Fighter (Outsider Series) Read Free Page A

whisper in my ear, “Sometimes I feel more like a babysitter than an Alpha.”
    “I heard that,” Bryce said from the couch. He was stretched out across it like a cat. His familiar, a beagle named Bella, licked his fingers. “And I think you should do a better job of babysitting your fiancé. She shouldn’t just open doors.”
    My face turned bright red.
    “What happened?” Caeden looked over at me, a smile quirking his lips.
    I tried to pull my hand out of his to make a quick escape. He tightened his hold on me.
    Bryce laughed hysterically. “Oh, she just saw me naked. I’m sure she’s never seen anything like Thunder before.”
    Caeden’s lips twitched with held back laughter. “You named your,” he cleared his throat and waggled his eyebrows for emphasis, “Thunder?”
    “Yeah,” he grinned. “Thunder from Down Under.” He patted the crotch of his shorts.
    “Oh my God, I have to get out of here,” I blushed and managed to pull my hand from Caeden’s. “Why didn’t we just come by ourselves?” I asked no one in particular.
    “Because my she-wolf, this isn’t the honeymoon.”
    I shook my head and left the brothers to laugh over Thunder , while I grabbed a glass of orange juice.
    Logan emerged f rom the guest room hallway. His light blond hair was slightly damp and he wore navy shorts with a yellow polo shirt.
    “What are they laughing about?” he asked me, a slight smile curving his lips.
    My relationship with Logan had never been a good one, he always kept to himself, but after sharing similar situations he had opened up to me. We definitely weren’t besties but there was an understanding between us. He’d also become more comfortable with the pack once he revealed that he was gay.
    “Trust me, you don’t want to know,” I smiled. I motioned to the orange juice bottle. “Do you want some?”
    “Sure,” he leaned against the counter, while I grabbed a glass and slid it across to him.
    “How have you been… dealing?” I asked him.
    He grabbed a napkin and wiped a bit of the juice from his lip before answering.
    “I’m doing a lot better,” he smiled. “How about you?”
    I let out a sigh. “After last night… not that good,” I answered honestly.
    Logan crossed his arms over his chest. “Yeah, that was…”
    “Unexpected?” I looked up at him.
    “Definitely,” he ran his fingers through his short hair.
    I finished my orange juice, grabbed Logan’s empty glass, and washed them both.
    Caeden sauntered into the kitchen. “Ya’ll ready?”
    “Yeah,” I nodded.
    He glanced down at the floor and I knew he was picking up on my feelings. “I’ll get the others,” he finally turned away.
    “Trouble in paradise?” Logan asked.
    I smiled. “Not really. I’m more upset now than angry. I was really pissed when he told me.”
    “Oh I bet,” Logan said.
    “I wanted to hit him. Scream at him. Do something . That’s why I left. I didn’t want to do something I’d regret for the rest of my life.”
    “Smart girl,” Logan remarked.
    * * *
    We piled into the separate vehicles the same way we had arrived and left the forlorn familiars behind.
    It was ten o’ clock in the morning and the streets were already packed with beach goers.
    We drove a short ways out of the beach community, no more than ten minutes, and parked outside a diner that looked like it should have been condemned years ago.
    Sensing what I was thinking , Caeden grabbed my hand in his, and said, “I know it doesn’t look like much but they have the best food.”
    I swallowed. “You better be right.”
    Chris scrunched her nose. “You woke us up early for this?”
    Caeden laughed. “Just wait, Christian.”
    She sighed and grabbed Bentley’s hand, dragging him from the back seat.
    I shook my head and followed them. Bryce parked his Jeep and hopped out, rubbing his stomach.
    I noticed that despite the condemned appearance, the parking lot was pretty much full.
    Caeden held the door open and ushered me