Bunny Tails: Bad Hare Day Camille Anthony All rights reserved. Copyright ©2011 Camille Anthony ISBN: 978-1-60521-705-5 Formats Available: HTML, Adobe PDF, EPub MobiPocket, Microsoft Reader Publisher: Changeling Press LLC PO Box 1046 Martinsburg, WV 25402-1046 www.ChangelingPress.com Editor: Margaret Riley Cover Artist: Reneé George
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Bunny Tails: Bad Hare Day Camille Anthony Vance’s poor bunny can’t catch a break. Ouida’s about ready to pull out her hair. She’s planned the perfect seduction -- only to find she’s too pregnant to fit into her old bunny suit. Then she’s mauled by a bear when all she wanted to do was play with the cute cubs, and on top of all that, she finds out the love of her life has been lying to her about the most important thing in the world. All in all, Ouida’s having a very Bad Hare Day.
Chapter One Play! There was a slavering wolf nipping at my heels. I led with a well-placed kick, accompanied by an ear-piercing scream. The beast rocked back on its massive haunches, a comic look of distress covering the hairy face. I laughed with glee. My plan to target his sensitive hearing had worked like a charm, but I didn’t waste time gloating, knowing from past experience how quickly Vance recovered from any attack. Instead, stumbling in my haste to make good my head start, I turned and floundered through the chest-high steaming water, one hand supporting my huge belly. Since it was the largest of the hot springs, it took me a while to get to the other side. This particular pool extended under the rock enclosure the pack had built to disguise the natural wonder from human trespassers. Once I reached the edge I was no longer sheltered from the weather. I gulped air through my open mouth as I scrambled up the man-made sloping bank, made slippery from the mix of warm mineral water, rich alluvial soil and melting snow. I didn’t have to look back to know the wolf was close at my back. I could hear it panting -- almost feel its heavy breathing falling on the nape of my neck. Clawing at the dark soil for purchase only to have it sift through my fingers, I pushed on, beginning to panic. The wolf was determined to capture me, and he was gaining. I finally reached the riverbank and flopped face-first onto solid ground, only to feel powerful jaws clamp down on my trailing ankle.
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My free foot kicked out at his muzzle, careful not to connect too hard. We were only playing capture, after all, though I was serious about getting back home quickly. Even that kick in the teeth didn’t make the wolf release its jaws. One foot still in the wolf’s mouth, I rolled over and scrambled farther up the bank on my backside, still protecting my protruding belly. I didn’t want my babies’ temporary house garnering scrapes from the rocks and gravel hidden under the heavy powdering of snow. But that meant most of my naked body was touching snow or frozen dirt, and I shivered, missing the warmth of my furs. My nipples were standing at attention, but it wasn’t from arousal. It was too damned cold this morning for outside fun and games. If Vance hadn’t accidentally knocked me into the pool before I could undress I’d be warm… at least, warmer than I was now. I’d also be more willing to play his game of chase. Lastly, I wouldn’t have to go around with my hair turned kinky since he got it wet. Starting at my captured foot, Vance worked his way up my body. He took his time, cold, wet muzzle and hot, rough tongue poking at and flicking over vulnerable spots along the way. It tickled, and I couldn’t help giggling. I bit my lip, tried to swallow the childish sounds, but ended up wailing with laughter. I hate it when Vance tickles me -- and I know he does it on purpose -- because I have no defense against him when he does that. I’ll laugh till I pee myself. Vance thinks that’s the coolest thing since indoor plumbing and considers it my way of signaling submission. I think it’s sooo not sexy… “Vance, stop that. Bad boy! Bad!” Giggling harder, I pushed at his head. Ignoring the sharp teeth snapping close to my fingers in warning was a no-brainer. We both knew damned good and well he’d never close down hard enough to do real damage. Just in case, though, I decided to bring out the big guns. “If I laugh too hard, I might go into labor and drop your pups right here in the snow!” Suddenly I was blanketed with warmth from head to toe as daddy wolf ceased teasing me and stretched out over my shivering body. Ha! Playing the baby card works every time. Vance is such a sucker for a female in need.
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Snuggling up to him, I practically purred. His fur had shed the water from the pool and was dry against my skin. I was so jealous of how he could do that, but for once, I kept my complaints to myself and wrapped my arms and legs tighter around him, basking in the warmth radiating from my own personal heater. “Hhmmm…” I moaned, curling closer in an attempt to escape the cold ground at my back. “This is nice! If only you could warm both sides of me at once.” His rumbled growl of contentment vibrated through me from head to foot. I shivered, but this time not from the cold. Gods, he felt wonderful on top of me. I love it when he covers me like this, his muscular, furred body pressing down along my full curves. He makes me feel more like a woman, dainty and feminine. At the same time, I was thankful for my hefty build. There was no fear of being crushed by my man lying full out on top of me, and my Vance is a big, big man, but in wolf form he is huge. Starkor, a Forester pack member who also happens to be a brilliant quantum physicist, keeps trying to explain it to me. You might have heard of him… Then again, probably not. When Westyn ascended as pack alpha, he reverted to the rules he’d grown up with and forced Starkor and other high-ranking scientists to resign their high security jobs and return to the pack. Starkor’s continued inability to make me understand the math is driving him crazy. To my mind there is no explanation. It just is, and I’m okay with that. A warning nip on the tip of my chin brought me back to the here and right now. I looked up to see my wolf staring down at me through wild, lupine eyes, and just for a moment it was hard seeing past the animal. Then one lid lowered in a slow wink, and I recognized my mate’s irreverent humor glinting in his silvery-blue gaze. Something else glinted there, something hot, wicked and not entirely tame -- an invitation to seduction. This was what our morning play had been leading up to: a hot winter romp out under a pale frosty sky while surrounded by nature’s chilly splendor. The trees here were still weighed down with ice and snow, the ground hard with hoarfrost and drifts of powdery fresh fall. The world was quiet. All empty and echo-y
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like the sanctuary of a deserted cathedral. The only breathing life was Vance and me on a melting bed of snow. Between us, his lupine cock emerged from its covering, the blunt, wedged tip leaking onto my belly. I reached a hand down and coated my fingers in his pre-cum, smearing it over the head of his thick glans and down the barrel to where his knot was already forming. He was horny this morning, all right, and his cock was so thick I couldn’t close my fingers around it. I’m a big woman, and my hands fit my frame, so when I tell you I can hardly hold my lover, what I’m really saying is he’s hung like a damned horse. Yum! He packs one fine, pussy-stretching instrument between those powerful thighs, in either shape. It hadn’t been that long ago I had issues accepting Vance when he came to me as his wolf. Being raised in the Bible Belt as a good little Baptist, I’d had it drummed into my head that no decent human would lie down with an animal. But my mate has proven his love for me over and over. I’m comfortable now accepting him in whatever form he may be occupying when he gets jiggy. Vance dipped his muzzle and rooted at my breast, tonguing my nipples until they stood up stiff from his tongue’s heat, no longer pouty with cold. Where he licked, delicious pleasure popped and fizzled, running along an electric current strung between my chest and my pussy. Moisture gathered between my folds from the hot swell of need already building inside. I was well on the way to a sweet culmination when he lowered his head and swiped his tongue across my parted lips, trying to push into my mouth. I hunched my shoulder and turned my head away, avoiding the tongue kiss he was trying to give me. “Cut that out. I’ve told you about trying to lick my mouth while you’re in wolf form! Shift and you can kiss me all you want.” I’d probably be across his lap later for daring to defy him, but hell’s bells! I’d seen him clean his ass with that tongue. Vance voiced his disgruntlement by lowering his muzzle and attacking my nipples. I jerked when I felt the sharp edge of his teeth as he nipped, biting down hard enough to sting, but not break the skin.
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“Ouch!” I sat up and slapped him away from my breasts, cradling the tingling nipples in my palms. “That hurt, you dog! Those are tender from your babies.” I gave him a fulminating scowl as I rubbed my breasts. “Dude, I love you, and I don’t mind licking your balls, but I draw the line at cleaning your ass with my tongue. You, however, don’t!” He lunged at me, and I scrambled out from under him. When I’d gained enough distance, I turned back with my hands planted on my wide hips and confronted my mate. “I’ve told you no before, so you can just stop trying me on this.” I pointed at his lolling tongue. “You’re not putting that thing in my mouth until you’ve washed it and brushed your teeth.” I led with my chin and swanned my neck to put emphasis on the verbal smack down I was giving. “And that’s not a wolf/human thing. It’s not even a black woman thing. It’s a Ouida thing. There are some acts I’m just not gonna be submissive about and this is one of them. I’m not tossing anybody’s salad, and if you toss your own, you ain’t putting the spoon in my mouth.” Vance lazily came to all fours and started toward me, tongue still hanging out his grinning jaws. He didn’t hurry, just leisurely started crowding me away from the bank in the direction of our cabin. “You’re making me a tad uneasy.” I licked my lips and stumbled back another step. Something told me I’d really stepped in it this time. “Look, Vance, I don’t mind some of the kinky shit you do,” I offered, trying to placate him, “but I draw the line at licking dirty ass, even vicariously. I saw you when we both took that dump before swimming. We jumped in the lake afterward, but wasn’t no soap in there, and you hiked your leg up just like a damned cat and licked your dirty asshole. That’s not hygienic.” He paused, one forefoot poised in the air. Ha! I saw he’d remembered. I hurried on, trying to speed-talk my way out of his bad graces.
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“That’s one of the things I put in our contract from the start, and you gave me a pass on it. You did, Vance,” I insisted when he didn’t look convinced. “You know you…” I stopped backing up and held my ground, my eyes narrowing in sudden enlightenment. “I don’t know why yer ass is crowding me like I did something wrong when I can see by your expression you remember damn good’n well what I’m talking about. Admit it!” My wolf stopped and sat back on his haunches. In the blink of an eye I was staring at my naked mate. He sat with his fine ass in the snow, hands linked over his crossed legs just below his knobby knees, not feeling the cold at all. It never ceases to amaze me how different we are and how he can withstand the cold in man form or wolf, as if he still wears his fur under his skin. In human form, Vance is pale, with great masses of white-blond hair, reminding me of Nordic climes and polar bears. His hair is long and straight, always flying in his eyes unless I braid it for him, but sometimes I like it falling free. I love playing with the silky length when he mouth-fucks my pussy. When he starts hitting it good, I twine my fingers around the long strands and tug, holding him in place so I can grind my mound all over his face. I’m a stone whore in the bedroom. Thank gawd Vance loves my enthusiasm. Course, if I am, it’s his fault anyway, since I was a virgin when we met. Everything I know about sex, he taught me, him and my three other mates. Well, ex-mates. But that’s another story. Right now, I was concerned with my stern Master, who is a different person altogether from my easygoing mate. Pale blue eyes the color of the deepest glacial ice peeked from behind a silky fall of snow-white hair, raking my naked form. His gaze didn’t miss a thing, slowly scanning the full curves of my big breasts and hefty ass. I think I’m nothing spectacular, but since I don’t want a punishment spanking, I no longer mention that belief to Vance. He thinks every fat, round inch is beautiful, and since his opinion is the only one that matters where I’m concerned, I’m okay with that.
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If I didn’t already love him, I would fall in love with him daily just for him thinking as he does. In fact, come to think of it, I’d even lick his ass. His clean ass, but I won’t let on. It’s more fun for him to “force” me. Just as I was really starting to feel the cold, standing there unmoving, Vance finally spoke. “You’re right. I had forgotten. Not about you refusing to lick various and sundry parts, but that I’d cleaned myself earlier.” I relaxed. Surreptitiously, I palmed my behind while offering him a tentative smile. “So I don’t get a punishment spanking?” Vance curled his lips back in a human parody of his wolf smile. “Oh, you’re going to get spanked, all right. Soon as we get home I’m taking you across my lap and whaling the tar out of your luscious ass, though I doubt you’ll call it a punishment by the time I let you up.” Suddenly the cold out here wasn’t so bad, and the comforts of home didn’t call so sweetly. I protectively clenched two handfuls of my endangered bottom and wailed, “Why?” He leered at me, his hot gaze tracking over my curves, lingering on the rounded outline of my protruding belly. “Because getting that delicious ass red hot is the perfect prelude to fucking it.”
