Alpha Defenders: Mate (Siren Publishing Menage Amour) Read online

  Alpha Defenders: Mate

  Millionaire undercover agents Jeff Yates and Ry Garret are shape-shifters who work for a secret organization pledged to protect those who need help. Their new assignment in Texas is to find a mineral in the red rock hills near Wolf's Crossing that could be valuable to outer space exploration. But their job turns dangerous after they come to the aid of Keri Barton, a newcomer to Heat Springs.

  Keri has run away from a modeling job after being expected to entertain male friends of the modeling agency. Although Keri is hesitant to become deeply involved with Jeff and Ry, they convince her it's safe to go out with them. She's determined to keep their relationship on a friendly basis.

  But when Jeff and Ry are threatened by physical harm, she looks after them, losing her heart to Jeff and Ry, who promise her a forever kind of love.

  Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Paranormal, Shape-shifter, Vampires/Werewolves

  Length: 32,952 words

  ALPHA DEFENDERS: MATE

  Lyzie Carlisle

  

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  ALPHA DEFENDERS: MATE

  Copyright © 2017 by Lyzie Carlisle

  ISBN: 978-1-64010-357-3

  First Publication: May 2017

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2017 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  If you find a Siren-BookStrand e-book or print book being sold or shared illegally, please let us know at

  [email protected]

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  DEDICATION

  Thank you so much to my publisher and all the wonderful people at Siren.

  A huge thank you to my editor, Devin, for the wonderful editing. Your amazing help and encouraging comments make writing so much more fun.

  Thanks so much to my readers. Your love of romance inspires my writing and keeps me thinking up stories.

  And always, to my daughter, who takes time from her busy life to brainstorm stories with me. Thank you for your inspiration and suggestions.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Teachers once remarked, “Lyzie’s grades would be higher if she spent less time daydreaming and looking out the window.”

  But daydreaming and historical research fueled her imagination and creation of the Alpha Defenders.

  Her readers keep her asking, “What if…?”

  For all titles by Lyzie Carlisle, please visit

  www.bookstrand.com/lyzie-carlisle

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Landmarks

  Cover

  ALPHA DEFENDERS: MATE

  LYZIE CARLISLE

  Copyright © 2017

  Chapter One

  Keri looked over the crowd at the bar as she loaded a couple of bottles of beer and a glass on her tray. She couldn’t help but notice the two handsome guys who had just taken seats toward the center of the bar. They seemed to be friends. Both of them were taking in the other folks there. The dark-haired guy leaned toward his friend and pointed to something on the menu. His friend pushed up the brim of his western-style hat, revealing his sandy-colored hair that was trimmed neatly. As she walked by them toward the table where the burly man sat waiting for his beer, the two handsome guys looked her way and smiled at her in a friendly way. She smiled back.

  She noticed that Austin Blue, the owner of the Bar and Dancehall, headed in the same direction she was walking. He carried a tray with a plate full of hot nachos. He placed the plate in front of the burly, dark-haired man at the table.

  “Enjoy,” Austin said and smiled at the customer before turning and heading back to the bar area.

  Keri put the two bottles of beer the man had ordered on the table by his plate and added the glass. “Can I get you anything else?” she asked politely.

  The man reached out and grabbed her butt cheek nearest to him. Shocked and surprised, she pulled away instantly, staring at him and conscious of the noise of bar stools sliding across the wood floor right before the two guys she’d just noticed at the bar reached her side. She’d never seen anyone move as fast before. They each curved warm gentle hands on her arms and moved her back as they stepped between her and the burly guy.

  “Keep your hands off her,” the dark-haired one growled, his voice low and threatening.

  The guy with the sandy-colored hair gripped the big man’s shoulder. “Don’t come near her ever again, or you’ll answer to us.”

  “Didn’t mean anything,” the burly man said in an angry tone.

  Keri turned away and headed back to the bar, walking behind it to continue her job serving the customers. She didn’t want to lose her job and hoped she could avoid any trouble.

  Austin came over to her as she noticed that the two guys who had come to her rescue resumed their seats at the bar.

  “Are you all right?” Austin asked her.

  “Yes, I’m fine,” she said and smiled at him. “Thanks for asking.”

  “Anytime you feel uncomfortable serving a customer, just let me know and Rex and I will take care of it. I know you didn’t have any warning before that guy grabbed you. Ignore him from here on. I’ll serve him until he leaves.”

  “Thanks,” she said softly. She’d had to deal with men like that rude customer too often in her previous work as a model. She never planned to ever again.

