Chapter Five
Ranger walked to the room just beyond Talon’s office. He slipped the key in the lock and pushed the door open. A bank of monitors met him, glowing softly with the black and white images of the pride’s land. The new monitors off to the left had just been installed, showing the interior and exterior of The Deuce.
“Good morning,” Booth yawned, leaning back in his chair. He stretched lazily and stood up. “Things have been quiet. The bar closed on time and there were no problems.”
“Good,” Ranger replied, looking over the images on each individual screen. “Why don’t you go on and get some sleep? I’ll stick around until Noah gets here.”
“Thanks, man,” Booth replied, picking up his phone and sliding it into his back pocket. The Guardian ran his hand through his short, dark hair and headed for the door. “I’m going to sleep all day. I’ll see you tonight.”
Ranger chuckled and took a seat as soon as the Guardian exited the room, locking the door behind him. It’d been a rule of the alpha to keep that room as secure as possible. Not only did the room house all of their security equipment, Talon had recently acquired several guns from the sheriff to keep on hand in preparation for a worst case scenario, and there were children in the home that didn’t need to be snooping around in the room. Usually, the pride wouldn’t care for human weapons, but in recent times, they needed all of the backup they could get.
His computer skills and knowledge of security had brought him to his new job of monitoring any activity on both properties. Several young cubs ran around in the alpha’s backyard. The Deuce was currently closed. The employees wouldn’t start arriving for another three or four hours. Ranger quickly looked over his shoulder when he heard a key slide into the lock.
“Any activity?” Noah inquired, walking into the room with a large cup of coffee in his hand. The alpha’s middle brother rubbed a hand over his face and took a seat next to Ranger.
“No.” Ranger shook his head and pointed to a spreadsheet on a smaller monitor for the computer. He was very accurate in keeping detailed reports on the security of their pride. “Booth said everything has been pretty quiet.”
Booth, Noah, and Ranger were in charge of pride security ever since the alpha had a fence installed. There’d been too many instances where the females had been harmed, and the males were on edge. That didn’t mean they were one hundred percent safe. The fence just meant that it would slow down anyone wanting to get onto their land.
“Talon has been talking about purchasing the two hundred acres to the south of the property,” Noah mused. “We would need to start planning the install on more fencing and cameras as soon as the deal is finalized.”
“That’s not going to be a problem,” Ranger said, nodding toward a closet. “I have plenty of cameras. It’s the fencing that would take a long time. No one would be able to run until we secured the land.”
“I’m sure my brother will come talk to us after the sale goes through,” Noah said, standing up from his chair. “Why don’t you head on to breakfast? The females are already gathering in the kitchen with the children.”
“Damn,” Ranger sighed, realizing his days were getting away from him. “It’s Sunday already?”
“Yep,” Noah said, taking the seat that Ranger vacated.
Sunday mornings had become a pride gathering at the alpha’s home for a meal and a day to play for the young ones and for the adults to relax. The warmer weather always brought out the need to play. Their beasts almost demanded it.
His leg ached as he walked out of the security room. It’d been a few days since he’d shifted and his panther was needing out. He stopped to lean against the wall, stretching to try to relieve the stiffness. Thankfully, he was able to rest there for a few minutes before straightening up and moving toward the smell of food. He urged his panther to be patient. They’d run soon.
The moment he entered the dining room, his eyes landed on Hope. She had her head down and she wasn’t eating. His chest ached as he watched her seem to have an internal debate, and he was damn sure it had something to do with her older brother, Kraven.
“Grab some food,” Liberty offered, holding an empty plate. “You need to eat before you run.”
“Who said I was going to run?” He frowned, wondering if the alpha’s mate could read his mind. When her eyes flickered to his injured leg, he froze, realizing she may have seen him in the hallway. Ranger was certain he’d been alone.
“I know, Ranger,” she whispered, keeping her voice low enough that the hum of the pride covered up her words. “I won’t say anything.”
“I just have bad days,” he retorted, gritting his teeth. He didn’t want to look weak in front of his brothers, and he sure as hell didn’t want Liberty to think that he couldn’t protect her or her cub if the need ever arose.
“Don’t we all?” she smiled. “You’re fine, Guardian.”
“Thank you,” he sighed, realizing that she wasn’t going to oust him to the alpha. If Talon had any idea of the issues he still had, Ranger was afraid he’d lose his spot within the Guardians.