Chapter Two Capture Ouida takes to my domming so sweetly I constantly forget she is relatively new to being submissive. And so I must constantly remind myself to make allowances for her initial reluctance to play. The reluctance is mainly due to the way she’s been taught to view her natural desires as evil. It is her upbringing as human that fuels the confusion she feels over her erotic responses to the stimulus of applied pleasure-pain. Being a true submissive and craving my dominance, she quickly comes around. By the end of every session she is so wild, I have to take measures to ensure she doesn’t hurt herself. Right now, I knew she was trying to convince herself she didn’t want my hands on her, spanking her ass cheeks until her pussy juices rolled down her thighs. She was only fooling herself. Her heart rate had increased until I could see the pulse pounding at her temples, hear it thundering beneath that smooth, chocolate brown skin. She’d opened her mouth to gulp air, her labored breathing loud in the morning’s stillness. Her sweet pussy released a gush of moisture that glistened in her short curls and bathed the air with her tart arousal. I closed my eyes, lifted my head to take a deep breath. Luna, Goddess… nothing smells as good as my mate’s body readying for my cock. Desire made me lightheaded as I drew in another deep draught of her essence. Lust struck like a bolt of lightning in dry kindling, and I went up in flames, burning for a taste of my mate. “I can almost taste your spill from here, woman.”
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I opened my eyes and felt the heat, saw the world’s colors bleed to ambered sepia and knew my eyes had gone molten with incipient change. When I spoke again, it was in the low, gruff bass of my wolf. “You want this, Ouida, almost as much as I do. And I’m going to give it to you.” I bared my teeth, the act a warning and a promise. “Best hurry home before I throw you down in the snow and fuck you right here.” “Oh, my freaking gawd, you are so unfair!” She had the audacity to stick her middle finger up at me before whipping around and sprinting toward our cabin, her full ass bouncing and swinging with each step. I knew exactly what that meant, and she’d pay for it. Later. Watching her go, I bit back a laugh and a hungry wave of lust. There is nothing a wolf loves better than the chase, and by Luna, the view of her backside looked damned good. Better than good. Ripe, luscious and plump, the woman made my mouth water and my fangs sprout. I intended to sink my own middle finger into her dark pink pussy and scoop out her flowing juices until they filled my palm. Then I’d slurp that sweet syrupy nectar off my hand like it was summer honey stolen from the bees’ combs. I gave her a long head start before heading after her, not bothering to shift into wolf to chase her. My stiff cock pointed the way as I jogged along. It was hard forcing myself to stay behind as Ouida raced ahead of me. I didn’t want my gravid mate running in fear, didn’t want to drive her too hard. It’s natural that humans -- no matter how well loved they are -- always revert to thinking like the primordial prey they once were when chased by a predator. Normal wolf pups can take the occasional jostling, and a little adrenaline is beneficial to them. However, this is Ouida’s first breeding, and I confess I prefer to err on the side of caution where she and they are concerned. I am constantly aware of the little ones tucked snug in their nest in her sexy round belly. I always take the pups into consideration when planning a sexual romp with my mate, like making sure I secure a cushion for her support when I bend her over and fuck her from behind. Don’t want the babes squished.
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I entered the cabin a few minutes behind Ouida and came to a dead standstill. After a moment of arrested disbelief, I had to laugh. Chuckling, I advanced on my saucy mate, shaking my head at her latest antic. She pouted at my response. “This get-up isn’t supposed to elicit laughter.” Those pursed lips were as adorable as the tattered bunny outfit she had tried to squeeze her ripe body into. Due to her advanced pregnancy, the thing didn’t even meet in the front. Her deep cleavage and rounded belly were crisscrossed with the rawhide strings, hiding just enough that I salivated to see the rest. “I thought you’d tossed that thing ages ago.” Ouida harrumphed. “I choose to associate it with your rescue of me. Besides, you’re a wolf. I thought you’d like chasing some hare.” I stepped up and fisted her hair at the nape of her neck, turning her face up so I could take her lips. “I don’t care much about the chase. It’s all about the capture.” As enforcer, I live among the humans more than among the pack. Unlike the majority of us who live predominantly as wolf, I’ve tasted chocolate, but none as rich and sweet as the candied interior of my mate’s mouth. I sank past her lips, my tongue gathering her heat and flavor, savoring the sighs and moans she made as I ate at her mouth with teasing nibbles. She nipped my bottom lip, pulled back and snarled. “Stop teasing and kiss me right.” My hand landed on her ass, right next to the fluffy bunny tail, the resulting red mark only the first of many. “Vance!” Her wail accompanied the glare she shot at me. I ignored both. “Silence, you,” I ordered. “That swat was more sound than fury. I had planned a prolonged session for us, wanted to savor you for a long, slow time, but now…” Gathering both her wrists behind her back in one hand, I began unfastening her costume, so consumed with lust I fumbled the strings trying to get her naked as fast as I could.
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“Oh, fuck it!” Ceasing to struggle with the snarled ties, I released her wrists and extended a claw, slicing through them. As the suit fell away, I sighed with relief, cupping one heavy breast in my palm while my thumb and forefinger latched onto the nipple, giving it a twisting pinch. “Why do you persist in thinking I will allow you to -how do you humans say? -- wear the pants in this mating?” “You don’t wear any at all, so somebody has to.” “That saucy retort just earned you five more swats, baby. I’m looking forward to them almost as much as you are. But first, I need you to take the pressure off a bit.” “Humph! I’m under more pressure than you are.” My head came up so I could gaze down on her face, startled at her continued bad behavior, despite the warning I’d just administered. “You don’t get relief until I say so… and only if you’re obedient, which you’re not being so far.” I released her arms and stepped back. “Assume your position.” Ouida sank toward the floor so quickly I feared for her knees. “Take it easy, woman!” I couldn’t help snapping as I leaped forward, hands flying out to cushion her drop. “I don’t care how eager you are, I don’t want you hurting yourself.” She didn’t answer -- she knew better. Once in position she’d better not speak unless given permission. She did, however, communicate eloquently with her eyes. The expression was one I’d have to punish her for later on. Now, I gave her a wicked smirk and directed her mouth to my cock by the grip I had on her hair. “Suck.” I don’t know why, but she loves it when I tug on her hair. Her face lit up and she licked her lips, resting her body against my thighs as she took me in. Leaning wasn’t exactly allowed, but I made allowances for her pregnancy. Besides, I liked the feel of her sturdy body pressed against mine. Fucking Ouida’s mouth is like dying and being reborn. Biting back a groan at the expression of sublime pleasure shining in her eyes, I glanced to where my shaft glided between her lips, the veined barrel held at the base by her circling fingers. Her full lips were a hot, tight vise around me, molten lava searing the skin of my cock. I locked my
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knees against the pleasure of her cheeks hollowing out as she sucked me deep over and over. Determination had me vowing not to come too soon, though it was hard going. I am the one who taught my Ouida everything she knows about sex. Before me, she’d been with no human male. Though I realize the mindset is sexist in the extreme, I can’t help being grateful she’s known none besides myself and my pack mates. I don’t know where she learned this way of scraping her teeth lightly along the barrel of my sex as she pulls back. I suppose it comes naturally. For me, the negligible threat of injury serves as an incentive, and whenever she uses the technique I find myself coming. She did it now, dragged her teeth down the length of my cock, and within moments I was gripping her head between my hands while my hips thrust wildly, driving my cock deep as I jettisoned my seed, roaring my release. I folded over her, breathing harshly. Nowhere near composed, I rasped between clenched teeth, “Well done, my beauty. Now that we’ve taken the edge off, I can take proper care of your needs.” Ouida pulled back, smiling, using her bold tongue to lap up the last of the seed slipping from the slit in the head of my cock. Then, licking her own lips, she gave me a playful pat on the buttocks. A twinkle of amusement in her pretty human-brown eyes, she mouthed, My pleasure, big boy. Her lips widened in a grin. And then, making sure I could read her lips, she sub-vocalized, “And I mean that.” With a laugh, I straightened and tossed her to our bed. She landed face up. “Oomph!” The sound was forced out of her as she hit the mattress. Before she could recover, I quickly flipped her over, grabbed the restraints, and secured her legs and arms. Once I had her bound spread eagled, a pillow under her belly to cushion our pups and enough play in the chains to lift that round bottom of hers high, I took a moment to trace her spine with my tongue. From the nape of her neck, where my mark resided, to the dip leading to the hillock of her ass, I renewed my scent, taking care to lift her hips so I could coat the fat bundle of nerves at the top of her slit with a generous amount of my enzyme-laden saliva.
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“Mhmmm… delicious!” My voice rumbled, wolf already close to the surface. I reined it back, determined not to shift and mate Ouida in fur form. There was only one way the wolf knew how to mate. My beast was primal, feral, and far too harshly animalistic to rut on a female so close to dropping pups. I wouldn’t subject Ouida or my progeny to such abuse. But I could and would indulge in a long, drawn-out session of fucking that would leave us both sated and limp. First though, my baby had a spanking coming. “Ready, my One?” I asked, kneading the round globes of my woman’s ass. My fingers sank deep, squeezing the dark, smooth flesh. “Y-y-yes.” I smiled at the tentative note in her tremulous tones, knowing her reticence wouldn’t last long. “You know you will enjoy this as much as I… perhaps even more.” With my grip on her cheeks, I spread her open, revealing both the small, puckered entry and her weeping cunt. I wanted both, but I’d settle for a taste of that juicy, ripe pussy. I inhaled, drawing her divine fragrance deep within. My Ouida’s sex smells like tart summer fruits, salted with a touch of ocean brine. The taste is addictive, and I constantly have to exercise strict control. Otherwise I would spend the majority of my days with my head buried in her crotch. Dipping, I swiped my tongue through her running juices, gulping down the fluid. Like 100 proof vodka, it detonated in my belly, potent and strong. Crazed by the flavor, I dug my face into her crotch, devouring her with tongue and lips and teeth. I shifted just enough to lengthen my tongue so I could push past the elastic entrance of her cunt, thrusting the tip deep enough to flutter against her G-spot. “Argghhhh!” Screaming into the covers, Ouida humped her bottom up at me, begging for more. I gave her what she wanted. What I wanted. Knowing how she loved it when I abraded her clit with my rough tongue, I swiped over and over the thick bundle until it emerged from its hood and stood proudly, red and swollen. Carefully I took it between my fore-teeth, bit down enough to tug at it without breaking the skin.
