Riley's Downfall [Brac Pack 29] Read Online Free PDF

eyes. “And?” he asked.
“And I respect you, Malcolm.”
Oh, jeez . The man was going to lay a bomb on his lap. Malcolm could see it now. “And?”
“And the wood elves are in an uproar because they are leaderless. Ahm has had to stop a few of the wood elves from trying to join his tribe. They’re desperate, Malcolm.”
Malcolm cleared his throat, running a hand through his hair. “As much as I want to help others, and I have, mind you. I don’t think I can bring a whole tribe of wood elves to my ranch. I just don’t have the room.”
When Maverick gave Malcolm a tight grin, he knew he was sunk.
“I don’t want you to bring the elves to you. I want you to send them a temporary leader.”
“I’m not sending Luke!” Malcolm roared before he thought better of it. He was not sending his mate back to those backstabbing bastards. They had tried to take Cole from Luke. What tribe in their right minds would try and separate a papa from his cub? There was no way Malcolm was even going to consider sending his mate. As much as he respected the alpha, this was going too far. He wouldn’t do it.
“Not Luke,” Maverick replied, his eyelids slanting down just a fraction.
Now Malcolm was really confused.“Abe?” That wouldn’t be a wise choice. Abe was a good guy, but a leader he was not.
Maverick chuckled, the sound sliding down Malcolm’s back and sending a cold shiver through his body. “Hardly.”
Did Malcolm really want to know? There was a reason Maverick had mentioned this to Malcolm, but he was sitting there confused. “Then who?”
“Riley.”
Oh, hell.
* * * *
    Riley was angry and shocked at the same time. He was pissed because Sterling had put his life in danger by going into Hell Raiser’s stall. The horse was so ornery that even Riley was leery of the damn beast. The horse had already tried to kick him twice. If he hadn’t been so quick, the damn horse would have broken quite a few of his bones.
    Not that he couldn ’t shift and heal them, but fuck if it wouldn’t have hurt. The horse became agitated every time anyone went near him. And his very human mate had waltzed right into the stall, as if Hell Raiser was Buster, their gentle quarter horse, and tried to saddle the damn beast.
Was the guy nuts?
    Scratch that. Riley knew for a fact that Sterling didn’t think like anyone else. But he didn’t think the man was suicidal. Sterling was this skinny little human who couldn’t weigh any more than a buck fifty, soaking wet and rocks in his pockets, and he had acted as if Hell Raiser was the gentlest creature on earth.
    It also shocked him how serene Hell Raiser became once Sterling started petting the damn horse. The black stallion ate the attention up. He not only leaned toward Sterling’s hand, which gave Riley a fucking aneurism, but he had eaten carrots from it as well. He was baffled and amazed at the same time. He had never seen anyone who could tame the wildest of animals, and Riley wasn’t sure he liked it. Hell Raiser could turn on Sterling at any moment, and his mate could be killed by the horse’s hoof alone.
    “ Are you mad at me?” Sterling asked solemnly as he walked Buster from the barn, fully saddled.
After getting some damn clothes on, Riley had agreed to teach Sterling how to ride. If he didn’t, he had a feeling Sterling would try and teach himself. And Riley knew that was a disaster waiting to happen. One coronary a day was enough. So the only way to keep Sterling safe was to teach the man how to ride.
“I’m not happy, Sterling,” he admitted as he pulled Warrior closer, hating the sad look on his mate’s face. Riley may throw a fit about Sterling, but he wasn’t a complete asshole. He didn’t want his mate to look so unhappy. It tugged at a spot deep inside Riley. A spot he wasn’t sure he wanted to examine.
“Hell Raiser could have seriously hurt you, or worse.” And it was the worse part that scared Riley to death. Sterling really seemed to have no concept of how