“Don’t ever think you are not worthy,” she continued. “Now, go eat and take your run.”
“Thank you, Liberty,” he repeated, heading for the table filled with food.
“Do you need to run?” Dane lowered his voice as he grabbed a plate and joined him at the buffet of food lined up for anyone who wanted to eat.
“Yes,” Ranger nodded. Dane was his closest friend. They’d had a bad start, but after a pretty rough scuffle, they’d become best friends.
“You need to eat and go to the woods,” Dane continued. “I’ll run with you.”
“No, my friend,” Ranger sighed, shaking his head. “I’ll be okay on my own.”
“You sure?” Dane asked, pushing the long hair out of his eyes. Ranger looked away when his friend’s mangled ear came into view. His friend had a hard go at life, but Dane was a strong male and didn’t let his disability affect his job as a Guardian.
“Yeah,” Ranger replied, looking over his shoulder.
“The female, huh?” Dane smiled appreciatively. “She’s beautiful, Ranger.”
“She is,” Ranger agreed, looking back at his plate.
“Don’t wait to touch her,” Dane warned, chuckling when he looked over Ranger’s shoulder. “We all know how well that worked out for Winter’s dumb ass.”
“Really?” Winter interrupted, obviously hearing their whispered conversation. “Are you two ever going to stop giving me hell over not touching my mate?”
“Nope,” Dane teased.
“Do you need your ass kicked again?” Winter snarled, flashing his thick canines.
“Damn, you’re touchy,” Dane laughed, jumping out of the way when Winter went to grab him.
Liberty cleared her throat and brought the two men to heal while Ranger left the table of food. He took a seat across from Hope, willing her to look up, but after several minutes, he was left to eat without her eyes ever raising from her plate.
Hope pushed at the food on her plate, her appetite completely gone. Kraven’s injuries were fresh in her mind even though they’d completely healed. She felt guilt like nothing else. He’d protected her and barely escaped the old pride with his life.
Giving up on food, she excused herself from the table and made her way outside, stopping on the back porch to inhale the morning air. It was already warm, and a light sheen of sweat pebbled on her skin. Her panther prowled in her mind, wanting to be set free. She had to push it back, because her first stop was going to be the single Guardian dorms to find her brother. They’d put him up in Savage’s old room and told him he could stay there until he was ready to either fight to be a Guardian in the Shaw pride or build himself a home.
Hope turned around quickly when the screen door was pushed open. Ranger stood there with his legs spread. His eyes were normally ice blue, but for a split second, she thought she saw the amber of his panther. Her heart fluttered in her chest when she thought of what it would look like to see him again in his panther form.
“Are you okay?” Ranger inquired, taking a few steps toward her. His gait was a little stiff, and she wondered if it had anything to do with his scar. When she looked up into his eyes again, he was standing closer, but he wasn’t close enough to touch. There was a strong flavor of the woods and spices on the air.
“Yeah,” she sighed, using the deep inhale to memorize his scent. Her panther rumbled deep in her chest. It was his mating scent, and it appealed to her more than anything else.
“Do you want to run?” he asked, lifting his chin to indicate her face. “Your panther is close.”
“Actually, I was going to find my brother, but…” She paused, biting her bottom lip. “Can I use the Guardian’s training room?”
“Um, yeah,” he stammered, then frowned, tilting his head to the side just like their cats did when they were curious. “May I ask why?”
“I’d really like to beat the hell out of something right now,” she admitted with a shrug. “It helps center me.”
“You can use the training room as long as there are no males in there,” Ranger offered.
“Why?” she asked, tilting her own head to the side. “Do you separate your females from males when they want to work out?”
“No, that’s not it. We have four new Guardians in training and they are still unstable,” he explained, his eyes flashing amber sparks. The sight enchanted Hope. Her panther rumbled inside her head, and she wanted to reach out to comfort him, but she did not. “If one of them hurt you, I would kill them.”
“I can hold my own with some young Guardians,” she chuckled, rolling her eyes. “You’d be surprised.”
“You’re a little cocky,” he observed aloud. Hope knew she was baiting him, hoping he would offer to be her sparring partner. He caught her eyes as they roamed the defined muscles in his arms. A heated blush rose to her cheeks. She knew this because she felt it.
“Want to spar with me?” she teased. A low growl bubbled up from his chest as his eyes flashed amber. His panther was near, and her panther wasn’t far behind.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea right now,” he replied, a tick starting in his jaw as his eyes heated. “I do have someone who would be a good partner for you.”