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Ouida bucked and hollered, fighting the restraints in her efforts to join in the play. In punishment, I brought one hand up and slapped her right butt cheek hard, making the plump flesh quiver. Abandoning her pussy for the moment, I sat up and studied my handprint gracing her right cheek. The dark skin proudly bore a glowing representation of my palm. Fisting my cock with one hand, I applied the same heat to her left cheek, pumping my shaft as I watched my marks appear. “Your ass looks wonderful wearing my palm prints.” Waiting until the first prints faded, I patiently reapplied them to both cheeks, spanking them again and again. I kept the blows moderate, not trying to hurt her, but making sure they woke the nerves under the skin. Ouida danced under the swats, swinging her rounded bottom from side to side in an attempt to anticipate them. My mate went wild under me. I licked my lips as her ass jiggled and bounced. Much as I loved the view, she knew better. Whack! “Naughty! Lie still!” Whack, whack, whack! “I can’t… Vance… oh, God, it burns!” Her last shrill cry startled me, and I stopped immediately, smoothing my hands over her warm flesh. She sounded sincere, but I knew I hadn’t hit her that hard. The globes were deep pink and hot to the touch, but nowhere near marred or bruised. Confused, I frowned down at her. “Ouida, these swats cannot hurt that much.” Her words came garbled, her face pressed into the covers as her body surged and swayed, though I was no longer striking her. “God, Vance, it’s not my ass. My pussy burns! I’m on fire for you, honey. Please, fuck me now and put the flames out!” “Why, you little…” I stopped in mid-sentence, shaking my head at her hijinks. She’d known damned good and well I would take her cries to mean I’d harmed her. I knew how to get back at her, though. In this situation, I had all the leverage. Leaning over her back, I slid my hands under her body and palmed her breasts, working the nipples until they stood up stiff and firm. The raw sounds pouring out of
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her mouth told me just how close to the edge she was. I sent one hand questing in her pussy, finding it dripping, the lips fluttering as her internal muscles gripped my fingers tight. “Five more swats at the end of this spanking for talking without permission and trying to manipulate me,” I whispered in her ear as I pumped in and out. “Then I might release you.” Ouida moaned aloud, her cry sounding agonized when I pulled my fingers free with a liquid squish and moved to her tight, puckered ring of muscle, rimming it with her slick fluid. My other hand stopped playing with her nipples to land a punishing swat on one bouncy ass cheek. “Silence, Ouida, you know better.” “Oooowwwww!” Her long, drawn-out whimper hardened rather than softened my resolve. My mate was woefully disobedient, but I faulted myself for that. I should have been more stringent in her training. Truthfully, Xen had always been more suited to taking the lead in this area. In acknowledgment of my own culpability, I administered only the last four of the promised five stinging slaps, not the extra ones she’d earned by making those unauthorized noises. Afterward, I cuddled her to me, talked her down from the edge while gently rubbing the heat out of her round globes. Once she was calm, I resumed preparing her anus for a plug. Plunging three slickened fingers back into her pussy, I pumped deep, scissoring them wide to open up the tight corridor. Alternately curling them to flick her G-spot and using my thumb to strum her clit, I soon had her slippery juices overflowing. Easing my dripping fingers out, I transferred her natural lubricant to the tiny rosette, carefully pushing past the constricting sphincter to the snug channel beyond. She needed the stretching. Didn’t want her too uncomfortable, and it had been a while since I’d dommed her this way. “I’m not going to fuck your ass this morning, babe. This plug is just to get you loose enough to take me again, since it’s been so long. What I am going to do is fuck
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you so sweetly you scream. And then I’m going to pound you until you fall apart around me,” I promised, gratified at how the quaking mini-mouth sucked at my finger, almost as if inviting me in. “The only sound I better hear coming out your mouth is my name as you come, and only after I’ve given you permission to do so. Do you understand?” Almost sobbing now, she frantically nodded her head in the affirmative. “Good girl.” I petted her, brushing her coarse curls off the nape of her neck to drop nipping kisses over to my mark. She shivered, her entire body heaving as I bit down. Her reaction reminded me I needed to ensure her and the pups’ safety. “Ouida, can you hold your position if I release you? Or do you need to remain in restraints?” When she didn’t speak, I chuckled. “You’re learning, but they weren’t trick questions. You may answer.” She remained silent for so long I frowned down at her. “They were simple questions. It shouldn’t be so hard to respond.” She sighed, sounding disgruntled. “I thought you wanted honesty.” “Always.” “Well, it’s not as easy as you think.” She twisted her neck, trying to meet my eyes. “I have to consider a lot of things. You’ve said I have to be quiet and not come till you give me permission, but there’s no way I can do all that and lay still.” She nodded her head emphatically, expressive gaze going dreamy. “You’d better leave me locked up. That way I can concentrate.” I pressed a kiss to her dark cheek, proud of her for taking my instructions so seriously. “I like that you’ve thought about pleasing me, but soon I’ll have to train you to obey even when faced with distractions.” I straightened up and left the bed to gather the items I planned to use, and to allow her an uninterrupted view of my ass. Ouida likes looking at me as I walk away, but I have it on the best authority that she loves it more when I’m walking toward her. Holding aloft the largest butt plug Xen had purchased before he left, I gazed at it askance. The thing gave me pause… had he actually planned to push this monstrosity
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up Ouida’s tiny little orifice? Moon Goddess, the phallic replacement looked imposing, larger than my own instrument. When did large become too large? And how much damage could I do to my mate with my incomplete knowledge of such things? Yes, my saliva had healing properties, and I could repair any inadvertent injury, but I didn’t want her hurt at all… especially not with the pups on board. Shaking my head, I replaced the gigantic thing and reached for the next smaller in size. I smothered a confused whimper. Ouida wanted this, needed this, and while I was okay with giving her what she desired, Xen was the one who relished walking the dark edge of life. I missed him more and more each day -- probably more than Ouida did, and I knew she missed him terribly. Eyes big, lips pressed tight together, she tracked every movement of the hand holding the giant phallic replacement. I saw her swallow as I held it up so she could get a good look at it. “You ready for this, baby?” Obedient to my earlier instructions, she didn’t speak, but nodded jerkily. Her tensed body coiled on the bed in anticipation, fine tremors visibly vibrating up and down her dark brown legs and arms. Smoothing a hand along her back and over the rounded curves of her ass and thighs, I smiled. “Relax. We’ve done this before and you love it.” Laying the plug on the bed, I crawled up between her splayed thighs and tongued her clenched rosette, using my saliva to ease the way. The taste was spicy, sharp and all Ouida, with a tiny hint of tart flavor that was the herbal soap she’d bathed with at the hot pool. From the way she twisted and shook, lifting her ass into the tongue-lashing I was giving, I knew she was ready for the next step. I got to my knees, widening my stance to hold her thighs apart. Taking my cock in hand, I rubbed the head up and down the deep crease between her full cheeks, smearing it with my natural lubricant. The slick, thick secretions worked better than K-Y Jelly or other synthetic lubricants and would protect her vulnerable membranes from damage when I fucked her ass with the large
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phallus. It also held analgesic properties to lessen pain, so I made sure the surrounding skin and the tiny opening were covered liberally. “I’m coming in, Ouida. Brace and hold still for me.” Pressing the dripping head of my cock against the puckered rosette of her sphincter, I began to push in. She instinctively resisted, tightening the tiny entrance until it practically winked out of existence. I punched through and was instantly gloved by the grip of her hot, tight orifice. The feel of that wicked little mouth closing around my glans, squeezing my cockhead between its spongy folds hurt so good my knees went weak. My vision blurred as my balls tried to crawl up my throat, and I fought to stop my eyes from crossing. Cautioning myself to keep control and not slam into my mate as I needed to, I bit back a howl at the stinging pleasure. “Stop resisting, Ouida… you’ll make me think you don’t want this, and we both know differently.” I felt her ease a bit around me, but it wasn’t much. I’m large and Ouida’s unstretched anus is small. With difficulty, I forged ahead just far enough to deposit a good squirt of pre-cum and pulled out. My cock reemerged from her clinging flesh with an audible pop, and breathing hard, I watched her small opening flutter as I notched the pliable dildo in place and slowly began feeding the nine-inch monster into her dark hole. The sight made my mouth water. Wanting desperately for it to be my cock sliding into her inviting anus, I resisted the temptation to switch places. Leaning over, I gave her right cheek a playful nip. To keep it even, I bit the left one, too. She yelped, jumping, giving me another excuse to swat that plush ass. Grinning, I swatted her ass cheeks hard, canines flashing as I watched her full flesh bounce and quiver around the thick, round plug. “Now push out for me so we can get this all the way in. This is just the prelude.” I tapped her butt one last time. “This baby needs to be stretched. It’s gotten out of the habit lately. I can’t wait for our pups to be born so we can play ‘bury the bone’ with both your tight holes again.”
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She moaned as I slid the last inch home and continued to mumble beneath her breath as her cheeks clenched tight, capturing the plug securely. The little sounds she made barely constituted speech so I discounted them, knowing her propensity to verbalize everything. She was doing good not to cry out. I stepped back to better view my masterpiece. Bound and plugged, my mate looked good enough to eat, and I fully intended to devour her. “Oh, Ouida, you can’t imagine how luscious you look, bound in my bed with your tiny asshole stretched around that thick, fat plug. Seeing you like this makes me feel hungry, but not for food. My stomach aches and so does my heart. My cock is stretched tight, and I haven’t even entered you yet. My balls are already so full I’m afraid they’ll explode.” Strong emotions bring out the wolf, and I was barely hanging on to human form. Fighting the urge to change took all my strength, made my words more growl than speech. I wondered if Ouida could understand me at all. Pausing to suck in a deep breath, drawing in the heady scent of her musk, I tried again to communicate. Tapping her bottom, I watched her flesh ripple as she responded to the vibrations my actions sent through the plug. “I want to hear how this makes you feel. Tell me, Ouida… is your little puckered hole burning? Do you like having the plug stuffed up your ass? Does it feel as large as a pole? Does it make your pussy wet and desperate for my cock?” A deep groan was her only answer. Disappointed, I snapped, “You have permission to speak.” “Yes, Master! My ass is stuffed, but it only makes me more aware of how empty my pussy is. Please fill it. Fill it with your long, hard cock.” “That’s what I like to hear!” I reached under Ouida’s body, placed my hands on her belly, and lifted her up until her rounded bottom rose, exposing the dark pink pussy nestled ‘tween her plump thighs. I licked my lips at the sight. Her erect clit was a fat little button protruding from fleshy lips. I’d sucked it hard and long and it was still an angry, wanting red. It remained tempting, but I’d gone past that need for an appetizer to the gut-clenching
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hunger for the main course. The entry to her pussy glistened with her slippery juices, and the pouty lips guarding her sex fluttered as her muscles flexed on emptiness, practically begging for my possession. I pushed in slowly, deliberately ejaculating some sperm to ease the way. Her cunt was normally tight, but with the plug taking up major space, the going was proving harder and more deliciously snug. My cock dragged along the underside of her clit as I powered in, the angle I entered just right to bring maximum pleasure to us both. “Goddess Moon, Ouida, your cunt is strangling my cock. I’ll die happy as long as I get every inch stuffed inside you.” Holding her up with one hand, I trailed the other down her back until I reached the plug buried up her ass. I gave it a twist and nudged it farther in, eager to see her reaction. I grinned when she bucked beneath me, a warbled cry breaking from her. Like a bucking bronco, she heaved and swiveled under me, not trying to unseat me, but rather trying to swallow as much of my cock as her greedy pussy could hold. “Oh, my mate liked that. Let’s see how you like this…” I pulled the plug halfway out and quickly shoved it back in. At the same time, I pushed another inch of cock up her clinging pussy. All thoughts of role-playing gone for both of us, Ouida obviously forgot my command. Not trying to hold back her cries, she arched her neck and screamed. The primal sound ripped through the air, shredding the last of my control. Claws and fangs emerging, I held her down and mindlessly fucked her. My hips pumping back and forth faster than any human’s could, I drove my cock over and over into her tight cunt. It was agony. The thick, plastic plug in her ass was an unyielding bar against which my over-sensitive cockhead rubbed on each inward thrust. It was ecstasy. The plug also made her already snug pussy that much more constricted, strangling my cock in the most mind-blowing way. I held her shaking, quaking body down until mine was in the same shape. Tremors ran up and down my fur-covered arms, made me weak as I prepared to pour my seed into her already fruitful womb. With a full-throated howl, I came in a mindless
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rush to completion, calling my mate’s name and demanding she come with me, for me, all over me. In the drowsy aftermath, I slumped to the bed, resting my considerable bulk over Ouida’s lower back. I stroked her damp body, wiped the sweat off her gleaming black skin. Moonlight, but she was beautiful. How had I ever found favor in my Goddess’s eyes to deserve such a wondrous mate? I dropped a soft kiss on her spine as I gently removed the butt plug and tossed it in the direction of the bathroom. “Damn, woman, I didn’t think you could grow better at this. That was the best fuck ever.” Beneath me, Ouida chuckled weakly. “You say the same thing every time we fuck.” I nodded. “And mean it more each time.”
Chapter Three Not on My Shift! Riffling the heavy set of staff keys dangling from his belt loop in absentminded ritual, Martin Garrett eyed patient number 337-A. The slack-jawed inmate had his Danger-Will-Robinson intuition screaming. He’d worked around psych patients long enough to have learned when it paid to listen. Common sense sure as shit had gone to pot in this new touchy-feely age. 337-A. Martin snorted. Back in the day he’d a been a John Doe. Back then controlling patients was a snap. If the meds didn’t work, you clubbed them or jet-hosed them until the fight was gone out of ‘em. Or you slapped them in restraints and went back later, when the lights were out, with a wet sheet and some rubber hosing. Simple. Now, damned desk jockeys somewhere in the state capitol -- dumb-assed people who probably never stepped foot on a ward -- insisted all staff go through PMAB training. Protocol Management of Assaultive Behaviors -- supposed to teach you how to talk to the loonies, to de-escalate the situation. Fuck protocol. Damn it all to hell and gone, what part of insane did the dumb fucks in Admin not get? If you could reason with the shit-for-brains, they wouldn’t be in here in the first place. Old man Crenshaw shuffled up, interrupting Martin’s train of thought. Arms waving frantically, eyes rolling and toothless grin manic as hell, he mumbled over and over, “Hi, Mr. Martin. Hi! I’m being a good boy! I’m being good. Don’t hit me.” “Crenshaw, get the fuck outta my face before I smear you on the walls.” Garrett pushed the rambling patient away with a sharp, short elbow jab.
