CHAPTER ONE

“We could get away with it you know. Killing that bastard.”

The words were uttered with a menace completely at odds with the speaker’s easy-going character. In truth, if you asked anyone who knew them, they would tell you that of the three brothers, Colin was the most affable.

Should the words have been overheard by anyone, they would have suggested they belonged to the youngest, Christophe, who was more prone to violence and possessed a short temper.

Frankly, the words were even more fitting for the eldest, Noah, the poster child for the silent, brooding type.

That Colin was the one who made such a statement and in such a tone, suggested the seriousness of the situation and the present mood of the siblings.

“There wouldn’t be any need to try and get away with it if one of us issued a challenge,” Christophe spat, the distinct vein pulsing at his temple, another indication of how close he was to losing his shit.

Colin snorted at that bit of joke, even though his foul mood hadn’t shifted one bit. The mere suggestion of a challenge had his wolf stirring in anticipation. Though he would like nothing better than to feel his enemy’s throat between his jaws, the idea was simply ridiculous in the current situation.

Pack law dictated that challenges had to be approved by the Council, and such an occurrence only took place in extenuating circumstances, such as where a crime had been committed and justice believed to be eluded.

The Bridgeway Pack was one of the few packs that held to such a command.

The Council, deciding the law at the time— which had only required a challenge to be issued and accepted— and the species’ tendency towards savagery and bloodshed, had resulted in a rapid decline in numbers. Instances of challenges being issued involving women were few, and approvals granted fewer still, except in those rare cases where the woman in question was a True Mate.

This was not the case here, seeing as how the woman in this particular scenario was decidedly human.

More’s the pity.

It was unheard of. A werewolf issuing a challenge over a human woman. It would be an even bigger joke if the challenger in question was Beta to the pack and brother to the Alpha.

Just comedic gold.

The three brothers were seated at a table in the far corner of The Bar.

Yes, that was the name of the place. It was probably one of the oldest establishments in town. Heck, it had probably been there before the town itself.

Its appearance resembled a saloon right out of some old Western movie. Right down to the swinging doors, unpainted interior, and wooden...well, everything.

At the moment, they were all three focused on one thing.

The man and woman sitting at the end of the bar on the opposite side of the room. Neither were aware they were under scrutiny and that only pissed Colin off all the more. The male was a Were. Granted, based on his scent, just a pup, but a Were nonetheless, and as such, possessed superior senses. The fact that he was, up to now, unaware that he was being watched only spoke to his lack of skill and experience. Why the hell was she wasting her time talking to a man who was so obviously incapable of protecting her?

And why the fuck was she smiling at him like that?

Colin would bet a lung the puppy wasn’t the least bit funny.

But he would be dead. Very very soon.

The woman under scrutiny was Leah Perry, a 5ft 3", perfectly curved thorn in his paw. And in actuality, in all three of the Bridgeway brothers' paws.

The fact that the brunette was Noah's PA made it all too easy for Colin and Christophe to make up excuses to see her. Which they had been doing all too often lately, much to their older brother's annoyance.

It hadn't been the first time more than one brother had been interested in the same woman. Most of the time, it was Colin and Christophe since Noah could be a persnickety bastard.

It was rare that all three of them were attracted to one woman. Never had that woman been a human. Again, while Colin and Christophe had never been particular about the species of their lovers, Noah had purposely only ever chosen a Were. He didn't particularly care for humans as they were "too fragile".

Colin wondered how his older brother was handling his obvious obsession with his human PA. It was probably a doubly hard pill to swallow since, aside from being a fragile human, she was also his employee, and he never went near those.

Colin would have found that thought funny if he wasn't so close to committing murder. He watched with clenched fists as the pup leaned in closer to Leah. Watched as she didn't seem to mind. It never occurred to him until that moment that Leah might actually like the kid.

MINE!

The declaration was an unspoken one made by his wolf. He could practically feel the animal pacing anxiously beneath his skin at the thought of his woman being attracted to another man.

He wasn't even certain when he'd started thinking of Leah as his. Certainly, he was attracted to her...okay so maybe 'attracted' was a bit too tame of a description for the things he felt for the little brunette, but, what confused him most of all was that his wolf had gotten involved.

Colin would be the first to admit he loved women. In all their lovely varieties. It wasn't to say he went out and fucked a different one every night, but he wasn't as particular as his older brother.

And his tastes weren't as… select as his younger brother's.

So, in all his thirty-three years, there had been...quite a few women.

Never had his wolf responded to any of them.

Not once.

That it was happening for the first time with a human was unheard of.

A wolf only responded to its True Mate.

True Mates were very rare. So much so, that most wolves gave up on ever finding one and ended up bonding with a Chosen Mate.

In any case, whether the mate was True or Chosen, only wolves were involved.

Chosen Mates were never human.

True Mates were definitely never human.

It simply wasn't possible. The mating process was difficult enough for she-wolves, it would be fatal to humans.

Contrary to popular belief, humans could not be turned into a werewolf. It was, unfortunately, a fact that had been discovered by trial and error.

The only thing that a werewolf bite got a human, was dead.

So no, Leah couldn't be his mate or either of his brothers'.

So why was his wolf itching to rip a kid's face off his body for simply speaking to her?

MINE!

His wolf growled again.

It was unfortunate, for the kid that was, that he chose that moment to reach his hand across the little space that had been between him and Leah. Both Colin and Christophe were on their feet before any contact was made.

Colin watched as the soon-to-be-dead man tucked a strand of chocolate brown hair behind Leah's ear.

He was halfway across the room before the hand fell back to a safe place, his younger brother right on his heel. He saw the moment the kid became aware he was the object of deadly intent. He locked eyes with the beasts heading toward him and he visibly lost coloring.

Colin could smell his fear even in the crowded bar.

It was too late really. He had sealed his fate by putting his hands on what belonged to him and his brothers…

'Enough!'

The softly issued order was veiled in anger matching his own and Colin almost didn't stop, but he felt the swirl of power beneath the command, and as if of their own violation, his feet slowed before coming to a stop only a few feet away from Leah and his potential victim.

His wolf growled in protest and Colin turned his glare back to the table he and Christophe had just left.

Noah, their brother, and Alpha, flicked an annoyed gaze over them before settling on the pair sitting a few feet beyond. His expression remained impassive, but through their bond, he felt his older brother's barely concealed rage.

It was this mutual feeling that calmed his wolf. Reassured him somewhat, that even if he wasn't there to look after Leah, one of his brothers would be.

Noah might be able to hide his feelings from everyone...including Leah, but the bond between brothers, between the Alpha and his Betas, wouldn't allow for any such deceit.

'I'll handle it,' Noah stated through their bond. 'Meet us at the office in 20 minutes.'

He didn't like the idea of having Leah out of his sight, especially in a place like this, but his brother had said 'Meet us', which meant he planned on taking Leah with him.

It was close to midnight on a Friday, so, aside from security, they would be alone at the office.

Alone. With Leah.

As if Christophe had come to the same realization simultaneously, he turned and started for the exit.

'Let's go. If I look at them again, he's a dead puppy.'

Colin found, with the next twenty minutes ticking down before him, his mood was much lighter. He even chuckled at his younger brother's statement. In 19 minutes and 13 seconds, he'd be alone with Leah and his brothers, and many different scenarios played out in his mind.

Every one of them involved that luscious little brunette naked and coming on his face.

A smile lit across his features as he followed Christophe out of the building.