Page 8 of The Alpha Grizzly’s Mate (Omegas of the Shifter Mafia #8)

Colson

Among the people at that wretched place was Levi’s uncle, and not as an innocent omega. He worked for my father—at least, that was my assumption. They saw him as a victim, but everyone else there were omegas and children, so it didn’t make sense. He was involved in the seedier side of things, but him being “captured”? That, I wasn’t so sure of. Not knowing my family the way I did.

I wanted to ask the man questions, to find out what was happening in that place. There was so much more than Levi and the crew knew. My father always had layers of evil in his “business ventures.” They were right in not letting him come here.

The harsh reality of having any kind of dealings with my father was you were always connected to him. It wasn’t safe to bring his uncle to the den. It wasn’t safe to bring me, either. Not really. But at least I wasn’t a threat. Possibly, he wasn’t either. The odds of that were slim.

From the sounds of it, he was never safe for the den to begin with. Even when they tried to sugarcoat some of his mistakes, he sounded like a pretty shitty person, and I didn’t blame them for not trusting him. If not for the aunt, I didn’t think they would have even bothered to go help him.

And for that reason alone, I’d forever be grateful to her.

She was the reason all those children got away.

She was the reason I got away.

She was the reason I found my mate.

My wolf was antsy as fuck. He needed to get out. He needed to meet our bear. It was selfish even to think that way when there was so much that needed to be done, but I couldn’t help it. The mating pull was too strong.

There was so much chaos around us, so much that needed to be done. There was still a lot of information I could give them about my father, things that might help make sure this doesn’t happen again to other omegas. But I couldn’t concentrate on a single one of them.

And Levi? His bear was pushing even harder. His eyes no longer looked human, and he scented more beast than man. If I had to guess, if I pulled his up shirt, we’d see some of his fur popping through.

And, of course, thinking of pulling up his shirt had my mind traveling a bunch of other places that were less than appropriate.

“Levi”—I gave his hand a squeeze—“my wolf is insisting—”

He nodded. “Yeah, I get it. Mine is too.” He stood up, still holding my hand. “Let’s go. All of this will still be here when we get back.”

He led me out of the room we were staying in and out the back door, pausing only long enough to let the others know what we were doing. I could tell they didn’t trust me fully. Why should they? I was literally the enemy. But out of respect for my mate—for Levi—they accepted me, at least to an extent.

No one tried to stop us.

We were barely out the door when I shucked my clothing, and he did the same. There’d be a time when I’d want to watch him, have it be a slow reveal, or give him one of myself. But that wasn’t today. Our beasts needed out and now.

I stepped off the porch, and my wolf broke through, landing on all fours.

Levi had better control of his beast. He walked down the steps, squatted in front of me, and looked me in the eye. “You are so gorgeous.”

His praise had my wolf puffing out his chest and standing tall. He leaned in and scented our mate, loving the way he filled our senses so completely.

Levi pressed his forehead to my wolf’s head, and I expected sweet words. Instead, I got a challenge. “But, are you fast?”

He gave me a kiss on the top of my head, stood up, and ran—shifting mid-run into his bear.

My mate’s beast wanted a chase. Or maybe he knew my wolf did. I didn’t care which, because I was there for it.

Levi knew this area better than I did. He had all the advantages when it came to that. But I was fast—one of the fastest in my family. As he weaved through the terrain, I was close on his heels.

Could I have pushed a little bit harder and ended the game sooner? Possibly. But our beasts loved this, and it wasn’t about who came out on top at the end; it was about how we got there.

It wasn’t until we reached a new clearing that I pounced, landing on him. Both of us shifted just long enough for me to tell him, “I won,” and for him to tell me that was only part one.

Then, once again, he took his bear form and ran back.

This time, he caught me off guard. My body was ready for a different kind of communication as we lay there in the clearing. The way he looked at me told me he was feeling the same. Not that that stopped him from running away again. Only, this time, it wasn’t me who won.

But that was fine.

Because it made it a tie.

And a tie meant we were going to have to have a rematch or five or five thousand. I was up for all of them.

I couldn’t think of anything more fun than getting together with our beasts and frolicking in the woods. Maybe next time, we wouldn’t be a quick chase there and back. Maybe we’d bring a picnic, eat our fill, and then shift so our beasts could snooze in the sun together.

Or maybe I was getting ahead of myself, pretending that life was sunshine and roses when it wasn’t.

I was still a member of one of the worst organized crime families in the country. We still had to deal with my father, my mate’s uncle, and anyone else who was involved in harming and capturing those innocent omegas and their children.

But, for these few moments, it was fun to pretend that life was finally going as it should and I was on the cusp of my happily ever after.