BRENTON
Brenton stared at the bear in front of him, who looked pretty furious.
“Sheriff,” he spoke carefully. “What’s wrong?”
Sheriff had shown up unannounced right as the pride was going to sit down for dinner. They had been on lockdown for three days now, and everyone was getting antsy, but there was nothing Brenton could do for them without taking risks he didn’t find acceptable.
“Fifteen of them,” the bear growled. “I saw all of them partying in the woods last night. Recognized the ones we saw from the diner. Luckily, as a sheriff, I could tell them to break it up. I had to call in deputies to help out.”
“And?” Brenton was now leaning forward. Something wasn’t right here.
“They asked about all of you. Asked why I would protect a bunch of ‘rich, privileged freaks’. I told them I protected every citizen of Wild Junction and personal lives weren’t my business unless they were breaking the law.” Sheriff ran a hand through his hair. “They also don’t believe their buddies are just lost in the woods somewhere. Andrew hid that truck well, so they have no idea what happened to their friends. They know something is going on there that they can’t see.”
Brenton groaned and nodded.
“Alright. Fifteen hunters. Fuck us,” Brenton rubbed his face. “Stay for dinner, Sheriff. We’re about sit down. We have enough food, unless you want to get home to the misses.”
“I’ll stay. I sent her to our son’s in North Dakota this morning. I didn’t want her to be a target. You know how some hunters can be.” Sheriff followed Brenton into the dining room.
“Yeah, I do,” Brenton mumbled.
He did. The SHS was full of fucked up people. Normally, they just tracked down shifters and shot them but for others it was more personal and evil. They enjoyed the thrill of fear in their prey; and they could detach themselves from the feeling of it being murder, since most of the prey was in animal form. Others even killed humans who associated willingly with shifters, killing wives, employees and other friends to stop the ‘shifter infection’ from spreading. Most hunters didn’t know a thing about what they hunted, only that they could turn into animals and should be hunted like them.
Shifters had absolutely no way to ‘infect’ others. Nothing had ever worked, and some shifter scientists did some really fucked up shit to try. Half-breeds were the reason hunters believed there was a possibility of infection. Half-breeds were regular humans until the Fever happened or an Alpha pulled the animal out of them for the first shift. This freaked hunters out, who didn’t have the brain capacity to actually talk to a shifter and learn anything. So hunters would see a regular human one day and the next the person would be a shifter.
He wondered if the hunters believed his pride infected Riley. Wouldn’t be the first time something stupid like that happened to a group of shifters.
So yeah, he knew why Sheriff sent his wife to North Dakota, very far away.
They all sat down, and Brenton saw Sheriff watch Riley carefully. She always sat next to Andrew on one side of the table with him on her other side, at the head of the table.
They had to squeeze Sheriff in with the leopard brothers. He didn’t look comfortable, but their table just wasn’t that big, and they were all big guys.
“Why can’t I sit by kitten? She’s got plenty of space over there.” Sheriff laughed.
“Because Andrew needs the space to serve everyone,” Troy grumbled.
Riley stuck her tongue out at the guys on the other side of the table and Brenton quickly snatched it.
“I think we have this conversation once a week, but please quit that,” he whispered, leaning over to her, holding her tongue outside her mouth. “We have company.”
He let go and she gave a very fake glare at him which made him chuckle. But when looked back to Sheriff, he was glaring.
“No reason to do that to her!” Sheriff growled. Brenton sighed, and Riley laughed.
“Ha! Someone on my side!” Riley fist bumped Sheriff, and Brenton began plotting her after-dinner punishment. Maybe something with a paddle. He looked to Zachary, who was also thoughtful. Yeah, they were both thinking the same thing. She was going to have trouble sitting down when they were done with her.
“Andrew, you let your Alpha do that to her?” Sheriff turned his glare to the cougar, who stopped what he was doing. Fuck, Brenton thought, Sheriff was running them over in father mode.
“I…” Andrew tried to search for an answer, and Brenton couldn’t think of a way to save him this time. Andrew’s ears were turning red, and Brenton knew he was trying to stop thinking about what they normally did when Riley stuck her tongue out at one of them. Which was make out with her and hold the damn thing with their teeth. Or put it to use on their cocks. And they damn sure couldn’t tell Sheriff that.