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“Martin Garrett! Don’t you come on my unit messing with these here patients. You better believe I will report your hind parts!” “Damn it,” Martin groused. “That’s all I need… Glow-stick riding my ass.” Sliding a sideways glace over at the unit charge nurse, he groaned. Fat cow was snaking that neck of hers, mouth screwed up like she’d been sucking lemons. Sure as shit hadn’t been sucking no dick. Her name was Sha-something. Shawawa, Shawala… followed by some more African Bantu stuff no one tried to pronounce. Orderlies had taken to calling her Glow-stick ‘cause the bitch acted like she pinned her ‘fro back with a halo and was so uptight there had to be a crucifix wedged up her ass. “He was between me and the patient I’ve been assigned to keep under line-ofsight observation and wouldn’t move when I told him to, ma’am.” Martin scrambled to think up something to cover his knocking Crenshaw around, cause Miss Goody-TwoShoes didn’t hold with what she called abusing the patients, and the bitch wasn’t kidding about reporting him. She’d gotten a lot of techs fired over the years, so that now it was sure as shit certain no one made any midnight sex runs when she was working nights. “I used proper PMAB procedure and redirected him out of my path.” Glow-stick snorted and glared at him through narrowed eyes. “You stick to your story and I’ll stick to mine. Just keep your hands to yourself unless there’s a code green called.” Martin made a face at her back when she turned and walked into the unit office. “Uppity whore. Who da hell she think she is, lording it over us peons?” “Our boss.” The quiet reminder, spoken from between barely opened lips, came from Lupe, the tiny woman working beside him. “Just know I’m glad you’re here to keep an eye out. I don’t trust that crazy-assed 337-A one bit.” Martin’s chest puffed out. At least one person appreciated how his hulking presence constituted a warning to the potentially dangerous patients lined up to receive their meds. “I got your back.” Lupe paused to meet his glance for a fleeting moment. “Don’t forget the mics are on and the cameras running, so watch yourself.”
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Martin allowed a thin smile to stretch his lips. Guadeloupe Noriega was the closest thing he had to a friend at work. She was cool to work with, always looked the other way when shit went down and took her turns as look-out during the midnight sex runs. She was also hot as chili peppers in the sack. They’d hooked up sexually a time or two, but turned out Lupe liked being in charge and on top too much, and he didn’t roll like that. She hadn’t been Martin’s idea of a great fuck, though he’d relished the added bonus of her liking her sex rough. It had been fun forcing her to play his bottom, but one time he’d gotten a bit too rough and she’d tossed him like a limp dishrag. Lately, though, she’d been giving him the eye. He knew he could have her again if he wanted. At the moment, though, his mind wasn’t on the spicy little Mexican hottie, but on the freaky, self-absorbed man sitting off by himself at the table. He didn’t know why his attention had been snagged by the non-threatening behavior of that one patient, yet something definitely had his Spidey senses tingling. What the hell is 337-A looking at? At this particular moment, 337-A was sitting slumped over in his chair, limp, dirty-blond hair hung hiding most of his face. A thin line of drool slid from his lips as he stared out the window, his usually vacant gaze intently locked on something just out of view. Martin didn’t trust him a bit. The thin, wiry man might appear harmless, but just last week, Martin and three other staff had been effectively reminded appearances could be deceptive. Up until then, the patient had been biddable and easily directed. Then, after almost a year of silently vegetating, 337-A had suddenly exploded into a murderous rage, screaming at the top of his lungs about nightmarish, two-legged wolves and bitch rabbits. He’d practically destroyed the unit before being forcibly taken down by a team of four orderlies and two nurses. They’d locked him into five-point restraints while the I.V. of Ativan and Haldol kicked in. During that first time -- a good two hours -- he’d ranted and raved, spewing vitriol and madness. It had taken three heavily medicated days before his uncontrollable behavior ceased.
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The only thing anyone could figure was the patient must have seen something in the local newspaper. He’d been looking at the daily rag, but by the time the ward charge had questioned the staff to see what the man had been doing, it was too late. The newspaper was in shreds. There was no way of knowing which story could have set him off. Absently rubbing the lingering sore spot high on his right shoulder, Martin contemplated his charge. Crazy man packed a wallop with that wild roundhouse punch of his. Who’d have thought a thin, wiry man who’d never exercised a day in all the time he’d been incarcerated could knock a solid bruiser like me off my feet? And what the hell was he staring at? Giving in to curiosity, Martin gave the rest of the unit’s population a quick scan before stepping away from the nursing station. Heavy set of keys thudding into his thigh with each step, he maneuvered so his vantage point intercepted 337-A’s line-ofsight. He frowned. The only thing visible from the long, barred window was the weathered sign reading “Jackson County Mental Institute Founded 1879.” What on earth could 337-A find so disturbing about a sign he’d seen every day for the last eight months? “Eh-hem!” The nurse’s loud throat clearing brought Martin’s attention back to the matters at hand, and he stepped back over to her, bending his head to catch her softspoken words. “Glow-stick is checking you out.” Louder, she added, “I’m ready to administer 337-A’s meds now.” “No problem. I don’t think he’ll cause a ruckus with me here.” Martin rubbed the knuckles of his right hand. “I gar-un-tee pretty boy didn’t like my last reminder to play nice.” Obviously having picked his comment up on the intercom, the head nurse hurried out of the office. “Don’t antagonize him, Martin. The last thing I need is the other patients becoming upset. You know how violence sets them off.” “He don’t start nothing, won’t be nothing.”
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A heavy sigh left the woman’s lips. Martin could see the disapproval in her dark brown eyes, but she didn’t say anything further other than, “Just go bring the patient over here, please.” Grumbling, Martin stomped over to the listless man. How the fuck did that idiot head nurse expect him to keep the peace without a show of force? Most of these airheads didn’t understand anything else. “Hey, 337-A! Get your ass up and moving over to the nurse’s station. It’s happy-pill time!” Under his breath, making sure no one else could hear, he leaned closer and added, “I hope like hell your crazy ass starts something this morning ‘cause I still owe you one for that hit you landed the other day. I’ll kick your ass into next week.” He waited until the patient hauled his carcass up out of the chair and began that slow, uneven swaying walk of his. Balancing on his good foot, barely putting weight on the left leg ending in the chrome prosthesis, the patient began his limping shuffle. Satisfied his command was being obeyed, Martin pivoted toward the med station, turning his back on 337-A to stomp back the way he’d come. The sharp, blinding pain exploding at the back of his head made him stumble. Grabbing at the edge of the table to steady himself, Martin swept around to see 337-A holding the bent form of his metal chair. Shocked, one hand went to the throbbing wound at his nape. He snarled when his hand came away bloody. Staring at it in disbelief, his temper flared. “Motherfucker, you bled me!” He squinted, eyes narrowed as he fought to stabilize his blurry vision. “I’m gonna fucking waste your crazy ass!” Before he’d finished speaking, 337-A swung, and the edge of the chair impacted again, this time knocking him off his feet. On the way down, Martin’s neck hit the edge of the table with a gut-wrenching crack. He felt the bright, hot flare of pain screaming through his entire body before he went limp and the pain faded to the distant, pulsing hum of angry bees. He never felt the impact of his body hitting the tiles, but he screamed when the back of his skull thumped against the hard floor, jarring the head injury 337-A had just given him.
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The chair fell three more times in quick succession, with a strength only a madman could wield. Although Martin could see the rise and fall of the makeshift weapon, could hear the sound of the wind displacement as the damned thing connected time and again, he felt nothing. Dimly, he heard Lupe screaming for the Crisis Response Team, heard patients yelling and the thudding of feet as they fled to the corners of the room, seeking escape from the violence taking place by the bank of barred windows. He could hear the tense tones in the charge nurse’s voice as she droned the usual drivel to calm the savage masses. Martin tried to get up, but something was frightfully off kilter. He couldn’t feel his body. He knew he was breathing but couldn’t detect his chest rising and falling, and he couldn’t lift either hand to check. He rolled his eyes to the left where 337-A knelt at his side, fumbling at his hip. He’s after my keys. The patient detached the key ring from Martin’s belt loop and leaned his narrow face over to smirk down at him. His lips were smiling but his eyes were cold. “Garrett, you maggoty piece of rancid meat, I’m about to make sure you won’t butt-rape any more helpless patients, you fuck-for-brains. I’m glad I was able to have this revenge before I go. Bitch, I ain’t no fancy boy to lay still for no fag sticking his wanker up my bum hole.” 337-A straightened up, hauled back his right leg, and swung his heavy metal prosthesis foot into Martin’s groin three times. Martin was grateful he felt nothing, though he cringed mentally at the thought of what his dick and balls had to look like. But the patient wasn’t finished. “Can’t have you telling no one which way I went…” He reared back again, this time swinging his fake foot at Garrett’s jaw. Martin closed his eyes before the blow landed, his stomach bottoming out. He still had sensation in his mouth, could feel himself swallowing. He knew he was gonna feel this kick land. Pain shattered his thoughts as something broke… probably both teeth and jaw, and then the last sensations faded.
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Coming to, Martin gasped and immediately began choking. He realized not much time could have passed, since he was still lying helpless on the floor. Only now he was in danger of drowning in the blood filling his mouth. Over the pounding of his frantic heartbeats, he could hear Lupe screaming, “Martin Garrett is down!” in an idiotic tic that never ended. In the background, Glowstick’s calm but pressured voice called a stat code green. Not long after, the sound of footsteps slapping the vinyl tile came as the crisis team rushed along the corridor toward the unit dayroom. But he’d already heard the jingling of his keys as the patient twisted the stiff lock on the heavy emergency door. He recognized the groan of the rusted hinges as the door swung open and, a moment later, swung shut. Anger and confusion boiled within, both fighting for ascension. He was a bruiser, his body a well-honed weapon. Now it was unresponsive, a lump of formless clay incapable of the smallest movement. Martin screamed, or thought he did. The blood pounding at his temples, filling his mouth and roaring in his ears drowned out all sound. That damned useless Lupe was fluttering her hands about, making his head hurt with her high-pitched wails. While she knelt beside him doing fucking nothing, the patient had gotten away through the old ward door. Damn bitch didn’t even have the sense to turn his head so he didn’t choke to death on his own blood. Instead, her hysterical cries rang loudly in his ears, jockeying for first place with the sound of his frantic breathing. White-clothed feet and legs wavered into view, and he knew the team had forgotten about the patient they’d been called to contain when they found him down and bleeding. Someone finally had the sense to carefully clear his mouth, but his busted jaw precluded any speech. As they milled around him, calling for urgent assistance and an ambulance, 337-A made good his escape. At least the deluded patient thought he had. He was wrong. Every set of staff keys had a tracking device imbedded in the base for situations just like this. Before
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everything faded out, Martin took solace in knowing it wouldn’t be long before the dude found his ass right back in good old JCMI. If it was the last thing he did, Martin vowed to heal up and return. He sure hoped 337-A didn’t suffer an unfortunate accident in the meantime, because he was planning one hell of a homecoming for the two of them. After all, he’d read studies that showed patients healed faster when they had something to look forward to…
Chapter Four Bear: 1, Ouida: 0 The ferocious glare the wolf trained on me warned I had a serious ass-whipping coming once I reached home, one I admit I richly deserved. “Get far from here. Now!” Vance’s snarled command was barked in a voice so guttural I could barely make it out. The wolf rushed past my hunched figure in a blur of fur and fury. Howling a challenge, he sailed over my head to land with fangs and claws extended, immediately engaging the huge brown bear that had been swatting me around like I was its plaything. I scrambled away from the danger zone as quickly as I could, intent on putting as much space between the crazed bear and my battered body as possible. Not sparing me another glance, Vance heckled the mother bear, keeping her attention diverted so she wasn’t able to concentrate on coming after me again. I wasn’t fooled, though. He was thinking about me all right, and not kind thoughts. Though it had become weaker in the last few months, our telepathic communication was now jangling with the barbed wire spikes of horrified anger he’d felt when he’d gotten a good look at me. I’d managed to scare him, thus royally pissing him off. Seeing my broken body through his eyes, I was frightened, too. I seriously deserved whatever punishment he decided to mete out. Provided we both survived, which looked iffy thanks to my dumbass actions, I’d gladly take any punishment without complaint.