  “You might want to ask those two men who rushed to protect you if they want anything to eat,” Austin said and grinned at her.

  She had learned that Austin and Rex were great guys, who sincerely helped the people who worked for them in this small town. She was lucky to find a job like this one to support herself. She smiled at Austin. “I will, right now.”

  * * * *

  Ry took deep breaths and struggled to control the deadly fury inside him. His emotions had been in turmoil since the beautiful young blond woman had smiled at him and Jeff as she walked by them. Her smile had made him feel all warm, happy, and hungry for her at the same time. When that brute had grabbed her hip, Ry had seen red. How dare that excuse for a human abuse her like that? It was all Ry could do to keep his inner wolf controlled while he protected the lovely woman with his feral threat toward the abusive slob.

  “I wanted to kill that animal when he grabbed that pretty lady,” Ry whispered to Jeff who sat beside him.

  “So did I,” Jeff said softly. “I could
barely contain the wolf raging inside me.”

  “Her sweet smile touched me like no other woman before,” Ry said, keeping his voice low. “When her eyes met mine, I felt something electric race through me. I’ve never experienced a connection like that before.”

  “I felt the same reaction when she smiled at me,” Jeff said quietly. “When we were near her, an amazingly perfect fragrance filled me with every breath. I wanted to eat her up. But I also wanted to tear that animal apart for grabbing her like that. I’ve never felt such strong, conflicting emotions before. I want to get to know her. I hope she’ll go out with us.”

  “I hope so, as well,” Ry said. “Let’s ask her if she wants to go for a soda later after she’s off tonight.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Jeff agreed.

  * * * *

  Keri walked behind the bar to the two gentlemen. “Is there something you’d like to order?” She gave them a warm smile, hoping they’d recognize her thanks for their protection.

  They both sat up straighter. “We’d like a couple plates of your great nachos, for starters,” the dark-haired one said. He had hazel eyes and an easy smile.

  “And a couple bottles of your best beer,” the sandy-haired one said.

  She couldn’t help noticing he had blue eyes. “Coming right up,” she said and grinned at them. They seemed like genuinely nice guys, but so had other men she’d met in the past who didn’t turn out to be nice.

  After she took their order to them, she waited on other customers, doing the job she was hired to do. She couldn’t help looking their way every so often. She noticed a couple of other men about their age take seats at the bar next to them. Both of them were good-looking and had dark hair. The four of them introduced themselves and began talking. She couldn’t hear what they were saying with all the noise in the place, and soon the two guys who had joined her rescuers shook hands with them and went back to their table.

  Keri continued to serve customers and check on the handsome guys every so often to see what else they would like to eat and drink. They stayed so long that they were the only ones left at the bar, and the crowd for dinner had mostly left, with just a few folks finishing their meals.

  She walked over to them. “Is there anything else you’d like to order tonight?”

  “Thanks, we’re good, but we were wondering if you’re free sometime,” the dark-haired one said, “and if you’d like to go out with us?”

  Surprised they both wanted to go out with her, and it sounded like at the same time, caution made her pause.

  “How about tonight after you’re finished here, or tomorrow?” the sandy-haired one asked. “Whenever you have time is fine with us. We’re good with just about any time.”

  It sounded as if they were easy going. Austin had told her he thought they were good guys. “What did you have in mind on the spur of the moment?” If she didn’t like the answer she’d decline. “I’ll be finished here in a little while, if you’d like to wait, or we could make it some other time.”

  “We can wait,” the dark-haired one said. “I’m Jeff Yates.” He held out his hand, and she shook hands with him.

  “I’m Ry Garret,” the sandy-haired one said and held out his hand to shake hands with her.

  “I’m Keri Barton. I’m happy to meet you.” She grinned at them. She liked them. They didn’t seem aggressive toward her like some men had been previously.

  “We’re new in this area, and we don’t know much about places to take dates,” Jeff said.

  “I understand that there’s an ice cream store toward the middle of town,” she said. “They sell ice cream cones and shakes and have tables to sit down, if you like that.” She watched their faces for their reactions.

  “That sounds perfect,” Ry said, smiling. “I could go for ice cream.”

  “Me, too,” Jeff said.

  “All right,” she agreed. “I’ll join you right here as soon as I’m off.”

  She went about her duties, helping to clean up and reset the tables. Afterward, she let Austin and Rex know she was leaving, and they told her to have a good night and they’d see her the following day for the morning coffee crowd.

  She put aside her waitress apron, and after grabbing her purse from the back room, she headed down the hall toward the dining area to rejoin Jeff and Ry. She wasn’t afraid to go out with them like she’d been afraid in the past with the men in Dallas she was forced to go out with.

