out in the Carson National Forest and he came upon this government looking building. He was sure they were housing aliens there. Government conspiracy crap. I thought he was a total nut-job and purged the whole story until now.”

“Do you know where exactly?”

“No, but we could ask him. He works at the ski boot shop in town.”

Titus’ forehead wrinkles. “Who buys ski boots in the summer?”

I laugh. “Exactly! I don’t know why they don’t close for summer. I guess they sell enough t-shirts and other touristy stuff to make it work. Anyway, let’s go!” I quickly stack our dishes and grab the tablecloth and flowers all in one armful.

Titus promptly removes everything from my hands and carries them inside. When I see him standing at my sink washing dishes, I want to jump him, but there’s no time.

“Leave the dishes, wolf-man. Let’s replace this lab!”

Titus turns and frowns, looking down the length of my body. “I hate to complain, but I think clothes might be a good idea.”

“Oh yeah!” I skitter past him and he slaps my ass, hard. “Ouch! That was shifter strength!” I toss over my shoulder as I head to the back of the Airstream to change.

“No it wasn’t.” There’s laughter in his voice. “Baby, I would never use shifter strength on you.”

“You just did!” I call out as I scramble into a pair of shorts and a halter top. “I mean outside. You picked me up.”

“I mean I would never hurt you.” He stomps down the center aisle, his brows drawn together like he’s not sure if I know.

I place my hands—well, one full hand, one half-casted hand on his chest. “I know, wolf-man. I’m teasing. You should try it some time. Brighten… I mean, lighten up.”

He’s still frowning but he drops a kiss on the bridge of my nose. “I’ve got sunshine. I got all the light I need.” He picks me up by the waist again, lifts me and sets me down on his other side.

“Now you’re just showing off.”

I love the low rumble of his chuckle. “You’re onto me.”

Titus

We ride into town on the Harley, mainly because I need to keep Sunny’s body close to mine. She wraps her arms around my waist and presses her chest against my back, humming softly. At least I think she’s humming. It’s hard to hear over the roar of the motor, but that’s what it feels like. A soft reverberation that goes straight to my dick.

I’ve been riding a motorcycle since I was eight years old, but it’s totally different with Sunny on the bike. She’s a human. Fragile as fuck. One accident and she could be taken from me. I had the fear of that put into me with her crash earlier this week.

Not that I’ve ever had an accident in my life. My reflexes are sharp and my nerves steady. But I drive differently knowing I have precious cargo on the bike. Double-check my mirrors, keep my speed down.

I can’t see Sunny but I sense her enjoyment and it does something to my wolf. He’s content because she’s content. It’s crazy, but true. And there’s no denying the euphoria I feel now that he’s marked her. Like bubbles of joy that won’t stop rising.

We swing by the bar where the dickwad works, but they aren’t open yet, so we head to my place to shower and for me to change clothes. When I get out of the shower, I replace fresh jars of flowers on the kitchen table, coffee table, end table and dresser.

I smile and shake my head with disbelief. Sunny. Bringing color to the world everywhere she goes. Crazy, wonderful woman.

I catch her around the waist and pull her in for a kiss. “Ready?”

She smiles up at me, looking more youthful than ever. I guess good sex will do that to a woman. “Ready, big man. Let’s go.”

I put my huge helmet on her again and we ride over, even though it’s not far. When we get in, I nearly choke when I see the douchebag she went out on a date with. Tall, skinny. Weaselly. Arrogant little prick. But it doesn’t matter. He’s not competition. She made that clear.

“Larry, hi!” She waves as we walk over. He’s behind the bar shoveling ice into ice buckets.

“Oh, hey, Sunny.” He gives me a wary glance.

Good. He definitely should know she’s been claimed.

“Hey, we have a question for you.”

It’s surprising how grateful I am she said we not I.

“Remember that government building you ran across in the Carson Forest?”

He lights up, like this is a story he loves to tell. “The alien research site? Definitely. What about it?” He looks from Sunny to me with new interest.

“We’d like to ride out there on the bike and take a look around.”

He shakes his head with authority. “No way you’ll get in. I’m telling you, there are guard towers and guys with machine guns at the top. It’s crazy secure.” He looks like he wants to launch into his whole story, so I cut him short.

“Directions, man?”

“I don’t think you want to go out there. It’s the kind of place people don’t come back from.”

