Read Mating Instinct: A Moon Shifter Novel for Free Online Page A

brother.
    “All I want is the chance to utilize the list of names and addresses your pack found. If I can befriend a few APL members it will help both our causes.” Brianna crossed her legs and settled in the love seat as she watched Connor.
    A month ago they’d hacked into a flash drive that Jayce and Liam had found at the house of a dead APL member. And Connor was sitting on the contents at the moment, refusing to let anyone use it again. The information on it gave names and addresses of all known APL members in the area. He’d agreed with the Council and the fae to work with Brianna so they could help each other bring down the APL before it grew too big. Jayce didn’t understand why Connor was stonewalling the fae warrior.
    Rubbing a hand over his face, Connor sighed. “We can’t afford to stand out among the humans. Not now. And I don’t give a shit what the Council says,” he said to Jayce, his voice heated. “I have to protect
my
pack. After everything that’s happened to us in the past few months, I won’t let them be targeted again.”
    Liam stood now, his body as tense as Connor’s. “I understand wanting to protect the pack and my
pregnant
mate, but we can’t bury our heads in the sand. We have to go after them and strike hard.”
    Jayce was silent as he watched the interaction between the two brothers. No matter what any of them said, Connor was Alpha. In the end he would make the decision he thought was best for his pack. He had to protect not only his mate but his own warriors and all the Cordona females he’d taken on when he mated with Ana. Their lives and welfare were his responsibility. And Jayce sure as hell didn’t envy Connor’s position.
    The room was silent as they all waited. Finally, Connor gave Brianna a hard look. “We work together in targeting the APL and I know where you are at
all
times. No lone ranger bullshit.” He cut Jayce a sharp look too, but Jayce ignored it and focused on the female.
    Her expression was unreadable. As far as he knew, the fae hadn’t been targeted by the APL yet. But the APL was growing and the possibility that it might expand overseas was real. The fae wanted to figuratively—or maybe literally—cut off APL heads before they reached fae shores. Which Jayce respected.
    Brianna’s lips pulled into a thin line. “For once, both of our species want the same thing. I will share any information I come across and I expect backup if I require it.”
    Connor gave a short nod. “Agreed.”
    Jayce waited until Liam and Brianna left, then sat down again. He and Connor had a few things to discuss, including the vamp blood situation, but mainly Jayce wanted to know what the hell the Alpha planned to do about Kat’s blatant disregard of pack rules.
    * * *
    Kat steered down the long driveway to the Armstrong-Cordona ranch and fought the raw energy humming through her. Normally she experienced the same intense excitement when she came to train with Aiden, but today was different. She knew there was a chance she might see Jayce there.
    Doesn’t mean I have to talk to him
, she reminded herself. She was here for one reason and one reason only: to hone her fighting skills. She might be able to turn into a wolf, but in her human form she still had limited skills. She’d taken kickboxing for years and was in good shape from skiing, but she needed to be better. She needed to be a walking weapon.
    If she wanted to take down APL members, she couldn’t afford to be weak in either human or animal form. All the strength in the world wouldn’t make up for a lack of skills. If someone shot her or injected her with enough silver, she’d be screwed.
    After leaving her Jeep in the covered barnlike parking structure, she headed across the expansive area of land. The houses and cabins on the ranch created a circle around the main house, where Connor, her Alpha—she was still getting used to that concept—and his mate lived. All the homes were far enough apart from one