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I’d made two serious mistakes. The first was ignoring the pack-wide security edict to remain inside unless accompanied by another wolf. In my defense, I’d never had to think about that one before. Until two and a half months ago, I’d been surrounded by four wolves, at least one of which was always with me. It had been an embarrassment of riches, and I’m not gonna lie. I came to love the hell outta my situation. I went where I wanted when I wanted. All I had to do was mention a need, and I had four males happy and eager to take me wherever I wanted. So it wasn’t a deliberate breaking of the rule, which made it a misdemeanor compared to my second one. That one was sheer stupidity on my part, and I can only plead temporary insanity by reason of impending motherhood. Those bear cubs had just looked so sweet. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Three cute, life-sized teddy bears with fur that looked soft and plush had been gamboling in the snow covered field before our cabin. I don’t know what I was thinking when I ran out to play with them. Wait, yes I do. Obviously I hadn’t been thinking at all. If I had been thinking, I’d have realized it was deep in the heart of winter. Cubs as young as these shouldn’t even be born yet. They definitely were too small, relatively speaking, to be out unprotected, which meant unless she was dead their mother had to be somewhere nearby. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I hit the mental repeat button, recycling my new mantra as I staggered drunkenly toward safety, cradling my possibly broken right arm. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Make that definitely broken… I concentrated on finding a protected spot where I could watch the battle raging between Vance and the bear. It was slow going because I was beginning to hurt all over. Really hurt. At some point she’d caught my arm in her jaws and shook me like a rag doll. I was sure I had cracked ribs as well as a broken arm. I’d heard the bones snap. Both forearms bore deep gouges from flinging them up to keep those sharp teeth and claws away from my face. My head hadn’t fared too well, either. That unforgiving ursine had picked my big ass clear off the ground, swung me like I was a baseball bat, and proceeded to bash
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me against a nearby tree trunk. Bitch was batting a thousand, too. I counted like a hundred homeruns, but I might have been mistaken, seeing how my brains felt like they were leaking out my skull. On my honor, I’ll never complain about being fat again. Those extra pounds were the only thing that had stood between me and an early grave, kept me alive long enough for Vance to get to me. Thing is, I was very much afraid coming to my rescue was gonna get the love of my life killed. So no matter what he might say about my continuous disobedience, I couldn’t make myself leave him to fight alone. His heroism deserved at least a witness. Besides, shock -- due no doubt to my massive blood loss, plus the debilitation I was feeling as my adrenaline levels began to wane -- was setting in fast. I was growing weaker by the minute. Vaguely recognizing the symptoms, knowing there was nothing I could do to keep from succumbing to them, I staggered on. My thoughts kept wavering in and out, bringing some things into sharp focus and disregarding others completely, like how far away Vance and the bear seemed as opposed to how little space I’d actually managed to place between myself and danger. A few more struggling steps and my knees buckled. I hit the ground with a jarring thud that made me cry out as my body exploded in pain from what felt like a thousand pulsating spots. Even if I’d wanted to, I couldn’t have moved a step further. Words, more mumbled than spoken, tumbled from my numb lips. “Vance… so sorry I caused such trouble, love…” A heavy cloak of darkness gently enfolded me, blanketing my vision and stealing the last of my strength. Before my eyes closed, I heard the most joyous of sounds -sounds that energized me, snatching me from the jaws of sleep. High and sweet on the still morning air came the wild baying of hunting wolves. Where nothing else could have, that sound roused hope in me, giving me the strength to lift my head and force my eyes open. Through tear-blurred eyes, I spied
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Westyn’s unique markings as he streaked by at the head of a full phalanx of enforcers. For once, I was overjoyed to see the Forrester alpha. Mala reached me ahead of a group of females, skidded to a stop beside me and lowered her muzzle to nudge my wounds. Her tongue came out and began delicately lapping at the worst of them. Two other females sidled over and took up places along my body, dipping their heads to minister to the many lacerations and gouges. Thank God for the cavalry… and the medics! Their tongue cleansing burned like a motherfucker, but I knew they were trying to be helpful. I’d learned their saliva contained a natural antibiotic and analgesic. They bathed their wounds to stave off infection and lessen pain. Gasping, I opened my mouth to thank Mala and acknowledge the others, but before I could get the words out, my body preempted my brain’s feeble control. Everything shut down.
Chapter Five Bear-ly Making It Seven rounds of fried hell, but Ouida really screwed up this time. Even the youngest wolf pup knew better than to tangle with an enraged she-bear, especially on their own. Yet here I was, thanks to my mate’s unthinking actions, dancing with an infuriated mama. I wasn’t looking for a fight. Just wanted to engage the bear’s attention and get it off Ouida, give my mate a chance to get away. I had no desire to kill the mother of the three frantic cubs bawling in the upper branches of the tree above us. For their sakes I would be merciful if I could, but for all my efforts, their mother wasn’t having any. The closer I got to the tree where her cubs were, the louder their cries rose. Of course, that made the bear more desperate. She pressed the attack, slashing at me with her over five-inch-long claws, forcing me to a greater effort to save myself, let alone her. That bear seemed determined to get a piece of me on her way back to finishing off the love of my life. Then again, the closer I got to the tree, the more I picked up traces of Ouida’s blood smeared on the trunk. Smelling her blood, almost tasting the raw and crimson pain she’d endured and still had to be suffering now, the more I hungered to spill the blood of the creature that had dared harm my mate. Incensed, I forgot all about trying not to kill that fucking fur rug and gave over complete control to my wolf. It didn’t give a hot damn about saving that bear. The wolf in me was all for mounting Ursula’s fucking head on the wall of our lodge after eating her steaming heart.
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The bear stood up on her hind legs and roared, the sound fierce and wild and loud enough to vibrate the floor of the woods. But she wasted her breath trying to frighten me off because bears might be fearsome, but they don’t rule this particular forest. I do. Mama was on my turf and we would proceed on my terms. The bear didn’t agree. With another angry roar, she advanced, finished posturing and ready to attack. On her hind feet she had to be close to seven feet, and for all that bulk, she maneuvered with impressive speed. First, she dropped to all fours and rushed me, then reared up to slash at me. She repeated those actions over and over again, and why not? They were working. I sprouted injuries almost immediately. They healed, but not as fast as she dealt them, and experience told me there was no way I could win against this technique in my wolf form, not solo. An eternity later, I danced back for space to catch my breath. The fact that mama bear allowed it was telling. We’d been at this for over five minutes, which is a hell of a long time in terms of true battle, despite how television and the media like to fantasy it up. The body can only take so much adrenaline rush before burning through its reserves. It hurt like hell, forcing the shift like that when my energy was already dangerously depleted, but it was necessary if I wanted to live. And I did. The wolf is a dogged creature, intent on one thing to the exclusion of all else. Basic strategy was all it was capable of, but the thinking part of me knew clinging to this present course would prove disastrous. Taking on my monstrous battle form, hulked up and angry, I took the attack to her. Now upright, I matched the bear for height and maneuverability, though she still had me in mass, weighing hundreds of pounds more than I did. I was beyond caring at this point. Giving and taking a raking slash across the chest, I pivoted and ducked, weaving around the bear that was slower than I on hind feet. Though I pushed her repeatedly, I couldn’t see a hint of weakening in the bear, while I was fast expending the total of my strength. Perhaps I’d been mistaken. Perhaps it was the Goddess’s will that my breath ended on this day. The wolf part of me howled its readiness to go if it could take this
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prey with it. My biped side wanted my mate, yearned to know the innocent faces of my young, see them press against their mam’s pendulous breasts to take suckle as I so often did. Yet both of my natures are creatures of the wild. Both bow to fate, to the voice of the Goddess, so without complaint I resolved to die protecting my mate with no regrets. With all my heart, I threw myself back into the fight, drawing on the last of my reserves. We battled, the bear and I, until we were both swaying on our feet, barely able to stand. I didn’t know about her, but I was done. One swipe away from losing everything, I knew I could not withstand another attack by the slavering behemoth. It was over. Or so I thought. Righteous anger -- born of a fear so fierce it burned through my fatigue like Greek fire -- scoured my soul when I heard the despairing cry of my mate. The mate I’d ordered away to safety. Oh, her plump, juicy ass going to burn. By the Moon, my Ouida might be the death of me some day, but not this day if I could help it! We all -- myself, Ouida and our pups -- were definitely going to make it home. I refused to accept anything else. We had to make it home so I could teach her once and for all what it meant to obey. Because one day I might not be there when she got herself into a crazy situation, and she’d perish. I couldn’t die until I’d gotten through to her, until I’d worked into her stubborn hide and mind the dire consequences of disobedience. That goal uppermost in my mind, I redoubled, quadrupled my efforts. Every time we clashed, I came away with more injuries, but the she-bear did not go unscathed. Blood blossomed along her side, compliments of my claws, just as long as hers in this shape. I hamstrung her back left leg by tearing a chunk of tendon from behind the knee. That led to her rising up on her hind feet and removing her throat from my fangs’ reach. Injuries mounting and blood loss taking its toll, I’m not sure how I hung in there so long. I’m pretty sure my relentless lunges and feinting retreats were fueled by the anticipation of surviving long enough to get my hands on my disobedient mate’s saucy
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behind. Oh, not today. One totally blind couldn’t miss the seriousness of her injuries. Soon, though. Once healed, her ass was mine. So intent was I on killing that bitch bear, I didn’t register the baying of my pack. One moment I battled alone. The next, my pack members burst into the fight alongside me. With the seamless group dynamics we’d formed from years of working together, the pack quickly -- with a vicious efficiency that validated our place at the head of the food chain -- took down the she-bear, snatching the prize of my life’s blood from her. Giving in to exhaustion, I drooped, allowing my massive battle form to dissolve into the wolf. With a dizzy feeling of relief, I returned the licks and nudges of my fellows, glad for their presence. Interrupted by the low moans of the downed bear, I turned my head to see her weakly convulsing, still full of fight, but no longer able to control her body. My gaze was drawn from the bear by Westyn’s lean body. He nosed me, making sure I was okay, then stepped back and tilted his head over at the crippled bear. A short commanding yip and, as one, the pack melted back, according me the rights of kill. I struggled to my feet, stepped over to the downed bear and, after staring down into her eyes, acknowledging her worth, I sank my fangs into her throat, ripping through her jugular with focused ferocity. The hot blood flooding my mouth renewed my strength, and my forepaws dug into her meaty chest, shredding fur and skin, snapping bone to get to the dying heart. Instinct took over. Growling a warning to the others to stay back, I buried my muzzle in the cavity I’d made. Triumphant, I feasted as I again stared down into the glazed eyes of my vanquished foe. I watched the light of life fade while gulping her heart down with gory speed. Finished, I planted my forelegs on the massive chest, lifted my head and howled, the rest of my pack brothers joining in my song of victory. Worn out from the fight, heady with the win and glutted with blood and meat, I was content to watch and guard while my pack mates ate their fill of the joint kill. The lowest among us would use the skin to fashion makeshift satchels and transport the leftovers back to the pack females and pups. My wolf wanted to prance and play now
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that the challenge had been met, but something beyond wolf reasoning kept tugging at my instincts, demanding my attention. Ouida. She’d disobeyed my order to get clear, but why? I’d been angered before, which made it easy to disregard feelings that something wasn’t right. I mentally kicked myself that only now was I pausing to question why she’d failed to do as I commanded. She’d cried out before the pack had arrived. Why? Terrified of what I’d find, I shifted to biped to begin the process of healing. An even quicker shift back to wolf form rendered me back to almost full strength. Heart pounding, gut churning with a sick mix of dread and lingering anger, I left the others to see about the three bawling cubs stranded in the tree and limped over to where my lover had collapsed.
