Forbidden Alpha (Alpha's Obsession 4)

“My hot cowboy…”

“Perfect together.”

I smile. “In every way.”It’s late in the afternoon when we finally get the horses back into the stables and we’re headed to Logan’s cabin.

I should probably be getting home, but I can’t bear to let this day end.

It’s been perfect up until now…

…because Rhys is standing at my car with his arms crossed, watching me with a cruel smirk on his face.Chapter SevenBrooklyn“Who’s that?” Logan asks as he steps beside me with a low growl. He places a big protective arm in front of me as Victor, Patrick, and Clyde step out of the truck as well.

Shit. Rhys brought backup.

I can feel Logan’s bear hovering below his surface. I don’t know how I know he’s there, but he is, growling protectively over his new mate.

“It’s okay,” I say as I run a hand down Logan’s back to calm them both. “It’s only my stepfather and his friends.”

His body is still tight and rigid as we walk over. I’m a mess of nerves. I don’t want Logan to know that I was only originally here to get information on them and I don’t want Rhys to know that Logan is my mate. He’ll ruin it. He always ruins everything.

I just want this awkward situation to be over as quickly as possible.

I turn my back on Rhys and take Logan’s hand. His jaw is tight as he looks down at me. I can tell he wants me to stay with him. I wish he knew how much I wanted the same. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

He doesn’t respond, so I step on my toes and kiss him on the cheek.

“I don’t like this.”

“I know,” I whisper. “You just have to trust me. Please.”

He reluctantly lets me go, his territorial eyes on Rhys as I rush over to them.

Rhys snatches the keys out of my hand as I pass him. “You’re riding with me.”

He tosses them to Victor who plucks them from the air and disappears into my car. I really don’t want to ride with Rhys, but if I make a stink about it, this perilous situation is going to unravel in a violent way. I can tell that Logan is just looking for an excuse to pry me away from these men and I can’t watch him get hurt as he fights four shifters.

I hurry into the passenger’s side of Rhys’ truck. He gets behind the wheel as Clyde and Patrick get in the back.

My eyes dart back to Logan through the dirty window as Rhys follows Victor out. My heart breaks when I see the dejected slump in his shoulders.

“You looked awfully familiar with him,” Rhys says in his cringy voice as I cross my arms and stare at my red car in front of us.

I keep my mouth shut, ignoring his attempts to bait me.

“Day one on the job and you’re already spreading your legs for your boss,” he says with a laugh. “If I knew that’s how you rolled, I would have hired you myself.”

All three of them laugh as I grit my teeth, counting down the days until I don’t have to deal with this shit anymore. I’m going to get my mother and brother and tell them we don’t have to live with him anymore. We have a new man—a good man—who can look out for us now.

“Don’t talk about him,” I warn in a low voice.

A huge gray pickup truck comes rumbling down the secluded dirt road, heading toward us. It’s kicking up big clouds of dust behind it.

“How many shifters are living there?” Rhys asks.

I focus on the approaching truck—anything but on Rhys—and the huge man behind the wheel comes into view as he gets closer. His face is focused on Victor as he drives my car in front of us. The man looks livid.

He grits his thick jaw and wrenches the wheel of his truck just before the two vehicles are about to pass each other. “What the fuck?!” Rhys shouts as the truck slams into my car’s driver side door and pushes it off the road. They fly past us and I watch in horror as my poor car is slammed into a thick tree trunk. The pickup truck totals it, crunching the frame around the now swaying tree.

Rhys slams on the brakes, skidding to a stop as I stare at my ruined car in disbelief. It took me all last summer washing dishes at a diner to save the five grand to buy it.

The furious man jumps out of the truck and races over to Victor who is trapped behind the wheel.

“Not this guy again!” Clyde says behind me. There’s a quiver of fear in his voice. “That’s the guy who jumped us.”

The man slams his fist through the window and pulls Victor out by the throat. “What did I warn you?” he roars into Victor’s terrified face. “What did I say? You come around my mate again and I’ll—”