Alpha's Second Chance (Harvest Moon Wolves 1) Read online

  Alpha’s Second Chance (Harvest Moon Wolves 1)

  Jessica Coulter Smith

  All rights reserved.

  Copyright ©2018 Jessica Coulter Smith

  BIN: 008545-02760

  Formats Available:

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  Publisher:

  Changeling Press LLC

  315 N. Centre St.

  Martinsburg, WV 25404

  www.ChangelingPress.com

  Editor: Crystal Esau

  Cover Artist: Bryan Keller

  Adult Sexual Content

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  Table of Contents

  Alpha’s Second Chance (Harvest Moon Wolves 1)

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Epilogue

  Jessica Coulter Smith

  Alpha’s Second Chance (Harvest Moon Wolves 1)

  Jessica Coulter Smith

  Alpha wolf Torren lost his mate a year ago. They weren’t fated mates, but he’d tried to give her a good life and thought she was happy. The day he found her mangled body, everything changed. Now he lives for his pack, keeping busy to forget the nightmares that plague him. When Torren wakes to discover a human has been brought onto pack lands, he doesn’t know what the hell his Omega was thinking, but the last thing they need is trouble.

  Olivia Grant has never been accepted by the townspeople where she lives. Her parents are sorry excuses for human beings. The day she’s attacked and left for dead, her friend, Omega wolf Jaxon, takes her back to his home. She’s one breath away from dying, and only the Alpha’s bite can save her, but at what price?

  Bonded together, Olivia and Torren discover a passion neither has experienced before. They’d thought they had found their happily-ever-after, but someone from the past is lurking in the shadows, and they aren’t happy the Alpha has a new mate.

  Dedication: For my readers. You are amazing, wonderful, and mean so much to me. I appreciate each and every one of you.

  Chapter One

  Torren woke in a cold sweat, his heart pounding, and his breath sawing in and out of his lungs. Gwen’s name was on his lips as he bolted upright in bed, his hand automatically reaching for her. Pain pierced him when he remembered it wasn’t a dream, but a real-life nightmare. Gwen wasn’t lying beside him, and never would be again. The sheets lay cold on her half of the bed, mocking him with her absence. It had been a year, and still he forgot at times that she was never coming back.

  He rubbed his hands up and down his face before swinging his legs over the side and standing. His boxer briefs were soaked in sweat, and he shoved them off his hips and let them fall to the floor. A shower. He needed a shower and a ton of coffee. Even then, the empty feeling inside wouldn’t go away. Nothing would ever fill it. He’d failed his mate, and would now live the rest of his life alone.

  Torren started the shower, setting the water on the coldest temperature before climbing inside the glass stall. The door clanged shut as he stood under the spray, soaking his hair and letting the sweat wash down the drain. Bracing a hand on the wall, he tried to wash away the memories, the nightmares that were based on his life. Things that he would change if he could. Truth be told, if he could go back and do it all over again, he never would have accepted Gwen as his mate, especially if he’d known how it would end.

  No matter how long he lived, he’d never forget the sight of Gwen’s mangled body. Nor would he forget the news from the autopsy results. He hadn’t just lost his mate, he’d lost a child as well. He’d never understand why Gwen hadn’t told him about the baby. At three months pregnant, she had to have known. How had he missed the signs? Had he been so caught up in his pack that he’d ignored his mate? Was that why she’d been in the woods all alone?

  Or was she alone?

  The voice in his head taunted him every time he thought of Gwen. Someone had obviously been there, someone who had killed her. If anyone had asked, he’d have said she was loyal, but there was a hint of doubt in his mind. There was no reason for Gwen to be in the woods late at night, not unless she’d been meeting someone. He’d likely never know what happened that night, but it would constantly gnaw at him that she might have been meeting a lover. Had she not told him about the baby because she worried it wasn’t his? He’d thought she’d been content, but maybe he’d been wrong. Maybe she’d never really settled into her life with him and wanted a way out. Not for the first time, he wondered if the baby had belonged to the person responsible for her death. Perhaps she’d told him and it hadn’t gone as she’d expected.

  Their mating had been forced, and while Gwen hadn’t been pleased in the beginning, Torren had thought that she’d come to care for him. At least she’d stopped wandering the house looking like she wanted to be anywhere else. She’d stopped being stiff whenever he touched her. Maybe he hadn’t loved her the way he should have, the way he would have a fated mate, but he’d been faithful to her. He’d given her a nice home, a high rank in his pack as Alpha Female, but had it not been enough?

  Torren knew that Gwen had wanted to mate with another wolf, someone she’d been sweet on for years. But Torren had made arrangements with Gwen’s father as part of negotiations between their packs. The other Alpha had several daughters, but he’d chosen Gwen to give to Torren. Torren had accepted, and thought Gwen was accepting of the mating as well. As the days passed, the more he wondered if the other Alpha had forced Gwen to let Torren claim her. It sickened him that she’d never willingly been with him.

