Booth (Rise of the Pride, Book 9) Read online

  Booth

  Rise of the Pride

  Book 9

  Copyright © 2019 Theresa Hissong

  This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this eBook with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Disclaimer:

  This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead is purely coincidental. The names of people, places, things, songs, bands are all created from the author's mind and are only used for entertainment. Any mention of a song, or band, in the book, has been given proper credit for use.

  This book is for adults 18 and older only; due to content.

  Cover Design:

  Gray Publishing Services

  Editing by:

  Heidi Ryan

  Amour the Line Editing

  Cover Model:

  BT Urruela

  Cover Photographer:

  Randy Sewell

  RLS Model Images Photography

  Other Books by Theresa Hissong:

  Fatal Cross Live!

  Fatal Desires

  Fatal Temptations

  Fatal Seduction

  Rise of the Pride:

  Talon

  Winter

  Savage

  The Birth of an Alpha

  Ranger

  Kye

  The Healer

  Dane

  Morgan Clan Bears

  Mating Season

  Mating Instinct

  Incubus Tamed

  Thirst

  Standalone Novella

  Something Wicked

  Book for Charity

  Fully Loaded

  Club Phoenix

  The Huntress

  Cycle of Sin On Tour

  Rocked (A Rockstar Reverse Harem Novel)

  Dedication:

  To all of my female warriors

  Be Brave

  Be Strong

  Be Fearless

  You’ve got this!

  Content:

  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

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Epilogue

  Note from the Author

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Booth pushed through the back door to the alpha’s home, embracing the cool air as it hit his sweat soaked skin. He’d been working with the other Guardians and pride members roofing a new cabin just up the road from the alpha’s home. His shirt was tucked in his back pocket, hanging loosely as he walked. He reached for it and pulled it over his head as he proceeded through the sunken living room and down the hallway until he came face to face with the alpha’s office door. With a knock, he waited until his leader called out for him to enter.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Take a look at this,” Talon ordered as he slid a piece of paper across the desk.

  Alpha Shaw,

  My name is Jade O’Connor from the Gentry pride in central Missouri, and I hear you accept female panthers as Guardians.

  I am requesting a Guardian spot at the Summer Solstice, June 21st. I will be arriving at your pride in the next three days.

  I am fully qualified to fight for my position, and I have documentation showing my progress through several human classes for mixed martial arts.

  At this time, I am also asking for a spot within your pride, and I am fully committed to accepting you as my new leader.

  Thank you,

  Jade O’Connor

  “Wow,” he stated, setting the paper back on Talon’s desk. His leader wasn’t amused. His furrowed brow told Booth Talon was concerned.

  “I haven’t had any females fight for Guardianship, and this one believes I have,” he said in frustration. “There are rumors out there in the shifter circles that are not true. Now, I have a female coming here to fight alongside my males.”

  “If you have a male fight a female at the Summer Solstice, it won’t end well, Talon,” Booth warned. He didn’t even know this female, but Booth already felt the rage toward another male purposely hurting a female in a fight for dominance.

  It was one thing to train them, fighting with gloves, or even going through the motions of ground work, but the solstice was different.

  They’d be fighting almost to the death.

  Not that Talon allowed his Guardian prospects to kill each other, but they were required to fight until he gave the signal to quit or one of them tapped out, which almost never happened. Malaki was the last one to gain his Guardianship the year before, and he’d bested one of the other young males. He’d fought fair, but Harold had been called in to check them both over afterward. It’d been a bloody fight.

  “Oh, we have females willing to become Guardians,” he cursed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Booth didn’t need his alpha to say it, but it put everything into prospective. “I have mates who are good enough, who are willing, and who could best some of my males, but I cannot…will not let them fight when their mates are outside that ring. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Agreed,” he replied, imagining Ranger’s reaction if this new female bested his mate, Hope. They’d have to be sedated. “It is too dangerous.”

  “But our females are strong, Booth,” Talon reminded him, his voice thickening as if it was coated with frustration. “They are just as worthy as the males.”

  “They are worthy, but it’s dangerous for their mates to see them in a dominance fight,” Booth responded. “I’m assuming you need me to help with this female?”

  “Welcome Ms. O’Connor and put her up in one of the rooms here,” Talon sighed. “Let me know when she arrives. I’d like to have a meeting with her as soon as she’s settled.”

  “Yes, sir,” Booth replied and took his leave.

  Booth returned to the cottage they were building for Storm and climbed the ladder. The male was placing a roofing tile in place when he knelt beside him. “What did Talon want?”

