The Alpha's to Share: A BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance Read Online Free Page B

stuff into storage and just ran. When I called my parents for help, it was already on the news and they told me to never contact them again. My closest friends all said the same thing.”
     
    “So you truly are alone in the world,” he commented.
     
    “I’m afraid so,” Callie said, her head hanging in shame.
     
    Seth lifted her chin with a finger, pulling her gaze to his. He leaned in so closely she thought he might kiss her.
     
    “From this moment on, you will never be alone again,” Seth said. “You are a part of my pack now, and that will never change.”
     
    Her lips parted, unsure what to say. Did he mean he was taking her as his mate, or did he only feel sorry for her and he was inviting her to live with his pack so she wouldn’t have to be alone?
     
    She could feel his warm breath on her face, and she longed to feel his lips against hers. She stood on her toes, aching to be as close to him as possible, but he released her chin and backed away.
     
    “Did I do something wrong?” she couldn’t resist asking.
     
    “No, Callie,” he answered. “I just… let’s walk.”
     
    He began to walk away from her, and she quickly caught up and matched his stride as closely as she could.
     
    “So what’s your pack like?” she asked, sensing he wanted a change of subject.
     
    “It is fairly small by shifter standards,” he said. “Twelve in total. We used to number in the hundreds, but human encroachment into our territory as required some… downsizing.”
     
    “Some left?” she asked.
     
    “Some left, yes,” he said. “Others were slaughtered by the humans.”
     
    She shivered and asked, “But aren’t shifters stronger and faster than humans?”
     
    “In every way,” he said. “But even we are no match for human weapons when they come in packs.”
     
    “You mean they’ve come to kill you in groups?” Callie asked.
     
    “When they want our territory for building, they will stop at nothing.”
     
    For the first time, Callie truly realized she didn’t want to be a part of human society anymore. She’d ignored such atrocities for so long, but when faced with this… seeing first hand the way humans could ruthlessly slaughter just for profit or fun… she realized why she’d never fit in before and likely never would.
     
    “I don’t want to go back,” Callie blurted out, freezing in her path again.
     
    “To Madge’s?” Seth asked, pausing and turning to face her once more.
     
    “No… to… to the humans,” she answered. “I don’t fit in there. I don’t think like they do. I don’t act like they do. I don’t feel like they do. I don’t want to go back.”
     
    “Then don’t,” he shrugged. “You can live with my pack.”
     
    “You think they’ll accept me as one of you?” Callie asked.
     
    “In time,” he answered. “It’s never easy when a human comes to live amongst a shifter pack, but in time you will be one of us and they will all accept you as family.”
     
    “Family,” she muttered. “Hopefully the kind of family I’ve always wanted, and not the kind I was stuck with when I was born.”
     
    Seth bridged the distance with them in a heartbeat, taking her shoulders firmly in his hands and probing deep within her eyes.
     
    “Forget that family,” Seth said. “Right here, right now. They no longer exist. We are your family now, and we will never abandon you. Do you understand?”
     
    He shook her slightly, and she nodded. Then he eased his grip, but did not release her. She stared up at him, addled.
     
    “Callie, I must be honest about something,” Seth said. “When I came to Madge, I did so because my brother demanded it. He was right about me needing to find a mate. Every Alpha needs a mate. But I never expected… I mean, I didn’t think…”
     
    “What?” Callie asked softly.
     
    “I didn’t expect you ,” he said.
     
    “What did you expect, then?” she asked, hoping he wasn’t disappointed with her.
     
    “The few