“You might be right about that,” I say. “But yeah, we definitely want to go out. Can you give us directions?”

He leans forward on his forearms and launches into an avid description of how to get there. I can’t stand when people give too much information in directions—it muddies the picture and makes it harder to remember the salient points. This guy’s doing that. He describes every turn with great detail.

I grab the pen and order ticket book from his front pocket and plop them on the counter between us. “Draw a map,” I command, using the timber of alpha command.

Lo and behold, it works. He shuts up and draws the map, like I ask. “You guys be careful. Hey—stop in here when you’re back so I know you’re safe. That way if they capture you, you can tell them that someone knows where you are and is going to go public if you don’t get back.” He looks immensely satisfied with himself and this solution, so I nod.

“Yeah, sure thing. Thanks.” I wave the paper with the map.

“Bye, Larry,” Sunny calls out cheerfully, and I’m not even a tiny bit jealous. There’s no way that guy could be attractive to her.

Still, I slide an arm around her waist as we walk out, showing my claim on her.

Outside, at the bike, I catch Sunny’s chin. “I don’t think you should go.”

“Fuck that. I’m in this, too. My daughter and her father were harmed by these guys. I require justice.” She folds her arms across her chest and sticks her chin out. “Besides, we’re just a couple of lovebirds out for a drive, right?” She says brightly. “I’m your best cover.”

She has a point. But I hate the idea of bringing her close to danger. I’ll just scout it out. If it’s what this guy describes, we will leave and I will call home to Wolf Ridge for backup.

I plop the helmet on her head and swing a leg over the bike. “Climb on, baby. Let’s see what we can replace.”

Sunny

Larry’s map was shit and it takes us nearly an hour and a half of backtracking to replace the unmarked road he described, but eventually we do. Titus hides the Harley behind a boulder and we hike in on foot. He holds my hand and swings our arms together like we’re on a picnic or date of some kind.

The hike is about a half mile in and then the road just seems to stop.

There’s nothing here.

Titus turns around in a circle. “Wrong road?”

The hairs stand up on the back of my neck. “No,” I murmur. “I sense evil here.”

He raises his brows.

I’m used to people thinking I’m nuts when I say things like that, so I just shrug, but he scans the trees more closely. “From which direction?”

The pleasure of being believed does something fluttery to my chest. I close my eyes to feel the energy. It blasts me from straight ahead. I open my eyes and point. Definitely that way.

Titus moves in that direction without comment. We walk into the woods, no path to follow, nothing. It doesn’t make sense that a lab would be out here beyond the road. The kind of lab Larry described would require a large parking area with many cars. Not a dead end dirt road and a hike into a pathless forest.

I start to doubt my intuition. “Maybe I’m wrong. This doesn’t make sense.”

Titus shakes his head. “I don’t think you’re wrong.” He turns to face me and starts stripping off his clothes.

“Oh! Okay.” I wasn’t really feeling the romance at this precise moment, but with Titus, I’m always down. His passion sets my body on fire. I start to pull off my own shirt and he freezes.

“What are you doing?” He’s fully naked now, his muscled body like a work of art.

“Um…” I cock my head. “What are you doing?”

He throws back his head and lets out a booming laugh that makes all the birds in the trees scatter. “Oh, baby. I would love to nail you up against this tree right now, but I was going to shift and sniff around. I can smell better when I’m in wolf form.”

Oh.

My face grows warm. “Right. Totally. Got it.”

Titus saunters toward me, his dick at full salute. “Why’d you have to go and show me these?” He cups one of my small breasts and rubs his thumb over the nipple.

I squirm, already wet for him. “Titus, don’t. Go!” I point toward the direction of the evil.

He chuckles again. “Rain check?” He brushes his lips across mine.

I groan. “Definitely.”

“Stay here. Do not move.” In a blur of motion, he changes to wolf form, his four paws huge in the dirt.

I watch in awe as he trots off, nose to the ground, following the scents. Beautiful creature. I’m struck for a moment with honor that he showed me his wolf. That he trusts me with his secret. That I get to be a part of this strange and private society he and my daughter inhabit. It’s a privilege, for sure.

He disappears from sight and I wait, listening to the stirring of the forest around me. A few minutes later, I hear a whistle.

“Sunny! Come check this out.” I hear Titus call.

I leave Titus’ clothes and boots and jog in the direction of his voice. “Titus?”