  And now her spirit would haunt him forever.

  Torren washed, scrubbing away the dark memories, the doubts that plagued him. Shutting off the water, he quickly dried himself and wrapped the towel around his waist. He pushed his wet hair back off his forehead and made his way to the kitchen. Almost on autopilot, he set up the coffeemaker and waited for a pot to brew. The gray light of dawn was seeping through the kitchen blinds, and he raised them, surveying the area around his cabin. Fall had come early and already the trees were tinged with orange, yellow, and red. There was a crispness to the air that usually excited his wolf. Now, the beast inside didn’t even stir at the thought of romping through the fallen leaves.

  The coffeemaker hissed and sputtered as the last drops fell into the pot. Torren grabbed a mug off the nearby shelf and poured a cup. Lifting it to his lips, he took a swallow, letting the strong brew scald his t
ongue and slide down his throat. He stood at the window, listening to the peace of the early morning, as he finished his first cup, then poured another. It was going to be a busy day, but that was pretty much the norm. Ever since Gwen had died, he’d tried to stay occupied as much as possible. When he was focused on his pack, he didn’t have as much time to think about her, or how he’d failed her.

  Torren downed the entire pot of coffee, then pushed off from the counter and went to find some clean pants. Laundry hadn’t been high on his list lately, which meant he was likely down to his last set of clean clothes. Torren found a pair of well-worn jeans and a black tee and pulled on his boots. It was time to face the day head-on.

  The screen door slammed shut behind him as he stepped out onto the porch and breathed in the cool morning air. Fall had always been his favorite time of year, but he couldn’t find any joy in it now. It had been a crisp fall day when Gwen had died, and he wondered if seeing her gruesome remains would stay with him forever.

  He started down the trail from his house to the other pack homes. His nape prickled as he passed several homes with all the lights on and their doors wide open. It wasn’t that his pack was lazy, but few wolves were out and about this time of morning. Not unless they had a job to do. And they never left their homes wide open like that. Unease settled in the pit of his stomach as he continued through their small village, pausing when he saw a crowd gathered outside of his Omega’s house. What the hell had Jaxon done now?

  A murmur went through the crowd as he pushed his way through. His Beta, Baxter, was standing at the foot of the steps, arms folded over his chest and a dumbfounded look on his face. Jaxon wasn’t exactly known for doing the smart thing, but the kid let his heart lead him. Torren had a feeling this would be one of those times. He just hoped the proverbial fire he’d have to put out wasn’t too large.

  Torren stopped next to Baxter and waited to see if his Beta would say anything. The blond slowly turned his head, an eyebrow raised.

  “Why is half the pack outside of Jaxon’s house?” Torren asked.

  A whimper came from inside the small cabin, and every muscle in Torren’s body tensed. The sound hadn’t come from Jaxon because it had been distinctly feminine. What the hell? Torren scanned the crowd, wondering if he had a female wolf missing from the ranks. Surely Jaxon wouldn’t have been stupid enough to lure one to his home then try to keep her, would he? The Harvest Moon pack was still fairly new compared to most packs, and most of the males and females were unmated. He’d heard his Omega speak often of finding a mate, but had the younger wolf finally snapped and tried to force a mating?

  “Deep breath,” Baxter said in a low voice.

  Torren inhaled through his nose and his beast rose to the surface. He felt his eyes shift to that of his wolf, and a rumble rolled through his chest. Human. And not just human, but… He breathed in again. There was the strong stench of blood, but underneath that was something intoxicating, something that made Torren want to tear Jaxon limb from limb if he’d harmed the female. What the fuck was wrong with him?

  Baxter smirked and faced the small cabin again. It made Torren wonder what his Beta knew that he didn’t. There were times the other wolf seemed to have a sense of knowing, a second sight.

  “Jaxon, the Alpha is here, and he doesn’t look very pleased with you,” his Beta called out.

  There was a shuffling sound inside, then his Omega appeared. His lip was split, it looked like his nose had been broken, and there were countless bruises running down Jaxon’s torso and disappearing beneath his waistband. They had to have happened in the last few hours, since the wolf hadn’t healed yet. His blue eyes were pained, and his blond hair stood on end, like he’d been running his fingers through it.

  “Alpha,” Jaxon murmured, lowering his head and tilting it to bare his throat in submission.

  “Did you hurt the female inside?” Torren asked, his voice more beast than human.

  Jaxon’s eyes went wide and he shook his head. “No, Alpha. Olivia is my friend. I was only trying to help her.”

  Torren’s brow furrowed. “Olivia?”

  He didn’t go into town as often as the others, but he didn’t remember meeting an Olivia. And he certainly hadn’t heard the name from his Omega before.

  Jaxon nodded. “Olivia Grant.”