“Well, let’s go then,” she said, turning on her heel. She didn’t want him to see the disappointment in her eyes.
Ranger walked in silence next to her. He pulled out his phone and shot off a text to someone. The wind blew across the yard, sending a few leaves into the air. It looked like a storm was building off to the west, and was followed up by the sound of thunder rumbling off in the distance as they approached the Guardian’s dorm. Hope opened the side door and stepped inside to find a young female sitting on a long bench by the window, slipping off her shoes.
“Evie,” Ranger greeted the female. “This is Hope Alexander.”
“Hi,” Evie smiled, standing up and walking over. She held out her hand, and Hope raised a brow at the small female’s strength. Hope wasn’t big by any means, but Evie had to be at least twenty pounds lighter than her.
“Nice to meet you,” Hope replied. Evie removed a hair tie from her wrist and pulled her shoulder length blonde hair back into a tight ponytail, much like Hope had done with her jet black hair. “So, you’re going to spar with me?”
“That’s what Ranger said,” Evie chuckled, rolling her eyes at the Guardian. “You haven’t told her?”
“Told me what?” Hope frowned, looking over at Ranger. He was picking up a pair of gloves from the bench and shrugged when he turned around.
“I’m training with Ranger to learn to fight,” Evie admitted. “I was kidnapped almost two years ago. This is the only thing I have found that helps me overcome what happened to me.”
Hope was thrown at her admission, looking toward Ranger for help. She didn’t know what to say to the female. On his sad nod, Hope pulled Evie into a tight embrace. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m okay, now.” She smiled as they released each other. Ranger tossed Evie a pair of gloves. She pulled them on with ease as she tilted her head from side to side to stretch. “Most of the males don’t think that we need to learn to fight, because it’s their honor to protect us.”
“Ugh,” Hope groaned. “I had a few of those in my old pride. Well, before the new alpha came in.”
“Do you fight?” Evie asked, her brow pushed forward in confusion when Hope donned her own pair of gloves.
“My brother, Kraven, taught me to fight before everything happened.” Hope shrugged. “He still believes in protecting the females, but he says that the Guardians aren’t always around. There’s no way for a team of them to be able to watch the females all of the time.”
“I think I am really going to like your brother,” Evie chuckled. “Ranger is the only one who hasn’t given me any problems about the fighting. Our alpha seems to be reluctant, but he’s giving me the opportunity to at least try.”
“Who’s giving you problems?” Ranger interrupted, stepping up to Evie’s side. “Kye?”
“No,” she replied, shaking her head. “Well, no more than usual. It’s some of the younger males.”
“The new Guardians?” Ranger pushed, his eyes sparking amber.
“Don’t worry about it, Ranger,” Evie answered, turning away with a shrug. Hope felt her panther bristle at the idea of Guardians not respecting females. That was almost unheard of…well, except for Boris Small and his Guardians. “It’s okay. They’ll get used to it…eventually.”
“I still want names,” he ordered, cursing loudly when Evie refused to answer.
“Can we spar now?” Evie asked, turning toward Hope and ignoring Ranger’s snarl. Hope wanted to comfort him, or maybe scold him, she wasn’t sure. Evie was obviously working through her problems. She didn’t need Ranger going off and fighting her battles.
“Sure,” Hope said, turning away from Ranger so she could roll her eyes. “Let’s do this.”
Ranger cursed and backed away, but not before giving both of them a warning glare. He mumbled something and stepped out of the gym. Both women chuckled and tapped gloves.
His temper was getting the better of him. Evie had been harassed by some of the males and that just pissed him the fuck off. He hoped like hell that his baby brother wasn’t involved.
He pushed the door open to the dorm and found the new Guardians sitting in the large living room on the first floor. All four of them froze in their conversations when he approached. He knew his panther was close because of the yellow haze to his vision.
“Which one of you has been giving the female problems about her training?” he demanded, taking a moment to look each of them in the eye. His brother’s eyes widened only a second before they narrowed, his head swinging toward Taze, the wild one. “Taze?”
“Yeah,” he scoffed, trying to act cool as he stood to his full height. “I voiced my opinion about her training in our space. She’s a female and shouldn’t be in there.”
“You son of a bitch,” Ranger snarled, pouncing on the male and taking him to the ground. His knee pinned Taze by the neck as he pulled the male’s arm at an odd angle, causing him to be immobile. “You do not speak like that to any female of this pride. I don’t care what you think or believe. They are allowed to fight, and are welcome in our training facility. If you cannot accept that, I will have Talon strip you of your Guardianship right now.”