  “There’s a new member coming, and they want to apply for Guardianship.” Booth fit his tile into place and removed the hammer from his belt.

  “Where’s he coming from?”

  “Ahh, not a he,” Booth corrected. “It’s a female.”

  The sound of Storm’s hammer hitting the exposed wood of the roof echoed off the trees. Booth knew the other males would be concerned with the news. “There’s no way Talon is going to let that happen.”

  “No,” Booth agreed. “He’s going to have a hard time with this one, but I don’t want the other males to know yet. Let our alpha do that. Getting the mated ones upset isn’t a good idea. We are living in peace now, and I don’t want anything to rile them up just because we are assuming things.”

  “Oh, man.” Storm shook his head and reached for his discarded hammer. “I bet Ranger and Kye are going to lose their shit.”

  “If they don’t go insane first,” Booth replied.

  Jade cranked her truck
and put it into gear before the driver’s side door was fully closed. She didn’t give two fucks that she knew her current alpha had heard her leave. It was time, and he wasn’t too happy with her when he’d found out she’d been training to fight at a local human MMA gym.

  As she looked in the mirror, she flinched at the puffiness around her left eye. It would heal by morning, but the reminder would always be there.

  Women weren’t Guardians.

  She believed they should be, and she knew just the place to go. The email she’d sent an hour ago was the only warning for the Shaw pride that she was coming. It would take her six hours to get to their land, but she wanted some time to herself before she arrived. She also wanted to make sure the black eye and possible cracked cheekbone had healed.

  The last thing she wanted was a war. Even though her alpha had been upset about her training, her father had sealed her fate when he turned his back on her as the alpha delivered his final blow to her face with the order she must quit fighting. That was why she had taken matters into her own hands. Without an alpha who stood behind her, she wouldn’t have the support of her family either. They were too loyal to the alpha.

  Didn’t matter anyway. At twenty-six, she was fed up with living the life she was told she should live. She wanted out, and leaving with a hope the Shaw pride would accept her was exactly what she did.

  One of her fighting buddies owned a cabin in northern Arkansas and gave her permission to use it for two days. Her excuse had been that she wanted to get away from town and enjoy some peace and quiet. With a promise to leave the place tidied up, he gave her the code to unlock the doors. He rented out the cabin throughout the year, and lucky for Jade, the place was going to be empty for the next few days.

  When she arrived, she grabbed her bag and a few bottles of water she’d stored in the truck, and made her way to the door. The code worked and the lock disengaged. When she opened it up, she smiled warmly.

  “Home sweet home,” she said, dropping her bag by the door.

  Mitch had said there was coffee provided, and she made herself a cup since she’d fled at three that morning. The two-hour drive put her at the cabin as the sun was just peeking over the horizon. She knew she had to find meat, and it was the perfect spot for hunting. She’d studied the aerial maps and noted where the other cabins in the area were in relation to the one she was using. Her only options to hunt in shifted form were to the west by a few miles and the north by approximately five. There were hills, cliffs, and valleys to the north, so that was where she planned on finding food.

  As soon as she drank a cup of coffee, Jade put her cup in the sink and dug through her duffle bag. Inside, she found a smaller backpack that would fit over her panther’s back. It took her many tries and a lot of arguing with her beast to learn how to do it, but she had succeeded, so now she could carry her clothes with her while she hunted. Knowing humans were still out there, and being in a hunting area, Jade knew she should have clothes with her in case she ran into a human with a shotgun. Having clothes with her would ensure she could shift and dress if needed.

  “Always be prepared,” Jade mumbled as she cracked the door to the cabin. She shed her clothes and tossed the pack onto the ground outside the door. “Let’s shift, girl, and find food.”

  The animal shook out its coat once the shift was complete. Jade nudged the beast with her human mind, reminding the animal to put on the pack.

  The panther approached the pack and sniffed it, identifying the scent. Putting one paw into each strap, the cat tucked its head and did a front roll just as Jade had taught it over the past year. When the panther righted itself, it gave an exasperated huff and shivered from the weight of the pack.

  Girl, this is for survival.

  The cat shot back with a message that killing was a better survival tactic, but Jade ignored her and settled back to allow the cat to hunt. Jade kept her human mind focused as the panther ran, listening for sounds of humans. Let the animal find food, Jade had the rest.

  It took almost an hour before she was able to take down a small doe. Her panther ate her fill, and when she was done, Jade forced the shift and field dressed the meat, leaving the bones and insides for the forest animals.

