Alpha's Moon: A special forces shifter romance Renee Rose (universal ebook reader .txt) 📖

diamond stars, and the night is so big and boundless, I forgot my concerns. There’s nothing but the giant man I’m holding onto, the bike rumbling under the both of us and the endless roads. Worries about work, Scott, my friends and what the hell I am doing fall away. I leave them behind like old hubcaps and alligator strips on the side of the road.

I am happy. I am free.

Deke guides the bike over a one-lane bridge and stops. I look at the babbling river just below—a tributary of the Rio Grande. Above us, through the treetops, a million stars glitter in the dark sky. It’s dark and secluded, but I’m not afraid.

“This is nice,” I say.

“Yeah.” His voice is soft. He looms over me, large but not imposing. The night air is chilly, and I should be cold, but all I feel is the heat emanating off him. Another step, and I’d be in his arms.

I met this guy less than an hour ago, and already I’ve been on his bike. I put my arms around him and held on tight. And now I’m out here, alone, just me and a stranger who already seems like a friend.

I’m perfectly content until I realize what my friends would say.

I just got on the back of a stranger’s motorcycle and let him drive away with me. Into the dark. Without any discussion of where he was going or how I would get home.

Deke

The little human gazes up at me, biting her lip. The wind kicks up, carrying her candy scent to me. I can’t get enough of it. She is literally the cutest human I’ve ever met. Everything about her makes me want to smile. And I haven’t smiled in ages.

Now that I’m alone with Sadie, the constant noise I usually tolerate from my wolf has died down. That urge toward violence—the underlying restlessness—seems to have dropped away. It’s been replaced by the urge to mark her, but that feeling I can control.

I won’t go there with sweet Sadie Diaz. I know claiming a human is an impossibility for me.

I’m way too far gone. Too dangerous.

“Um, thanks for helping me with that,” Sadie says.

“No problem. Happy to help.” I would’ve done it anyway. I wish I could’ve done more, and if I’d met Scott alone, maybe I would have. As it turned out, I acted pretty civilized. My pack would be shocked.

“I never thought Scott would be like this.” Sadie shakes her head. I hate hearing his name on her lips, but I’m glad she’s confiding in me. I’m happy to let her talk. “What I don’t get is how he knew where I was. He’s stalking me somehow.”

Now this I can do something about. “Phone,” I order and hold out my hand, palm up. She tilts her head at me, her brow wrinkling.

“Let me see your phone,” I clarify. I’ve gotta remember to speak in full sentences. Most of the time I don’t bother. I hate people and speaking in monosyllables is a good way to communicate my contempt. It drives my pack crazy, which is a bonus.

She pulls her phone out of her jeans pocket and hands it to me.

“Password?”

“No password,” she says.

“Seriously? You need a password.” I swipe to the security set up and have her put in a password. “Nothing too easy to guess,” I lecture. “No common dates or birthdays.”

“Fine.” She pretends to complain but types something in.

“You got one?” I ask, and she nods. “Good. What is it?”

She frowns at me before she realizes I’m joking. “Like I’d tell you,” she retorts playfully.

“Good girl.” I give her a half grin then get her to unlock the phone for me. I search only a second before I spot the tracking app. I show the screen to her. “Did Scott ask you to install this app?”

Her eyes get wide. “What is that?”

“It’s an app that broadcasts your phone’s location to anyone you invite.”

“I didn’t install that. Scott never asked me to install anything,” Sadie says.

Fucker. Maybe I will kill him. I can’t have my wolf do it now that I shared that plan with Sadie. I’ll have to think up something else.

“He probably did it without asking then. It would be easy because you didn’t have a password.” I type with my thumb as I talk, uninstalling the app. “I’m getting rid of it. When you get home, back up your data and do a hard reset. Keep the password and restart your phone every morning. The best offense is a good defense.”

I also enter my phone number. “I’m putting my number in here in case you need a rescue again. Is that okay?”

“Yes. Thank you.” Sadie accepts the phone back and squints up at me. “How do you know all this?”

“I’m in security.”

“Like cyber security?” The wind ruffles her hair, and I step closer to shield her from it.

“All types of security. But mostly government security missions.” This is the longest conversation I’ve had with a human in years. I’d never willingly offer this information up to anyone, but Sadie is different. Sadie is special. “My partners and I own Black Wolf Security.”

“Oh!” Her eyes sparkle. “Is that why you all have wolf tattoos?”

I rock back on my heels. “You noticed that?”

“My friend did. I only noticed yours.”

My dick stirs against my zipper. My wolf likes that she picked me out of the pack. “We all got them before we left the army.” I push up my sleeve and show her my biceps. “We were Special Ops.”

She traces the moon with light fingertips. Electricity shoots through me, and I lean closer to catch the vanilla scent in her hair. She’s pale skinned and luminous in the moonlight, her silky hair wafting around her face. Normally, I hate being touched, but my wolf would happily stretch out for a belly rub.

“It’s nice.” She fingers my tattoo. Is her voice deeper, husky? Is it the night air?

She pulls her hand away, and I have to