Chapter Six In the Wind Desperate to put more distance between him and the place that had held him prisoner for almost a year, Patrick Smith walked as fast as his bum leg and prosthetic foot would allow. He had little time to lay a false trail and truly disappear, but fear kept him scuttling into dark corners and jumping at shadows, heart pounding at the slightest hint of interest from passersby. Getting caught wasn’t an option, so he kept to the back ways and alleys, keeping off the main streets to evade any who might be searching for him. Thank goodness they no longer forced psych patients to wear hospital pajamas. His T-shirt and jeans should garner no unwarranted attention, even though he couldn’t stop his shoulders twitching as if there were a target painted on his back. As long as he held on to the keys he’d taken from Garrett, he might as well be marked. Smith chuckled in grim amusement, wondering over the absurdity of the mental health staff. How could they imagine the patients weren’t aware there was a homing device embedded in each set of keys? Even if he had been out of his mind for a time, he wasn’t deaf. Luckily for him, most of the staff members were incredibly stupid. They spoke freely, as if because the inmates were out of their minds, they also had no ears. His first order of business had to be sending his pursuers on a goose chase using the keys as a decoy. But for now at least, he was free! Thank God he’d been smart enough not to answer the questions the doctors had shot at him in the beginning. He’d never given them a name, certainly not his real one. When he first came in, he’d screamed on and on about wolves that stood on two legs
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and the bitch rabbit who had betrayed his care and affection. He hadn’t been out of it too much to realize playing crazy was his best course of action. Patrick had known the soft city dwellers questioning him wouldn’t have understood up-country customs. The way he and his brothers secured their wives was common practice in the back hills; an age-old tradition followed by most of the families he’d grown up around. The pansy-assed, politically correct, limp-dicked, city-dwelling motherfuckers would have considered him a criminal, a sexual deviant. They’d have turned him over to the local law to be locked up until everyone forgot he existed. If he had to do time somewhere, he preferred the loony bin, where he’d have a better chance of escaping once he healed. At least, that’s what he’d thought back then. When he’d chosen incarceration in the mental institute he hadn’t taken into consideration all the ramifications. Like the crazy-people drugs they’d medicated him with. Patrick shook his head, thinking about those meds. Bo’s homemade moonshine had a kick strong as a mule, but the high from it was nothing like what he’d experienced under the influence of Thorazine and Haldol. Those two drugs weren’t no joke. If you weren’t crazy before taking them, you soon would be. He had no idea how long he’d vegged out, how long they’d kept him under with the drugs, but he remembered his first lucid moment, and it had been a doozy… He woke disoriented and tugging against restraints, trying to cry out only to find his mouth had been taped shut. Thrashing about, he discovered his left foot was strapped in the restraint at the foot of the bed, his right leg strapped down by thigh restraints since there was no foot at the end of that leg. High on the wall, illuminated by a shaft of bright moonlight, the arms of the large, round clock pointed to twelve o’clock. The tick-tick-tick of the second hand was louder than his breathing. He moaned behind the gag, the sound momentarily preempting the song of the clock in the dark room. A plump hand reached between his legs and grabbed his cock and balls, the grip just this side of painful. The possibility of it becoming extremely more so was a very real threat, especially accompanied with the hissed whisper at his ear.
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“Be quiet and this can be pleasurable. Make a ruckus and I’ll call a code on you. The other staff will come in to assist and we’ll make this a group exercise. I promise you won’t like that. Nod if you understand.” Smith’s struggles subsided. Thoughts racing, he explored the ramifications. Trying to get staffs’ attention would be futile, since the intruder had to be one of them. No matter how it went down, he was fucked, which to his mind wasn’t all bad. If this fat bitch wanted to rotate on his pole he wasn’t saying no, and not because of her threats. The sad fact was he hadn’t had any pussy in a coon’s age, not since before he’d kidnapped Ouida. Right about now, he didn’t much care what the face or body looked like as long as his dick got buried in wet heat. Patrick nodded. “Good boy.” The grip on his balls lightened up, fingers began stroking up and down the barrel of his cock. It wasn’t long before he was standing tall for her. Thick thighs soon pressed against his groin as a hot, tight pussy swallowed him to the root. The wild bitch rode him to heaven and back. His climactic screams escaped his convulsing body to be captured by the medical tape securing his mouth. The events of that night were repeated often, and he came to look forward to waking to hands stroking his hungry cock. One glorious night, his anonymous lover took his cock in her mouth and milked him over and over, never allowing him to come. When she finally inserted him into her pussy, he filled the condom so full it burst inside her. Her screams were music to his ears. He didn’t give a fuck that she tried to beat the flesh off him. She didn’t return for months. Bet the scare of pregnancy slowed her roll, damn whore. Those memories were good, but Patrick’s smile fell away as another memory crowded him. He gave his head a shake; refusing to dwell on the night he’d woken up to someone other than his usual lays. The night he’d looked up to see a man’s avid face staring down on him, a man’s hand fisting his cock… Fifteen minutes into his escape, Patrick got rid of the keys by throwing them into the open window of a passing car. Smith grinned, remembering the loud, frenetic pounding beat and raucous vocals that had screamed out. That driver would never hear
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the keys hitting the cushioned back seat. Long after the car climbed the on-ramp of the westbound freeway to escape the afternoon inner city traffic and disappeared, he could still hear the music. An hour later he was behind a rundown Mom and Pop deli, fighting for his first meal since coming out of restraints. Three mangy alley cats battled him for the remains of a few half eaten sandwiches and no-longer-fresh vegetables and fruits. They were some mighty mean critters, but he was hungrier and bigger and he won, though he came away with an impressive number of bleeding stripes. Slightly rancid mayonnaise, spoiled beef, limp tomato, and wilted lettuce never tasted so good. Gulping a drink of flat soda from a half empty bottle, he mused over how he’d come so low as to be fighting over the right to eat out of a trashcan. Maybe he should have taken the time to plan his escape better, but when the opportunity presented itself, he’d leaped on it. Or at least, he’d leaped on Garrett… Patrick couldn’t help giggling as he thought back on how flummoxed that filthy male whore had looked when he’d hit him with that chair. But his grin faded as he recalled other, less pleasant memories involving Martin Garrett. Fury ate through him like acid, souring his gut where the half rotten sandwich hadn’t. Garrett might have abused him, but if it hadn’t been for that no-account bitch that’d done his family wrong, he never would have met the faggoty psych tech. Miss high and mighty Ouida was the one responsible for all his woes, and she was overdue for some payback, mountain style. “It’s all your fault, bitch.” He stopped chewing long enough to hiss at the cats inching back to the trash bin. “My brothers’ deaths, my lost foot and fucked up leg… me being locked up almost a year in the nut house being treated like an animal… your fault, Miss Ouida Jackson. You’re gonna pay big time for the shit you’ve put me through. When I finish with you and your abomination, you’re gonna wish you’d never been born. You had a chance to be my bride, part of my family. Now I’ll get what’s left of my family to help me hunt you down like the whore you are.”
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Wiping spittle from his lips, Smith pushed away from the Dumpster and brushed himself off. Daylight was waning, and he needed a car and some money. His brothers hadn’t raised him to be no thief, but circumstances were against him. Bo had always said he was a charmer. All he had to do was find a female. They were always softhearted, and most were stupid enough to let a cripple near them. Pat knew he could talk a woman out of her panties faster than God created Sunday. He bet he could talk one into loaning him her car, but if not…
Chapter Seven Survival Celebration For once, we had the mineral spring all to ourselves. I wasted no time throwing off my furs and flinging myself into the steamy, bubbling pool. I luxuriated in the welcome heat as it seeped into my cold-numbed flesh. God, I’ve always hated the cold. It says something about my luck that the Forrester pack grounds happen to sprawl across the portion of North Carolina that remains snowbound longer than the rest of the state. Since the bear attack, Vance had treated me like spun glass. He’d been attentive, but made no attempt to touch me sexually. It was driving me crazy. I admit I was still black and blue, but feeling much better. Surprisingly better, since I should have been dead. Everyone is still speculating over how I survived, and why I healed so fast. I don’t know the answers. All I know is I felt well enough to handle my wolf’s rough style of loving, but despite my protests, Vance refused to cooperate. If I had balls, they’d be the same hue as the Blue Ridge Mountains. But today, out of nowhere, he up and decided I needed the benefits of the healing minerals abundant in the waters of the pool. Bundling me up, he carried me to the largest enclosed natural hot tub. So here I was, ensconced in heat and privacy, hoping those two elements would lead to a leisurely seduction. “Why aren’t you getting in here with me?” “You need to soak. If I get in with you, the only thing soaking will be my cock in your hot juices.” “And what’s wrong with that?”
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Vance shook his head. “This treatment should heal the last of your bruises. Only then will I believe you fit enough for mating.” The promise of future fucking perked up my spirits. I sat up straighter, lips curving in a hopeful smile. “So when my bruises are gone do you intend to take advantage of this unusual privacy… and me?” I didn’t wait for his answer. “Please say yes!” Leaning against the rough, rock wall, one leg bent backward in a nonchalant stance, Vance brushed his hair off his brow and winked a pale blue eye at me. “I am sure something will come up.” The droll laughter in his voice had me snickering along. “I can hardly wait.”
*** An hour later, I was still drowsing alone in the pool, muscles so lax from the hot, soothing waters I couldn’t lift my arms. Without opening my eyes, I whined, “I’ve been in here so long I’m limp as a soggy noodle. How much longer do I have to stay in here by myself? Vance?” The sound of his bare feet slapping against stone impinged on my lax consciousness. I lifted my head and glanced up, my eyes widening as I watched my mate moving toward me. As always, the breath stalled in my chest as I took in his feral male splendor. My stomach muscles clenched as lust hit me with the impact of a balled fist in my gut. For the umpteenth time, I found myself sending up prayers of thanks that this masculine hunk belonged to me. His physique was magnificent -- shoulders wide as the hills, chest broad as the midland plains, legs stretching into forever with muscles on muscles roping under taut skin pale as a northern sunrise. I wiped my hand across my mouth, my fingers shaking. God, the man had me drooling from both sets of lips. He was everything and more than I could ever want. More importantly, his good looks were just the cherry at the top of a banana split. My Vance was as beautiful on the inside as he was out. Somehow, he managed to
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be both a predatory animal and the most humane person I’d ever known, all at the same time. He leaned down and grasped my right arm. Lifting it, he examined it without saying a word. Letting that one drop, he picked up my other arm and treated it to the same closemouthed examination. My chest, upper back and torso were next, and then he helped me stand so he could check my lower back and legs. I waited with bated breath for his decision as he gently lowered me back down onto the submerged ledge. “Not a bruise in sight, dearling.” “Yay!” I wriggled in excitement. “Does this mean I get fucked?” “Calm down, Ouida. We have all the time in the world.” “It feels like a world of time since we last made love, and I’m starving for you, Vance.” I hated the whine in my voice, but I was desperate. I’d never been this long without sex. “I want this first meal to be a feast, not a rushed buffet.” “Hah! There’s something to be said for All You Can Eat, dude. I’d rather load my own plate than wait on someone to serve me.” A pained hiss of breath cut across my complaining. I looked to see Vance easing into the hot water. He paused, taking it slowly, allowing his body to become accustomed to the heated depths. Once settled, Vance scooted over until his thigh pressed hard against mine. Only then did he relax, his chest rising on a gusty sigh. All that luscious skin on display, up close and personal, compelled me. I couldn’t help but give voice to my admiration. “Man, you are so damned beautiful.” Lifting a hand to stroke his jaw I crooned, “And I’m damned blessed to have you in my life.” Vance turned his head and smiled at me, his white teeth gleaming in the semidark. Suddenly it dawned on me… I wasn’t the only one having to adapt in this relationship. Vance smiled at me. He did it all the time. In the wild, wolves show their teeth in warning, never humor, so at some point Vance had to have made a conscious effort to alter his behaviors to make me more comfortable.
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I knew he loved me, was protective of me. I’d just never stopped to consider how much thought he had to put into it. His care humbled me. “I wish I was even half as beautiful as you, both inside and out.” He answered my gruff words with a gently chiding chuckle. “I am wolf, functional, not beautiful. The true beauty is you, my Ouida. You are my mate, my other. Your courageous spirit and the miracle of new life you nurture within is every dream I have ever held in my heart. Every day I greet the morning with a glad heart and every evening I bay my thanks to Goddess Moon for you.” My heart melted at his words. And here I’d thought it impossible to love him more. Lovely wolf, he meant every word, too. Leaning over to give his wide lips a soft peck, I whispered, “I’m glad your delusion is so deep-set, honey. You just keep thinking that way, but I know who’s gotten the better deal here.” I nuzzled noses with him, then pulled back and patted his nearest cheek. I can never keep my hands to myself when Vance is naked around me, so my pat morphed into a teasing caress. I ran my hands over the fine hairs dusting his chest, tugging gently on the curls that twined about my fingers. “I am more than happy with the deal we have.” His lips brushed my forehead, careful of the still tender spot where my head had hit the tree. He pressed his hands over mine on his chest. “Please, continue what you are doing. It feels good.” “I’ll make it feel better than good,” I promised, tweaking his flat, button nipples. They stiffened under my ministrations, rising amid the swirl of winter-pale white hair on his chest. Vance squirmed under my ministrations, his mouth falling open as he dragged air into his laboring lungs. He loved when I played with his nipples, having never gotten used to how sensitive they were in this form. A tortured groan rumbled from within his chest. “Ouida… Ouida, my cock rises for you. I hurt with wanting you.” “Well, it’s your own damn fault for denying us both for so long. Bet you’ll think twice before doing that again, huh?” I chuckled, letting my fingers drift down his chest
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to his belly, where I swirled my finger in his tight bellybutton. My tongue followed the trail of my hand. Vance frowned a bit. “You were injured so direly. The Goddess alone knows why you didn’t die, why you healed so quickly; however, do not seek to fool me. You are still suffering. I’ve seen how sudden movement makes you wince, how you hold yourself when you think I am not watching.” I sat up, drawing a pissed breath. “But I didn’t die and I’m tired of you acting like I did. I’m more likely to die from sex withdrawal.” His lips quirked -- he was trying to hold back his laughter, damned sarcastic wolf. “Laugh while you can, monkey-boy,” I deadpanned from one of my favorite movies. He only grinned harder. “You are the monkey descendant, not me.” Okay, I had to give him that one. “You think that’s funny? How about this?” Grabbing a handful of chest hair, I tugged sharply, almost yanking it out. Vance yelped and jerked away from me. “Ouida! That was not nice.” “Yeah, well, watch it with the ape jokes, dude.” I sobered, leaning over him and taking his face in my hands. I gazed into his eyes, trying to connect, to show him how serious I was about what I was about to say. “I’m human, Vance. Humans heal slower, but we do heal. I was pretty banged up, so I can see why you held off the first week or so. But I’ve been much better for quite some time, and you’ve kept me restricted to the five-finger fiddle this whole time. Vanessa ain’t too happy about that, I promise you. Despite the occasional grimace when I move too fast, I’m well capable of fucking your brains out.” Vance’s answer was a skeptical harrumph and a raised eyebrow -- exemplifying the wise male stoically enduring the nagging of the little woman. I hated when he did that. Under my breath, knowing he could hear, I mumbled, “I bet Xen wouldn’t have made me wait this long.”