  That night, she stared into a worn mirror over the bathroom sink at her complexion. Her black eye was all but healed, the bones repaired because of her shift. Her icy blue eyes were filled with determination more now than ever. She was ready to be a Guardian, and she prayed the Shaw pride wouldn’t turn her away, because she had nowhere else to go…no one to give her a home.

  Chapter Two

  Booth looked up from the monitors at the gate leading to the pride’s land when a white truck arrived. He couldn’t see the occupant through the tinted windows, but he could scent a female panther as soon as she rolled down her window. Long, blonde hair and icy blue eyes met him as he approached with caution. He’d never seen this female before, and he knew it had to be Jade O’Connor.

  “Can I help you, ma’am?” he asked.

  “I am not a ma’am,” she corrected in a husky voice that sent a shiver down Booth’s spine. “My name is Jade O’Connor, and I’m here to ask your alpha for a spot with his Guardians.”

  Taken aback, he schooled his features and moved closer to the door. Despite her hard bravado, the female was stunning. She looked like she could be on the cover of a swimsuit magazine, not coming to the Shaw pride as a possible candidate for a position within the Guardians.

  “We’ve been expecting you,” Booth stated, his gaze roaming over her face, her body. “Let me call up to the alpha and let him know you’re here.”

  He stepped inside the gate shack and picked up the phone. Talon answered on the second ring. “Is she here?”

  “Yes, sir,” Booth replied, holding off a chuckle. He was totally judging a book by its cover with this one. No male would want to fight her. She was no bigger than Hope, and she was too sexy to go into battle. Talon was going to have his hands full.

  “Send her up.”

  Booth stepped out of the shack and approached her car. “The alpha will see you now. Please drive up to the main house and go inside. He will be waiting for you.”

  “Thank you,” she began, but narrowed her eyes. “You can quit staring, Guardian. I assure you, this blonde hair and these big tits are a disguise. I can spill your insides before you have a chance to wipe the drool currently dripping off your chin.”

  “And I assure you, little girl,” Booth growled, his eyes flashing amber. His beast inhaled her scent, memorizing it. “Your blonde hair and big tits are the least of your problems once you unleash your claws.”

  “Sounds like fun, Guardian,” she winked and put her truck into gear. “Are we going to see who has the bigger cock, or are you going to open that gate so I can meet with your alpha?”

  Booth opened the gate, but his eyes never left hers. The scent she carried was that of a Guardian…a warrior. Wherever this woman came from, she was trained. She wasn’t anything like Talon and Booth had expected. She might have been beautiful, but her claws were sharp. Booth had to adjust his erection as he returned to the shack. Her scent rattled around in his mind, and the beast inside him rumbled with awareness.

  The guard at the gate couldn’t stop staring at her like she was his next meal. If the Shaw pride’s Guardians were disrespectful, she would leave. Where would she go? There was nothing left for her in Missouri. Being sucker punched by your alpha and pretty much disowned by your own father was one hell of a way to be kicked out of a pride.

  She had plenty of time to be without an alpha before she started weakening, and she knew of a few others she could try, but rumor had it, the Shaw pride was the most forward thinking of them all.

  The large, brick home loomed as she pulled up to the front door, parking next to a black SUV. She didn’t have a chance to get out before the door opened and a large male stepped out. He held the air of authority of an alpha, and Jade was sure he was Talon Shaw.

  �
�Ms. O’Connor,” he greeted as she closed the truck door. “My name is Talon Shaw, and I am the alpha. Would you like to come inside?”

  “Thank you, alpha,” she replied, holding out her hand. He shook her hand with a strength fit for a leader. She liked him immediately. His dark brown hair hung over one eye, but he had no problem navigating his way through his home.

  “My office is this way,” he grunted, looking at his phone when it chimed. He typed something out and slid it into his back pocket.

  “If I’m interrupting something,” she began, but the alpha shook his head.

  The foyer of his home was inviting, and she noticed a sunken living room beyond that. He turned down a hallway to the right, instead of taking the stairs just to the left of the entry. The walls were painted a soft beige, and it was decorated in reds and browns. Voices of young cubs echoed from a room on the other side of the living room, but she didn’t ask questions.

  “No, just pride business,” he replied, pushing the door to his office open wide. “Take a seat.”

  His office was large, and the solid wood desk by the two windows looking out front was massive and old. He took a seat in the office chair and steepled his fingers, tapping them to his lips.

  “I’m assuming you received my email?” she asked, leaning back in the high-backed chair. She rested her elbows on the arms of the chair, folding her fingers in her lap. She kept her dominate foot planted on the ground in case she needed to defend herself. With her back to the door, there would be no warning if someone came in to rush her.