“Well?” Sheriff huffed.
“I think what Riley did was a bit rude with company over, and Brenton is in charge of this table. We hold nightly pride meetings here, and Riley knows how to behave herself during those times.” Andrew tried to sound diplomatic. Sheriff looked back to Brenton, who was leaning back in his chair. There wasn’t challenge in Sheriff’s eyes since nobody here wanted a fight, but it took a very long time for Sheriff to break eye contact with Brenton.
“Fine,” Sheriff growled softly. “Riley, if these guys ever get too rough with-”
“Call you and leave the mansion,” Riley recited, rolling her eyes. Brenton felt the urge to grab her by the hair and drag her from the room and show her how to put that attitude to use. He needed to stop himself from going caveman. They all needed to keep themselves from giving the Sheriff a very good idea about how the pride worked. “I know, Sheriff.”
“Good.” Sheriff nodded, satisfied with her response. Brenton knew Sheriff liked her attitude and bite. Hell, so did Brenton, but it was how they each liked it that made this a powder keg ready to explode.
Brenton only knew one thing as they began to eat, he should not have offered Sheriff a spot at the dinner table. And common courtesy meant he would need to offer coffee and maybe a spot for movie night after dinner to the bear.
They chatted harmlessly during the meal, talking about work and how this lockdown was boring as shit. Brenton knew. He wanted to run and lay in the sun but the hunters being in town made that a no-go.
At one point, Riley went to grab seconds and Brenton had to kick Troy’s leg to get him to stop staring at her tits in the tank top she wore while Sheriff was there. Fuck, they were all a bunch of perverts, and Sheriff would fucking kill them if he knew they were all Riley’s partners.
Finally, he could get up from the uncomfortable meal, and Sheriff followed him.
“So, what’s day to day life around here? I think this is the first time I’ve been to the mansion since you were a boy.” Sheriff’s question sounded innocent. It wasn’t.
“We’re normally locked away due to work. Zachary and I have been teaching Riley business management. She goes to the diner with Andrew a lot of the time, as well. Troy and Gabe are normally working on the next bike.” Brenton stayed simple and casual. “We go on runs as often as possible, which all pride members attend no matter what.”
“And when is a young woman supposed to date and have a life while y’all are doing all these pride meetings and such?” Sheriff leaned against a wall, and Brenton looked at the painting next to him. Riley had done it, a black and white of a wild deer they ran across on the property. They ended up eating the deer. She later said she painted it out of tribute to the food chain. It was an eerie piece, like the deer knew what waited for it on the other side of the clearing.
“I’m not talking to you about Riley’s personal life, Sheriff, and you need to stop asking. It’s her business, ask her.” Brenton crossed his arms over his chest.
“She won’t tell me,” Sheriff grumbled.
“Maybe you should treat her like an adult and hold her to adult standards instead of the teenage daughter you never had.” Brenton kept his tone mild and soft. “I’m also not sure why you are so interested.”
“It was easier when she was living alone,” Sheriff growled. “Keeping her out of trouble and keeping an eye on her. I knew there were no guys hurting her and it was fine but now…”
“But now she lives with five single feline shifters?” Brenton raised a brow.
“She lives with five more dominant male feline shifters,” Sheriff rumbled with another growl, glaring at Brenton.
“Well, that’s incorrect,” Brenton chuckled. “She’s more dominant than Troy and Gabe. So, it’s only three more dominant male feline shifters. And two less dominant.”
“Excuse me?” Sheriff’s eyes narrowed.
“You haven’t noticed? Well, I guess you wouldn’t since you don’t live here. But yes, she’s over Troy and Gabe in the pecking order.”
“So, I don’t need to worry about those two,” Sheriff mumbled, looking away.
Oh Sheriff, Brenton chuckled to himself, you definitely still need to worry about them.
“So, what’s next?” Sheriff looked back at Brenton. “I have nothing to go home to except a beer.”