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The darned dog laughed so hard he lost his seating and slipped under the water. He came up sputtering, still laughing. “The only thing Xen wouldn’t have made you wait for is the beating you’re still owed. As for you being so contentious right now, he’d have already found an unbruised spot and applied a second set of red hot stripes to match the ones due for going out alone after being warned.” Darn it, I hadn’t meant to remind him of that. In an attempt to take his mind off my well-deserved punishment, I stood up, slung a meaty thigh over his and came down on his lap, facing him. “I did say I was sorry, Vance.” I laid my head on his shoulder, curled my arms behind his head, and played with the loose hair at his nape. The silky locks ran through my fingers like spun sugar. I love Vance’s hair. His arms came up and hugged me closer, mashing my pendulous breasts against his hard chest. “Sorry wouldn’t have saved your life if I hadn’t headed home early and heard you scream, then broken the sound barrier getting to you.” I swallowed thickly, remembered fear clogging my throat. My voice was very small when I acknowledged his accusation. “I know.” Running his hands up and down my back, he massaged my skin, his soft caresses in jarring counterpoint to his harsh tones. “Sorry would not have saved the life of our pups, or stopped me from grieving every day for the rest of my life, which would only have lasted until any children we had were mature enough to survive on their own. But wait…” he growled. “They would have died with you, so there’d have been nothing to hold me here.” Startled, I pulled away, using stiff arms to keep him from tugging me back. “Hey! What do you mean by that?” Vance’s crystalline blue gaze bore into mine, the naked pain it held almost tangible before he dropped his lids, sheltering me from stark emotion. In contrast to his protectiveness, his voice was harder than I’d ever heard when he continued. “I would not live without you in my world. I would go mad and become rogue. Better to will myself to die and follow after you.”
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Fear and rage tussled in my chest, stealing my air and making my head spin. I was so angry, furious at his fatalistic words. “Vance! Life is too precious to throw it away. Baby, I’m not going to live as long as you. I’m human and more fragile. It just stands to reason I’ll die first, and I’m okay with that as long as when I go I know you’ll survive. Promise me you won’t even think about suicide when I die. Promise!” “Not until you promise me you will stop the irresponsible behaviors that culminated in you almost throwing your own life away, along with the lives of our pups.” His quiet demand cut me to the heart. Shame inundated me, bowed my neck. His simply spoken truth ripped my self-righteousness away, exposing my guilt. I closed my eyes, unable to bear the censure in his usually loving gaze. His disappointment in me had the power to destroy me. My hands went to my belly, cradling the precious load beneath my palms. “You’re right. I was careless with our babies. That knowledge has flayed me alive ever since that day. How can you stand me when I can’t stand myself?” I only noticed I was crying when he reached up and wiped away my tears. It didn’t do any good. They were quickly replaced with a fresh supply. Shaking his head, Vance cradled me against him, one big hand smoothing down my back in a calming caress. “Ouida, Ouida, please do not despair. You still seem to have no idea just how precious you are to me. How vital a part of my soul you’ve become. I do not condemn you. I thought perhaps if you knew you truly hold my life in your hands, you would not be so quick to endanger your own.” I heard what he was saying… and what he wasn’t. And it finally -- after almost a year of hearing it only to discount it -- finally sank into my thick skull. Vance really and truly loved me. A sense of peace flooded me. Somewhere deep in my heart, where I’d never known I’d locked it up, surrender came welling out. For all my talk of love and caring before, I knew now that I could place my heart in Vance’s capable hands. He would always have my back, always be there in my corner. He was never going to desert me
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or throw me away. I no longer had to hide from his gaze or worry about my hair being tangled or any of the petty shit we women angst over with men. My man saw beneath the surface. My wolf saw me. I started to sob, and there was nothing pretty or dainty about it. Slumped bonelessly against the rock-hard abs of my other half, I cried until my eyes were swollen, my nose clogged and my face blotchy with tears. The catharsis of tears is underrated. Finally, Vance wrapped his hands around my forearms and lifted me away from his chest so he could look down at my face. “You will stop making the sad moaning sounds and making water with your eyes,” he ordered. One firm hand under my chin raised my face, held me captive when I tried to hide by ducking my head back into the comforting bend of warm flesh where his neck met his shoulders. “You know I do not like these pain sounds when they have no basis in pleasure.” I sniffled, nodding my head and brushing the tears from my face. “Yes, sir.” “Enough sadness now,” he decreed, giving me a rough hug and quick brush of lips. “We all survived, and the pack has eaten well off the she-bear’s plentiful meat. We will leave this behind us now.” And just like that, he was finished with it. I knew Vance would never allude to my stupidity again. Not even to prove his point in future arguments. I didn’t have to beat myself up about it anymore. Hadn’t even realized I’d been doing so. “I love you, Vance. I love you so terribly, terribly much that I can’t find the words to cover the scope of my feelings.” Utterly at peace, I leaned forward and pulled Vance’s face down to mine, stared into his beautiful eyes a long moment before I placed my mouth over his. The kiss started sweet and slow -- a greeting of tongues and sighs -- and built into a raging torrent of love and desire. We tangled together, teeth and bodies intertwined in a dance of lusty need. I came up on my knees, resting my lower body against Vance, trapping his springy cock between us. “Let me fuck you. I want to take you slow and gently, fuck
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you until you know that with every stroke, every touch, I’m telling you how much you mean to me.” “Then ride me.” Vance tightened his arms, seeking to pull me into a close embrace. My stiff-armed resistance stopped that. “I want to start by sucking your cock.” A breathy groan echoed in the dark chamber, the water amplifying the sound. The entire room resonated with Vance’s anticipation. He held himself stiff as I slid off his lap, my fingers fisted around the thick barrel of his cock. My mouth roamed his belly, taking turns lapping and nipping his taut flesh. His indented bellybutton retreated beneath the advance of my tongue and teeth, the small cave collapsing as his stomach muscles clenched. I almost giggled at the thought of this wolf being so timid around me. I’d seen him deal death and destruction as casually as another male might mow the lawn, yet here he was, fidgeting under my touch. I loved it. Going to my haunches, I wedged my body between Vance’s widespread thighs. Cupping his balls, I applied gentle pressure and rolled the heavy, hirsute sac, the water flowing in counterpoint to my movement so they rocked gently in my hand. I commenced a rhythmic pumping that quickly had his hips rising and falling in tandem. Where we sat, the water was almost waist high. The head of Vance’s cock stood above the water. Damn, my wolf was hung. I licked my lips, dying to get a taste of him. Vance opened his legs wider, an unspoken plea for me to continue. Smiling up at him, I held his gaze as I lowered my head over his blunt glans and opened my mouth. When I closed my lips over his silky-skinned, steel-cored cock, his entire body shuddered. Eyes glowing with the light of incipient change, he stared down at me, fangs exposed, face twisted in pleasure. “Ouida.” I would have answered him, but my mother taught me never to talk with my mouth full. Groaning with rising lust, I tightened my lips around the stiff bar of flesh, fisting the thick base to keep Vance’s excess from choking me. I relaxed my throat and
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swallowed as Vance pushed in, letting my teeth score the ridged pole as he pulled out, eliciting muttered groans and a smothered cry from my panting mate. Vance’s hands rose, cradled the sides of my face in his palms. His fingers tangled in my kinky curls and pulled, trying to take over our dance. I bit down, planting my teeth around his vulnerable tip just hard enough to give him pause. The message was clear. There’d be no deviating from my plans. Giving way, he pulled in a deep breath and allowed his hands to fall away, bunching them into fists at his sides. “Moon and Tides, Ouida, you’re killing me!” Good. It had been so long since I’d had his cock in my mouth. I wasn’t the only one who’d been abstinent too long. If Vance wasn’t fucking me, he wasn’t fucking anyone and since his werewolf libido was greater than mine, I knew he had to be hurting. I was determined to ease his pain with the best orgasm of his life, and I wasn’t anywhere near finished enjoying my sexual treat. I wanted to savor this time, show my mate how much I loved pleasuring him, servicing his needs. “Mother Moon!” Vance’s helpless howls lightened my heart. Keeping one hand firmly around the base of his cock, I gripped a butt cheek with the other, holding him close as I deepthroated his rigid erection. Humming a happy tune to vibrate his flesh, I fluttered my tongue in the tiny eye at the tip of his cock. Vance was about to go bat shit. It only needed one finger tickling the tight elastic orifice between his firm cheeks to set off the climax of a lifetime… “No!” The howl of complaint left my lips as Vance forced my mouth off his cock. Hooking his hands under my arms, he effortlessly lifted me from the water. I pounded his shoulders, kicking my feet, angry and hungry and pissed the hell off that he would stop me just when I was about to gift him with the mother lode of all explosions. “You can’t stop me now, Vance. Damn it, I want you coming in my mouth, down my throat. This is cruel and unusual punishment!” Ignoring my blows, Vance continued moving until he found a higher ledge where the water was barely thigh high, if that. Plopping down, he lowered me to the
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ground before him. “I wouldn’t dream of withholding my seed from you, my heart, but I had to get us to higher ground.” Laughter running under his calm words, he added, “The last time I got your hair wet you chopped it off.” Settling on my knees and taking his cock back in hand, I harrumphed under my breath, still disgruntled over his interruption. “Mess with me and I’ll chop off something else.” “Now, now, we both know you’re too sensible to chop off my cock -- I mean, your nose -- to spite your face.” Vance lowered one hand to where my fingers gripped his sex. Covering my fingers with his, he choreographed the next movement in our dance, showing me how to ramp his need and desire back up to fever pitch. “Now show me how much you love me.” I tried to swallow him whole. He tasted so good, and after his recent stunt, I had no intention of giving him time to try another interruption. My lips clung to him as I moved up and down his length, drawing strongly. I could feel Vance gazing down at me. I glanced up and thrilled to see the soft and patient look in his eyes. His full lips curved at the corners in an indulgent smile. Big, powerful hands cupped the back of my head, guiding my movements as I bobbed up and down the length of his cock. Crooning, he told me how much he loved me, how much he loved me to take him like this. He didn’t howl or grip me harder or force me all the way down his length when he came, simply pulled back enough for his knot to form without the fear of choking me. He spilled his seed in my mouth, our gazes clinging, speaking louder than words could have. I had to say it, anyway. Pulling back so I could use my tongue to clean the last of his come from the tip of his cock, I ran a thumb over and over the crown, sliding in the slickness still coating his skin. “I love you, Vance. So terribly much.” Rising up, I straddled him. My left hand gripped his still erect cock and fed it into my vagina as I eased down onto his lap. It was a slow process. My wolf man is large, and for some reason, my pussy seems to shrink back to its virginal size no matter
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how often he takes me. I have no problem accepting him even in his larger battle form, but I can’t deny it’s a tight fit. Once he filled me, I began rocking slowly, wanting this to be a long, peaceful ride. Van’s hands settled on my waist before sliding down to grab a double handful of my ass. His fingers dug into my skin, the ends tipped in claws. I smiled to myself and quickened my pace. There was no need to glance up at his eyes. I knew they’d be shifted, shining down at me beneath half lowered lids. That he’d shifted enough to have claws told me all I needed to know. I was getting to him. A satisfied grin curved my lips as, despite the sharp tips digging into my sides, I kept the pace slow and languid. A throaty growl vibrated my chest as Vance lowered his head to take my mouth in an aggressive kiss, edged with a lining of shivery pain. His fangs scored my lips as he forced me to open wider. Keeping control of our kiss, he delighted me, owning my mouth, tangling his tongue with mine and alternately licking the roof of my mouth and nipping my tongue. I melted under the assault, so caught up in his kiss I forgot to move. Vance’s hands slid down to my butt and tightened. I thrilled to his display of otherworldly power when he easily lifted and lowered me on his cock, all the while continuing his attack of my mouth. My feminine muscles gripped his cock, rippling along the thick girth that had my pussy stretched wide. Heat coursed up and down my spine. My mouth dried up even as my cunt juiced. “I’m coming, Vance!” He didn’t reply, simply lowered his head and latched onto a bouncing nipple, pulling on the tip until it swelled tight and stood up. He did the same to the other one, sucking so hard I thought he’d swallow me whole. With another cry, I fought him for control, ignoring the grip that tried to lift me up. I ground down on his cock, rotating to feel his pelvic bone press against my clit. He caught on to what I was doing and helped, growling as he pulled me down while lifting his hips until every last inch of his cock entered me. I was so full of cock, so very full of love that when I came, I swear my pussy imploded. My juices spilled, coating his cock, dripping down the barrel to soak both our pubic hair.