“Over here.”

I have to go around a huge boulder to replace him—in all his naked glory—at the edge of a drop-off.

I gasp. Down below, hidden from aerial view by the natural outcropping of rocks, lies a concrete bunker. On the other side is the elevated guard tower and a different dirt road that leads to what appears to be an underground parking lot.

“This is it!” Titus’ eyes gleam the bright blue of his wolf. His aura is a bold red-orange. He’s ready for battle. “I don’t see or hear anyone around but I’m going in closer. Stay here and keep an eye out, okay?”

“Be careful, Titus.”

“I will.” He shifts and lands on all fours, already in stride.

From my vantage point, I can watch him the whole time. He skirts back and forth down the steep incline, leaping from rock to rock until he makes it to the bottom. There, he stays low, in the shadows, sniffing around the perimeter.

I wish I had a pair of binoculars. I can’t be positive, but I don’t think I see anyone in the guard tower.

I’m surprised to see Titus run right for what appears to be the front door. When he goes in, I charge down after him. No way I’m letting him go into that place alone.

I skid and slide down the mountainside, then slowly climb down the boulder face. It’s not nearly as easy as Titus made it look. Before long, I’m literally rock climbing without a belay and it’s scary as hell.

Rocks slide out beneath me and scatter to the ground far below, warning me I’m far too high to sustain a drop. I move one foot. A hand. Try to figure out the best way to go.

Fuck, this is totally impossible with my casted arm. I look back up the way I came.

Crap. I don’t think I can even get back up that way. And I can’t go down anymore. I whimper.

“Sunny!”

Relief pours through me at the sound of Titus’ voice below. I don’t dare turn to look though. I’m frozen, hanging on for dear life, my limbs trembling, my fingers slipping from sweat. “Sunny, look at me.”

Slowly, slowly, I turn my head to look over my shoulder and down. Titus is right beneath me, about twenty-five feet. He’s holding his arms out. He’s still naked. I’m not sure I’m going to get used to that.

“Let go, baby. I’ll catch you.”

I don’t even hesitate. I trust this man completely, and I’m definitely willing to accept his help. I let go and drop, squeaking as the wind rushes along my skin. I collide into Titus with a thud, but he drops his arms and his knees, swinging me around to break the fall. I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss his cheek.

“You saved me!” I breathe.

“I don’t know about that,” he says with a chuckle. “But what in the hell were you doing, little lady? I’m going to turn your ass pink for scaring the shit out of me.”

I suck his earlobe between my lips and release it with a pop. “Promise?”

He eases me gently to my feet and pops my ass without any force at all. “Cute, baby. Very cute.”

I turn around and look at the building and my eyes fly wide. There are no doors. In fact, it appears a bomb went off where the doors used to be. “What happened? Is the building empty?”

He nods. “Yeah, but this was definitely a shifter lab. I smell weird shifter smell all over the place.”

“What’s weird shifter scent?”

He takes my hand and leads me toward the building. “Unidentified animal. They were experimenting on turning humans into shifters. Genetic modification shit. Experiments didn’t always work. There’s these guys from a lab in California that are just… weird. One’s an owl, I think. The other two—I’m not even sure. Some kind of canine?” he shakes his head. “It’s fucking tragic.”

“Oh my goddess.”

“Yeah. It’s a wonder they even know how to function after what they’ve been through.”

We stop at the entrance. “What do you think happened here?”

“It looks like this lab has already been taken out, but it wasn’t by us. It was obviously by force, though.”

“Yeah.”

We enter into darkness, which doesn’t seem to bother Titus in the least.

“Are you sure there’s no one here?”

He squeezes my hand. “Positive. I thought you might want to have a look around, but we can go back out if you’re scared. I’ll come back later to really search and see if there are any more clues. From what I can tell, everything’s been emptied and destroyed. There’s no equipment, data, files, anything. It’s just an empty, burned out bunker with cages and prison cells.”

I shiver, the sense of desperation, terror and evil pulling at me from every corner. There are entities hanging around here—probably ghosts of the departed test subjects, but I’m too creeped out to acknowledge them to ask.

“Yeah, let’s go back. I can’t actually see anything anyway.”

Titus stops. “Oh shit. Right. I’m sorry, baby. I forgot.”

We retrace our steps, and I’m relieved when we step into the light.

Until I see three men in black step out with guns pointed right at us.