2

JAX

I wind my fingers around the necks of the empty beer bottles on the table, carrying three in each hand and walking into the kitchen to discard them.

“Thanks, man,” Reid grumbles, pressing his foot on the pedal of the stainless-steel garbage can to pop the lid open.

The bottles clatter together as I toss them inside. “No problem. Wish those guys didn’t have to take off already, I could use a few more brewskis after that shitshow.”

We’re at Reid’s place- the packhouse in Stillwater- after enduring a particularly stressful meeting with the council for the six-pack. My buddy Reid is Alpha of his pack and therefore a member of the council. It was his turn to host the meeting on his home turf.  Council meetings are usually boring as shit, but tonight’s got heated because tensions are running high over an incident in Denver with the shadow pack.

I should back up. The six-pack, as we so affectionately refer to it, is an alliance of six shifter packs. The name for the collective started as a joke, but it caught on and stuck- which I’m pretty sure I deserve some of the credit for. The alliance was originally formed as a way to increase numbers and shore up defenses against a massive pack that has been forming over the past six or so odd years- the shadow pack. It’s as ominous as it sounds; the crazy Alpha that runs the shadow pack is intent on overtaking every pack in North America. I was still a teenager when my father made the difficult decision to uproot our pack and move us to Colorado to join the six-pack, but as Alpha, he felt it was in our pack’s best interest to be proactive against the threat of the shadow pack.

Our pack now occupies the town of Westfield, so we’re known to the others as the Westfield pack. My dad’s still the acting alpha of our pack, but as his only son, I’ll fill that role one day. The original pack in this territory was the Summervale pack, led by Alpha Anders. His son Theo is one of my closest friends. Then there’s the Riverton pack, which my buddy Brock is poised to take over as alpha in just a few weeks, and the Goldenleaf and Stillwater packs, which are run by my friends Gray and Reid. See a trend here? My buddies and I are all in our twenties, all current or soon-to-be alphas of our packs. All thick as thieves.

The security squad was what brought us all closer together. Gray started it up when his pack moved to the territory- he had this big idea of creating a trained faction of fighters responsible for the security and protection of the entire six-pack territory. He asked Reid, Brock, Theo, and I to come help him start up and run the security squad, and in doing so, we all became fast friends. That was years ago- now we’re more like brothers. The only outlier is the Norbury pack’s future leader, Alpha Vaughn’s son Chase. The kid’s only seventeen, but hopefully he’ll come join us at the squad complex next year so we can get to know him and bring him into the fold.

The six-pack’s council is made up of the alphas from each pack and their betas- twelve members. I’m not part of it yet since my old man is still the alpha of our pack, but when the council has to discuss security issues, squad leadership has to sit in. That’s how I wound up at the meeting tonight- we’ve been brokering an alliance of sorts with the shifter pack in Denver, and they had a security breach involving the shadow pack. It’s a little too close for comfort, so we’re all on high alert trying to figure out how to best shore up our defenses.

You know the saying ‘too many cooks in the kitchen’? Well tonight it was too many alphas in the living room. The meeting was an absolute shitshow since nobody can seem to agree on a strategy for fending off a possible attack- or aligning our resources with Denver’s, for that matter. After most of the council left, Gray, Brock, Theo, and I stuck around to help Reid clean up and have a few beers. I was hoping Theo would want to go out to the bar after the meeting, but he’s been a lot more subdued since he’s started dating someone. The girl in question? None other than the twin sister of Gray’s mate. He swore me to secrecy about their relationship, but I’m pretty sure shit’s gonna hit the fan when that all comes out.

It’s kind of a bummer since he was always my go-to bar buddy. Brock, Gray, and Theo all took off, and now I’m hoping I can talk Reid into going out for a few drinks so I can ride out this beer buzz a little longer. He’s not typically the first to jump at a chance to go out, but after tonight’s meeting, I have a feeling he may be down.

“Whaddya say?” I ask, turning to Reid and waggling my eyebrows. “Wanna hit the bar for a couple more?”

He blows out a breath, giving a little shake of his head as his lips curl into a smirk. “How’d I know you’d try to rope me into going out?”

“Because you know me,” I laugh, smoothing my hair back with a hand. “C’mon, bro. Don’t leave me hangin’.”

Reid rolls his eyes, heaving a sigh. “Fine.” He folds his bulky forearms across his chest, quirking a dark brow. “Only because you look so damn pathetic. And only for a couple.”