  Those nights had been a strain on her, had made her fearful during the whole time she’d spent with the men as their date for the evening, their paid companion. The money had gone to the man who controlled her and the other women. All of them had started working for the man when he convinced them he could make them highly paid models.

  She had almost forgotten what it was like to go out with friends she trusted and have a good time, whether it was with girls she knew or young men she knew and trusted. But tonight, she felt like she could trust Jeff and Ry, who had stepped up when that awful man had grabbed her.

  In fact, after she’d seen Jeff and Ry tonight, and the way they protected her from the aggressive patron, she’d been curious about Jeff and Ry. Austin seemed to like and trust them.

  She hoped she’d found a safe place in Heat Springs, Texas, for her and her family to live, surrounded by good people.

  She hadn’t felt that way since she’d started modeling for the lawless man in Dallas and her work included parties given for men who were looking for sex. She’d been taken advantage of and forced, under threats, to go out with the rich men looking for a beautiful companion for the evening and sex later at their expensive apartments. Just as with the other models, she’d been threatened that if she didn’t do what the model agency owner expected her to do with the men, she and her family would suffer bodily harm.

  She’d warned her parents about what was happening and told them they needed to do whatever they could to protect themselves. She’d run. She left Dallas, bleached her hair blond, and changed her apparel to clothing she found at a second-hand store in a small town outside Dallas. She kept on the move and finally stopped in Heat Springs and asked for a job at the Bar and Dance Hall owned by Austin and Rex. She had quickly learned the waitressing job with their help.

  * * * *

  Jeff stood with Ry when Keri entered the dining area and headed toward them.

  “I’m ready,” she said as she smiled at both of them.

  “Let’s go have some ice cream,” Ry said.

  Jeff held the front door for her and followed Ry and Keri down the steps to the parking area. “Do you want to leave your vehicle here?” he asked her.

  She paused a moment and met his gaze. “If you don’t mind, I can drive my car and it will be more convenient for me,” she said.

  “That will be fine,” he said. “Which way are we going?”

  “It’s toward the middle of town on this street,” she said.

  “I’ve never noticed it before,” Ry said. “How did you find it?”

  “It’s near the apartment house where I’ve rented a place to live while I save up for something a little larger,” she said.

  “Great, let’s head over there,” Jeff said.

  “Sounds good,” Ry answered. Their pickup truck was parked close by, and Ry held her door open for her and gave her a hand as she stepped in her car. Ry closed her door and he and Jeff headed back to their truck.

  Jeff couldn’t help wondering what she’d look like in a bikini, or wearing nothing at all. In her flats she came up to his chin. He guessed she was about five feet seven inches tall. He and Ry were both around six feet two inches in height. She was the perfect height for him. He’d like to feel her long, silky blond hair caressing his body. Just thinking about having sex with her made him hard. It had been a long time since he’d been turned on so strongly.

  Jeff turned on the ignition and headed their truck out of the parking lot and onto the highway.

  The place looked like a popular spot for all ages
. There were several families with kids inside, as well as some young couples. The windows on the front of the store were huge, and the lights inside revealed the customers who seemed to be having a good time. He pulled into a parking space and turned off the ignition. They joined Keri where she’d parked nearby. “What’s your favorite ice cream?” Jeff asked her as they all walked to the entrance.

  “I’m partial to chocolate, but really I like most anything,” she said, grinning at him.

  Ry opened the door to the shop, and they all walked inside.

  Jeff surveyed the large room and the crowd. Everyone seemed to be having a great time enjoying their drinks or ice cream cones. He followed Keri as she moved forward to view the ice cream containers in the long glass-topped freezers that stretched the length of the room. He smiled to himself as she zeroed in on the chocolate section.

  Jeff and Ry stood on either side of her. After she made her selection, he and Ry picked the flavors they liked and paid for all of them.

  “How about we enjoy our ice cream while we sit in the truck?” Ry asked.

  Jeff looked at Keri to see what she thought.

  “That’s fine with me,” she said.

  They headed back to the truck and got in carefully so they didn’t drip ice cream anywhere.

  “What flavors did you get?” she asked them.

  Jeff looked down at his ice cream. “I think they said this was chocolate swirl.”

  “Mine is chocolate chip,” Ry said. “It’s delicious. Want a taste?” he asked Keri.

  “I’d love a taste,” she said.

  Jeff watched her as Ry held his ice cream cone close to her mouth. She parted her perfectly shaped lips, and with her delicate tongue, she lapped once at the ice cream.