The other males growled low in their throats. The scent of a fight on the air agitated their beasts. Ranger looked up at his brother and the other males. His canines made it hard to speak, but he got his message across loud and clear. “You are to respect the females who are training as if you were respecting another Guardian. Got me?”
“Yes, sir,” they all replied. Even Taze, who was turning blue from the lack of blood flow to his brain, gave a short, jerky nod.
Ranger pushed off and stomped out of the building, needing to get back to the females, but first, he needed to calm down. He pushed at his panther, demanding he stand down. The thought of anyone giving Evie and Hope problems for standing up for themselves set him on edge.
Fuck!
It took a few minutes of leaning against the side of the building for his temper to ease, but only by a fraction. In his mind’s eye, all he could see was a male giving Hope a hard time…maybe even confronting her. The thought of anyone bringing more harm to the female set him and his panther on edge. His hands tightened at his sides. His panther paced in his mind, pushing his way to the surface. He wanted to protect her…make Hope his own.
When he entered the room, Hope and Evie were done sparring and had taken off their gloves. Both females were sweating from their previous workout. What caused Ranger to stop in his tracks was the way Hope was staring at him as if she wanted him. She was dressed in a sports bra and spandex shorts…nothing else. Ranger groaned as his cock swelled behind his fly, his panther panting in his head like a love sick fool. A jolt to his heart had him gasping for air when her scent reached him.
Honeysuckle and feminine power.
The scent of her arousal hit him in the face like a Mack truck, making his heart gallop in his chest. Before he knew what he was doing, Ranger marched forward, pinning his yellow stare on Hope. Evie gasped and jumped back when he stepped between the two females. His canines punched through his gums so quickly, he tasted the coppery evidence of his own blood.
“Ranger?” Evie called out, but he wasn’t listening. He heard Hope’s panther purr as she inhaled, taking in the mating scent he was giving off. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to tell him that this female was his mate.
“Evie, get out!” Ranger ordered, snarling as he came within inches of Hope’s face. His female’s eyes glowed with her panther so close, her face partially shifting.
Evie rushed out of the room, locking the door on her way out.
“My panther is prowling in my head, telling me to touch you,” Ranger informed her, leaning close to inhale the scent from her neck. The moment her panther purred, he felt his cock harden to the point of pain.
“You cannot touch me.” She swallowed, tucking her chin. In that moment, his little female warrior changed, turning in on herself as if she were scared. “Please, don’t.”
“Why not, Hope?” Ranger asked, his head tilting to the side as his eyes turned completely amber.
“If we mate and he finds me,” she began, but stopped to swallow down a huge lump in her throat. The tears were obviously another story. Ranger snarled again as they fell like a waterfall from her eyes. “Boris will touch me and enjoy the pain it causes me. I cannot let that happen.”
“I will not let him get to you,” Ranger vowed, walking Hope back until her ass pressed against the wall. He snarled, placing both hands beside her head to cage her in place. His panther pushed so hard against his skin, he felt his own skin ripple on his face. His heart turned over in his chest as she continued to cry. “Please, don’t cry, angel.”
“He will come for me, Ranger,” she whimpered, looking up at him with amber eyes. “It’s inevitable. A man like Boris Small doesn’t let his prey get away.”
“You are not his,” he reminded her. “You belong to me.”
“I know this,” she breathed. “I’ve known this since the day at the bar.”
“Why haven’t you come to me?” he pushed, wanting to know the answers. His need to comfort and protect her was growing by the second.
“I cannot bring you into this fight, Ranger,” she admitted. “I want to touch you. I want you to touch me, but I cannot do that now. This is going to have to wait until Boris Small isn’t a threat to me or my brother.”
“We will protect you,” he promised, his panther demanding he touch her.
“Don’t,” she begged as he licked his lips.
“You know that’s impossible once a male feels the pull,” he said, leaning in to inhale her scent again. He was so close. All he had to do was move his hand a few inches. “Your scent is driving me insane, Hope.”
“I’m begging you to step away, Ranger.” Hope cringed when a deadly snarl bubbled up from deep in his chest.
“I cannot,” he replied as he reached up to cup her face. “My beast demands that I touch you.”
The moment his full lips pressed to hers, Ranger Coleman had found his mate.