I flash him a grin, smugly satisfied that I talked him into it- and fifteen minutes later, we’re posted up at a high-top table at the Stillwater Tap. Not gonna lie, I had no idea it’d be this busy on a Wednesday night. The place is packed to the gills, music thumping, drinks flowing. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say it’s almost as busy as the Goldenleaf bar is on a Saturday night, which is saying something- pretty much the entire squad goes there on Saturdays.

“Is it always this packed?” I ask, leaning in toward Reid so he can hear me over the music. This guy has been holding out on me!

He gives a little nod, taking a swig of his beer. “Wednesday night is ladies’ night. They drink for free, guys pay a twenty dollar cover to make up the difference. Seems to work out well.”

“I’ll say.” I scan the interior, still surprised at how many people are packed in. The center of the room has quickly become a dance floor. “Why am I just finding out about this now?”

Reid snorts. “Because if you knew, you’d be here every week.”

I let out a laugh. It’s true- I’m always down for a good time and this is my kinda scene. I also love the ladies, and there’s no shortage of them at the Stillwater Tap tonight.

Reid takes another swig of his beer, setting it back down on the table and picking at the corner of the label on the bottle. “My pack has been getting on me again about choosing a mate,” he sighs.

“Better get out there,” I tease, eyeing the dance floor. “Plenty to choose from.”

He rolls his eyes, jaw stiffening. “I’ve tried. Just can’t find the right one for some reason.”

I cringe inwardly, thinking to how things recently ended between Reid and Arabella. She’s a squad member, so Reid still has the pleasure of training with her daily while she flaunts her rebound hookup in his face. Suffice to say she’s a little bitter that he pulled the plug on their short-lived romance.

“You’ve got a few sisters, don’t you?” Reid asks, smirking.

My eyes fly wide. “Oh hell no!”

He tosses his head back, laughing.

I point a finger in his direction. “Anyone who touches one of my sisters is a dead man. Besides, they’re too young for you, bro.” I say it jovially, but I keep a hint of warning in my tone. I’m fiercely protective of my three little sisters.

“I’m just fucking with you,” Reid sputters, reaching for his beer again. “Theo’s got a hot sister, too.”

I narrow my eyes. “You have a death wish, don’t you?”

He laughs again, shaking his head.

Reid’s an only child, so he doesn’t understand the innate protectiveness that comes with having siblings, especially little sisters. Guys only have one thing on the brain- I should know, I’m a guy- and there’s no way in hell I’ll let any dudes near my sisters.

I do see Reid’s point in asking, though. It’s fairly common for daughters of alphas to mate with an alpha from another pack. Not only are alpha females well equipped to help run the pack as Luna, but these pairings help broker alliances between packs. The latter isn’t really needed in this case, though, since the six-pack is already aligned.

“Why don’t you just tell the pack you’re waiting for your fated mate?” I suggest.

He gives a little shake of his head. “Already tried that one.” He raises his beer to his lips, taking another sip. “It worked for a while, but now that I’m getting older there’s more pressure to just choose someone.”

“I don’t envy you, man,” I mumble. Reid’s twenty-six; he’s hardly ‘old’. He wouldn’t be getting this kind of flack if he wasn’t Alpha.

“You’ll be in my shoes soon enough,” he says, pointing the tip of his beer bottle in my direction and arching a brow. “And then you’ll see what a bitch it is to try to please everyone.”

I drain the rest of my beer, setting the empty bottle on the table. “I’m in no rush. I mean, I’m looking forward to being Alpha when the day comes, but for now I’m good with helping lead up the squad. Especially with the recent stuff going on with the shadow pack.”

Reid gives a curt nod. “For sure.”

I rise to my feet, glancing through the crowd in the direction of the bar. “Another round?” I ask, gesturing to Reid’s beer.

He shakes his head, bringing the bottle to his lips and finishing the rest in a single gulp. “Nah, I’ve gotta head back and get some sleep,” he says, setting it down and rising to stand. “You stay, though. And feel free to crash at the packhouse, I’ll leave the back door unlocked.”

I’m disappointed that he’s leaving, but it’s useless to fight him on it. Reid isn’t the type to succumb to peer pressure or cajoling- when he says he’s going to do something, that’s that.

“Cool, thanks man,” I say, reaching out for a fist-bump. “I probably won’t be too far behind you.”

Reid gives me a look like he doesn’t believe me, but I just brush it off, turning away and heading for the bar. He’s probably right- with the number of females packing this place tonight, there’s no way I’ll be heading out without at least chatting up a few of them. I eye the dance floor on my way to the bar, scoping out the talent.

This is exactly why I’m protective of my sisters- because I’m already undressing these girls on the dance floor with my eyes, and I have a feeling that there’s a pretty good chance I’ll be hooking up tonight. And the world is full of guys like me.