“Movie night in the den. You can stay for it, we are watching a movie Riley picked out tonight.” Brenton gestured to the den’s door. Everyone else had already gone in and sat down. He knew that Andrew would be sitting with her since the bear kind of knew about them. He hoped everyone would be able to keep it in their pants while Sheriff was around.
“Lovely,” Sheriff grinned and began to walk for the den. “What did she pick?”
“The Runaways, about the band with Joan Jett and the rest of them.”
“I don’t know ‘em,” Sheriff frowned.
“You are about to because she loves this movie and knows everything about the band even if the music isn’t quite her favorite type of rock.” Brenton grinned and stepped into the den first.
“Wonderful,” Sheriff chuckled.
Brenton looked over the scene. It was completely innocent, and he thanked God for it. Riley was sitting in the middle of her favorite couch, with Andrew leaning on the armrest to her right. They must have realized Sheriff might be staying. Troy and Gabe were in their regular positions on the right couch and Zachary was hanging out on Brenton’s left couch.
“Move over, you fat fucking tiger,” Brenton laughed, walking over and falling down on his couch. Zachary barely had the chance to move before Brenton pinned him down. Zachary moved to sit at Brenton’s feet, glaring.
“Ass hat,” he growled.
Brenton watched Sheriff try to decide where to sit until Riley patted the open third of her couch.
“You can sit here,” Riley smiled at Sheriff and then propped her feet on the coffee table in the middle of the three couches. Sheriff shuffled over to the spot and fell in, trying to seem comfortable.
The Runaways was boring in Brenton’s mind, but they put up with watching it at least once every couple of months for Riley, who adored it.
The movie did not go without incident as Brenton had hoped. Riley got up at one point to get a drink from the mini-fridge they had put in the corner and tripped, falling on Andrew, who then felt her up because none of them had any self-control it seemed. Their life was becoming a bad rom-com with guns and a very angry father figure.
Her gasp of pleasure made the room very quiet. She quickly jumped off Andrew, who couldn’t contain the grin on his face. Brenton glared at him and Brenton saw the Sheriff was, too. He moved into the middle of the couch and forced Riley to site on the other side of him. Then the Sheriff glared at Brenton. Andrew just shrank as far into the couch as he could, putting a pillow over his lap.
God fucking damn it, this was why they never had company.
Once the movie was over, Andrew ran from the room before Sheriff could corner him. Riley was right after Andrew the moment Sheriff turned to her. The rest of them moved a bit more slowly and Brenton knew he had to finish this visit out.
“I’ll walk you out, Sheriff,” Brenton tried to keep his composure.
“I can’t you believe you allow him to-” Sheriff growled as they walked.
“Allow him to what, Sheriff?” Brenton finally snapped, turning to face the bear. “Flirt with her? You might be mad at him, but she was fucking into it too. You stand there and assume Andrew was fucking accosting her against her will and ignore the fact that she liked it. She’s a grown-ass woman who makes her own decisions. None of us have taken that away from her when it comes to her fucking love life.”
Sheriff stood angrily for a long moment. Brenton watched his shoulders rise and fall with each breath he took.
“You’re right,” he finally growled. “I have yet to see anything that is wrong from this situation. She can make her own decisions, and I just want to make sure-”
“That they are her own decisions, yes. You’ve made that very clear, Sheriff.” Brenton gestured to the bear’s truck. “Thank you for letting me know about how many hunters there are. Be safe, since there might be more. We also don’t know if they are watching the mansion or not. We haven’t seen or smelled anything, but I’ll let you know if we do. Have a nice night.”
“You too, Brenton,” Sheriff nodded to him and then got in his truck. He pulled out slowly and drove off, leaving Brenton in his driveway.
He turned and stormed back into the house.
“RILEY,” he bellowed. “Get the fuck down here!”
She skipped down the stairs in front of him, smiling. She was completely unfazed by his yelling.
“Yes, Brenton?” She just watched him patiently.
“Your cute little attitude at dinner?” Brenton snarled at her, grinning. Now he was going to do exactly what he planned at dinner.
She ran for it, and he took off after her. He caught her before she made it to her room.
By the time he fell asleep in her bed, she was thoroughly ‘punished’ and purring into him.