Bride of the Alpha by Georgette St. Clair
Authors: Georgette St. Clair
Tags: Romance, Literature & Fiction, Fantasy, Paranormal, Werewolves & Shifters, kinky, <div><p>The Timber Valley pack has a terrible reputation. Word is their males are dominant, and possessive – and Josephine’s best friend from college is being forced to marry one? No way! </p><p>Curvy wolf shifter Josephine Southpaw’s got the perfect solution. Using a magic charm, she’ll disguise herself as the slender, beautiful Camille on her wedding day – while Camille hightails it out of town with the wolf she really loves. Of course, the Alpha will ditch Josephine the second he gets her back to the wedding suite and sees what his chubby bride really looks like. What could possibly go wrong? </p><p>Well, for starters, Alpha Maxwell Battle is smokin’ hot. And he takes one look at Josephine and vows to never let her go – but he’s going to punish her for her trickery in deliciously sexy ways. And finally, Josephine’s friends keep staging well-intentioned rescue attempts, but she’s no longer sure she wants to be rescued. </p><p>But Josephine’s not the only one with secrets. It soon becomes very clear that Maxwell’s hiding something big, a secret that puts not only Josephine’s heart but her life at risk. </p></div>
Ads: Link
was not fair to me, because it made me look absolutely terrible in front of Maxwell’s entire pack. It was very disrespectful to Maxwell, who has been nice enough to agree to go through with this whole fake marriage thing to help out Camille, a shifter that he’s never even met before.” At least, I hoped he’d never met her before.
Corwin shoved his hands in his pockets, scowled at the ground and didn’t say anything.
“Did you think about what could happen to Camille if this whole charade were exposed, by the way?” I
demanded. “If Kray’s pack hears about this, he’s going to start looking for her, and she’s going to be in deep trouble.”
“So you have to sacrifice your happiness for Camille?” Corwin demanded. “Why don’t you ever put
yourself first?”
I swallowed hard. “First of all, I am not sacrificing my happiness. I’m actually having a good time with Maxwell. Yes, he’s a big, macho Alpha jerk, but it’s kind of sexy. I like him way more than I thought I would. His family has been very welcoming.”
“We’re your family.” Bess said it in kind of a pouty voice, her lip quavering. It occurred to me for the first time ever that it wasn’t just that I needed her and Corwin; maybe she needed me to need her. She came from an uber-wealthy family with servants, and a mother who was a control freak who micro-managed
everything. She’d been desperate to leave home so she could prove that she could live on her own. Her
mother had even made her start college a year late because she was sure Bess wasn’t ready.
Maybe taking the big sister role for me was something that Bess really needed.
“You’re my best friends in the world,” I assured her, grabbing her hands. “You both mean the world to
me. That doesn’t mean I don’t want a relationship of my own, though.”
Corwin stood with his arms folded, glaring at the ground like a chastened child. He was still sulking.
“You’re not…you’re not actually going to stay here when the three weeks are up, are you?” Bess asked
suddenly, looking worried.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” I said.
Her jaw dropped. “Seriously?” she demanded.
“Well, Bess, you and Corwin are going to get married, travel for a while, then settle down…”
“I thought you could come with us when we travelled!” Bess protested.
“Oh, come on,” I said, laughing. “That sounds like the worst honeymoon ever! For both you and for
me – I’d be a third wheel the whole time.”
“No, you wouldn’t. We’d have a great time,” Bess protested, but I shook my head. She sighed. “I guess
you’re right, I hadn’t thought about it from your perspective.”
“I don’t know what Maxwell will want in a few weeks. I don’t know what I will want. I suspect that he
will do the smart thing and end the marriage, and find himself a bride who actually brings some political advantages. I mean, he doesn’t love me, I know that, and I don’t love him. Although I am turned on by his incredibly hot body. Sorry, big brother Corwin, but it’s true,” I said at his pained wince.
Was that the truth, that I didn’t love him? I missed him when I wasn’t with him, I loved having sex with him, I enjoyed his company 99 percent of the time, I was coming to believe that he was genuinely a very good person…but I couldn’t possibly be in love. We’d just met.
Also, when I’d pointed out to Max that he wasn’t in love with me, he hadn’t argued. I couldn’t, I wouldn’t love someone who didn’t love me back.
“I understand if you don’t want to feel like the third wheel in this relationship. You aren’t, but I get that you would want to seek out your own partner,” Bess said. “I just want you to know that from what I’ve
seen so far, Max Battle is living up to the bad reputation of the Timber Valley pack, and I think you are being abused, and I agree with Corwin. I think you are staying with Max because you are putting
Corwin shoved his hands in his pockets, scowled at the ground and didn’t say anything.
“Did you think about what could happen to Camille if this whole charade were exposed, by the way?” I
demanded. “If Kray’s pack hears about this, he’s going to start looking for her, and she’s going to be in deep trouble.”
“So you have to sacrifice your happiness for Camille?” Corwin demanded. “Why don’t you ever put
yourself first?”
I swallowed hard. “First of all, I am not sacrificing my happiness. I’m actually having a good time with Maxwell. Yes, he’s a big, macho Alpha jerk, but it’s kind of sexy. I like him way more than I thought I would. His family has been very welcoming.”
“We’re your family.” Bess said it in kind of a pouty voice, her lip quavering. It occurred to me for the first time ever that it wasn’t just that I needed her and Corwin; maybe she needed me to need her. She came from an uber-wealthy family with servants, and a mother who was a control freak who micro-managed
everything. She’d been desperate to leave home so she could prove that she could live on her own. Her
mother had even made her start college a year late because she was sure Bess wasn’t ready.
Maybe taking the big sister role for me was something that Bess really needed.
“You’re my best friends in the world,” I assured her, grabbing her hands. “You both mean the world to
me. That doesn’t mean I don’t want a relationship of my own, though.”
Corwin stood with his arms folded, glaring at the ground like a chastened child. He was still sulking.
“You’re not…you’re not actually going to stay here when the three weeks are up, are you?” Bess asked
suddenly, looking worried.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” I said.
Her jaw dropped. “Seriously?” she demanded.
“Well, Bess, you and Corwin are going to get married, travel for a while, then settle down…”
“I thought you could come with us when we travelled!” Bess protested.
“Oh, come on,” I said, laughing. “That sounds like the worst honeymoon ever! For both you and for
me – I’d be a third wheel the whole time.”
“No, you wouldn’t. We’d have a great time,” Bess protested, but I shook my head. She sighed. “I guess
you’re right, I hadn’t thought about it from your perspective.”
“I don’t know what Maxwell will want in a few weeks. I don’t know what I will want. I suspect that he
will do the smart thing and end the marriage, and find himself a bride who actually brings some political advantages. I mean, he doesn’t love me, I know that, and I don’t love him. Although I am turned on by his incredibly hot body. Sorry, big brother Corwin, but it’s true,” I said at his pained wince.
Was that the truth, that I didn’t love him? I missed him when I wasn’t with him, I loved having sex with him, I enjoyed his company 99 percent of the time, I was coming to believe that he was genuinely a very good person…but I couldn’t possibly be in love. We’d just met.
Also, when I’d pointed out to Max that he wasn’t in love with me, he hadn’t argued. I couldn’t, I wouldn’t love someone who didn’t love me back.
“I understand if you don’t want to feel like the third wheel in this relationship. You aren’t, but I get that you would want to seek out your own partner,” Bess said. “I just want you to know that from what I’ve
seen so far, Max Battle is living up to the bad reputation of the Timber Valley pack, and I think you are being abused, and I agree with Corwin. I think you are staying with Max because you are putting
Similar Books