  “You brought a human here?” Torren asked, his beast rising once more as his suspicions were confirmed as to who resided in Jaxon’s home. There wasn’t a single Grant amongst the wolves within his pack or the other outlying packs. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  “She knows what we are, Alpha, and Olivia would never do anything to hurt the pack. I know I shouldn’t have told her about us, but she caught me mid-shift one day. Someone made me so angry I nearly lost control of my wolf. I thought I’d gotten away from the populated areas, but Olivia saw. It scared her and I had to explain. I didn’t have a choice but to bring her here. If you only knew…”

  Torren growled, silencing the younger wolf.

  “She’s hurt,” Jaxon said softly. “Hurt pretty bad.”

  “What happened?” Baxter asked. “Why didn’t you leave her with her people? Take her to a human hospital? She doesn’t belong here, Jaxon, and you know that.”

  Jaxon sighed and hung his head. “Do you know anything about the Grant family?”

  Baxter shrugged, and Torren couldn’t remember hearing the name. The stench of so many humans was a bit unbearable. One of the perks of being Alpha was that others could purchase the items he needed and deliver them to his home. The rest he bought online.

  He waited for the Omega to continue.

  “Olivia’s parents are not well-liked around town. She moved out when she was seventeen after hearing her parents talk about prostituting her for drugs. They’re into some really fucked-up shit. I’ve helped her when I could, but it wasn’t enough.” Jaxon bit his lip.

  “You have a kid in there?” Torren asked, horror filling him. Not just at the thought that his Omega had taken off with a kid, but at the way his beast had reacted to her scent. He knew his wolf was fucked up after losing Gwen, but this was going too damn far.

  “No. I mean, she’s not a kid anymore. She’s nineteen.”

  That made Torren feel marginally better. Not much though. She was still really damn young.

  “Get to the part about bringing her here,” Baxter said.

  Jaxon gave a nod. “Right. Well, Olivia was living in a bad part of town. One of her neighbors broke into her apartment and beat her pretty bad. They cleaned out her place and trashed what was left. She managed to call me before she passed out. When I got to her apartment, she was bleeding all over the floor and I wasn’t even sure she was alive. The asshole who had left her for dead came back, probably to make sure she couldn’t identify him. He was strong, for a human. I left him breathing, but I got Olivia out of there.”

  “What if people start looking for her?” Baxter asked. “You could bring the town to our gates if they figure out where she was taken.”

  Anger blazed in Jaxon’s eyes. “No one will look for her. In that part of town, no one cares if someone disappears or not. They’ll see the wrecked apartment and blood and write her off as just another hopeless case. The police don’t look too hard into things around there.”

  Baxter muttered something under his breath, then walked off a few steps before coming back. Torren could understand his Beta’s frustration. The fact that a dying human was on pack lands didn’t bode well for any of them. The humans had tall tales about shifters living nearby, and maybe some really believed them, but most chalked it up to folklore and fantasy. And Torren wanted to keep it that way. If people knew there really were wolf shifters living nearby, it would be the Salem witch hunt all over again. Or worse… Once upon a time, long ago, shifters had made themselves known to humans. It had been a disaster, with entire packs wiped out. Never again.

  “Show me the human,” Torren said. If the girl was dying, best to know now and figure out wha
t the hell to do.

  Jaxon backed up and went into his cabin with Torren on his heels. The scent of blood became stronger as they approached the Omega’s bedroom, and Torren felt another rumble building in his chest. For whatever reason, his beast didn’t like the thought of the human lying in the other wolf’s bed. Torren didn’t want to think too much about what it might mean.

  The bedroom stood open and the early morning light streamed through the window. A small human female was on the bed, her clothes ripped and bloody. Her hair was a tangled mess with crimson streaking the blonde strands. Everywhere Torren looked, it seemed like she just had bruises on top of bruises. Not to mention all the open wounds, like someone had tried to carve her skin from her body. The way she breathed, the rattle he heard in her chest, didn’t bode well. It was possible a rib had broken and punctured her lung.

  Torren moved closer, scenting the air. Death. He smelled death. His heart ached as he stared down at the young female. As battered as she was, he couldn’t have said what she looked like. Her bones looked delicate, the ones not broken, and she seemed overly fragile. Her cheek was caved in, likely a punch having crushed the bones, and her nose was a little crooked. The way she held her jaw told him it was possibly dislocated. He lifted her hand and sat on the side of the bed. Her hands were soft and dainty, much like the rest of her, but far too cold. She was small, too skinny from what little he could see through all the carnage. His keen hearing picked up the young woman’s heartbeat, and it was slow. Really damn slow.

  “She’s dying,” he told Jaxon.

  The Omega whined and tears gathered in the younger wolf’s eyes. It was obvious that Jaxon was close to her, maybe closer than Torren had thought at first. His beast didn’t like the idea at all, and he had to fight back another growl.