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I bucked, not trying to throw him off, just helpless to keep still under the turbulent, electrifying pulses of hot energy coursing through me. “Oh, gawds, Vance… I love you! Fuck me hard, baby. Fuck the hell outta me!” Fangs flashing, Vance held me down, kept me in place as he began grinding in and out of my pussy, hitting that special spot that had rockets shooting off inside of me. “I like the hell in you, mate. But I’ll fuck you until the only thing you think of is this… me in you, with you, loving you.” “Can’t,” I gasped, arms draped around his neck, fingers fisting his hair, holding on for dear life as he began pounding me with supernatural speed. The friction in my pussy was so hot and rich my nerves sizzled with lust. “You’re already all I think about.” Vance didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. Instead, he bent his head and tongued the scar in the bend of my neck and shoulder that was his mating mark. Fireworks went off inside, and I came again, my triumphant howls almost as animalistic as his. This time, my climax brought Vance’s. Every time my cunt fluttered, gripping his flesh in a stranglehold, he howled and pushed his hips hard against mine, grinding and mashing the bundle of nerves in the forefront of my pussy. The stimulation to my clit drove me wild. Fire licked along the nerves buried in the walls of my sex and I screamed, rocking my hips forward, trying to climb up his cock until I’d engulfed him completely. The pleasure was so deep, so encompassing, the sensations flowing through me so thick and rich, like sweet, dark molasses, I felt myself drifting in the aftermath. Vance’s arms hugging me, his cock still pulsing inside of me were all I needed to feel safe. Loved. I smiled. “Have I convinced you of my love? Or do I have to do this again?” My chest rose with the deep movement of Vance’s sigh. In a drowsy voice he murmured, “I’m not quite certain I grasped the full details. Perhaps you might give me another demonstration… as soon as I’m alert enough to comprehend it.” I turned my head enough to kiss his furry chest. “You got it.”
Chapter Eight Contraband “Ouida.” There was a strange note in Vance’s usually calm voice. Silly me, I discounted it, still mellowed out from our strenuous bout at the hot springs three days before. Everything was right with my world, and just the sound of his voice made me happy. A wide smile stretched my lips when I looked up from stirring the pot of mixed greens I had simmering on the stove. “Yes, hon?” His face still, eyes watchful, Vance stood in the doorway, staring at me. Not saying a word, he brought his left hand from behind his back and held up a sleek, black cell phone. “Explain this.” My heart stalled as my smile slid sideways. I stared at the bit of contraband technology, knowing my initial reaction screamed guilt. Eyes narrowed as I gazed on it, my lips firmed as I contemplated how he’d found it since I’d hidden it in what I’d thought was a secure place. Had he been snooping in my personal things? A spurt of anger flared up, but quickly died out. Vance wasn’t the type to snoop. But he was a wolf. He’d probably caught a whiff of a familiar sent and decided to investigate it. I couldn’t fault him for that. My thoughts were scattered. I didn’t have a clue how to answer Vance. I had no answers. None he wanted to hear, anyway. I swung back around to face the stove, opening the oven door to check on my cornbread. It was rising nicely and I eased the door shut. Still facing away from him I gathered the courage to ask, “What do you want me to say, Vance?” while I stirred the greens again.
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He came up close behind me, reached around and waggled the phone in my face. “Start by telling me why I smell Xen all over this. Please tell me he has not been here, on pack grounds, after he’s been banned.” “He hasn’t been here, but you smell him because the phone belongs to him.” I sighed. My shoulders slumped when the harsh intake of breath sounded behind me, followed by a menacing growl. The hairs at the nape of my neck stood up in alarm. Vance sounded pissed. I turned the flame off under my pot and, using a folded towel, set it on one of the back burners. I had no potholders, and the lack of proper kitchen utensils was just one more item sticking in my craw. Using the same folded towel, I took the pan of cornbread out. It was a little light, but done enough that it would finish cooking outside the oven from internal heat. Finished, I turned to face my mate, mentally girded for the coming conflict. On one hand, I was glad that he had found the phone. I was tired of hiding things from my mate. I sighed again and walked over to take his hand. “Come on, babe. I’ll try to explain everything.” Connected by our entwined fingers, Vance trailed behind me, the closed expression I’d spied on his face making my heart ache, making me weary before we even began. I sat on the couch and patted the cushion beside me, wordlessly inviting him to sit. He pulled his hand away and went to perch stiffly on the farthest edge of the couch. His body language screamed his displeasure. I didn’t like his attitude at all. Deciding to be patient, I sighed again and began my explanation, sure he wasn’t going to like it. “I’ve had the phone for two months. A couple days after the bear attack, Brax and Usher showed up while you were out training the new enforcers. They’d come to make sure I was okay so they could report back to Xen. I talked with Xen that first day, but told him I was going to honor the pack’s rule not to use the phone. He insisted I keep it to use in an emergency or when I went into labor, whichever came first. I promised to do so because his request sounded
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reasonable to me. He cares about us and is concerned for my health and simply wants to keep in touch.” Vance’s mouth tightened. I thought he was going to comment on why Xen needed to know when I was close to giving birth, but he ignored that to focus on the other issue. “Ouida, you know that use of this kind of technology has been banned to us. Westyn has decreed…” “I don’t give a shit what Westyn has decreed.” The truculent note in my voice surprised me. I hadn’t known I was that angry over the situation. “Language!” The snapped order brought my chin up. We weren’t playing sexual games right now, and he didn’t get to dismiss my concerns because I hadn’t worded them correctly. “Pardon the hell outta my French. I should have said, ‘Westyn can take a flying fuck at the Moon!’ Is that better?” Vance surged to his feet, putting space between us before swiveling to face me, his hands raking through his hair before bunching at his sides in agitation. “Whatever you think about him, Westyn is my alpha, Ouida, and you will respect him. Have you learned nothing during your time with us?” I leaped to my feet, too, nodding my head vigorously, more than ready for this confrontation. “I’ve learned a lot, actually. I’ve learned that being magically supernatural beings doesn’t render you guys infallible. You still have the same strengths and weaknesses inherent to all creatures that live, love and labor here on Earth. Only Westyn seems to have cultivated all the weaknesses and not many of the strengths.” Sucking in a deep breath, I continued, “Dammit, Vance, I’m human, and even I can smell that he is not the real alpha in this group. He’s strangling your pack with stupid, cowardly restrictions. You’ve told me yourself that you guys need new blood to stop the mounting numbers of infant defects. This group is seriously close to terminal inbreeding and should be searching out technology, not running from it. Vance, why can’t you see that being isolated as you are is what’s slowly killing off your pack?”
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I broke off, seeing from his closed, angry expression that Vance’s mind was locked in stubbornness. He so didn’t want to hear what I was saying, probably because he’d entertained the same thoughts long before I put them into words. And maybe he was afraid I was right. Maybe he regretted not acting on his doubts before now. “Are you finished?” God, his voice was so cold I caught chill bumps. Still, I wasn’t prepared to back down. Not any longer. I’d made a commitment to stay and this was my pack now, my family. I had the right to voice my complaints and concerns and be granted a fair hearing. “No.” His lips thinned until they almost disappeared, forming a straight line with not a hint of softness to them… Kinda like his new shitty attitude. “Then by all means, continue.” “Look, I’m not saying our pack should shout to the world that you’re werewolves, but the members should be out mingling with the rest of the world, garnering the knowledge that could help solve the problems facing us. The advances we humans have made in genetics might help us find the answers to the dwindling number of live female births and early infant mortality of the males. Or maybe there are others of your kind out there just waiting to be found. Their blood added to the pack’s gene pool could turn everything around. Instead, the majority of pack members are confined to this small, medieval world of Westyn’s. Can’t you see he’s still mired in the tenth century?” Again that stony expression. Running my hands through my almost shoulder-length curls, I sighed in exasperation. There had to be a way to get through to my obstinate mate. “Vance, I’ve seen how the other wolves, the sentinels, run things past you before going to Westyn. If you ask them, they’d agree with me. You’d make a far better alpha. Instead, you’re leading from the rear. That’s not fair to anyone. You should bump Westyn out of the top posit --”
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“It is not your place to pass judgment.” Vance’s harsh interruption was spoken through gritted teeth. “Nor is it your right to determine who should be the alpha of the Forrester pack. As my mate --” It was my turn to cut in. “As your mate it is my right to complain when somebody else’s asinine strictures limit my choices. And you know what, Vance? I’m complaining. I don’t think it’s fair that Westyn gets to dictate how I live my life. I miss Xen and the boys, and I’m not even allowed to stay in contact with them? Nobody asked me what I wanted. Westyn decreed, and that was it.” A deep sigh lifted Vance’s broad chest. “Ouida, I miss them too, all right?” A frustrated expression on his face, he squeezed his eyes shut and pinched his nose between thumb and forefinger. Dropping his hand and opening his eyes, he pinned me with a fulminating glare. “You have no idea what you are talking about, no inkling of how this pack is organized.” His voice changed to the lowest register of bass, rumbling in my chest as well as his own. “You have no idea what I went through to put him in the position in the first place!” Now that really pissed me off. I stepped up to Vance, going toe-to-toe, matching him glare for glare. “Then you’d better bring me up to speed, because if I’m to be here for the long term, I’m no longer willing to remain silent about how I feel… about anything!” His eyes chilled. Their pale, arctic blue leeched out to a wintery gray. “What the fuck does that mean? When have you ever remained silent? When have I ever asked that of you?” My fist bounced off his chest. “I was against Xen leaving in the first place. I want to stay in contact with him and the boys. And you know what? I’m going to.” I reached out and snatched the phone from Vance’s hand, tucking it in my apron pocket. Our agreement was for me to be naked when we were alone in our cabin, but Vance allowed me the apron because I refused to cook naked. Burns are ugly things, and painful. “Give that back to me. I have to get rid of it before anyone else discovers you have it and reports back to Westyn.”
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I headed back to the kitchen, being sure to add a little flounce to my jounce. “Not just no on that, babe -- hell, no.” I didn’t make it to the stove. Vance’s large hands engulfed my wrist. His shoulder was suddenly under my belly as he twirled me around and hefted me up in a fireman’s hold. With a startled shriek, I pummeled his back, demanding he respect my pregnant state and put me down. A stinging slap on my ass was his only answer. I saw red. Fuming at his high-handed attitude, I bit him, sinking my teeth into the meat of his muscled shoulder until the coppery taste of his blood flooded my mouth. His rumbling growl of approval vibrated in my chest all the way down to my groin. “You know my wolf loves it when you bite, lover.” Glancing down, I saw his wolf was very happy, indeed. I fidgeted on his shoulder, my pussy flooding with sudden need, which only made me angrier. I didn’t want to want him right now. I wanted to bash him a good one, and it was so frustrating knowing I couldn’t really injure him no matter how hard I tried. It only took a couple steps to reach the bedroom and our bed. “I’m angry with you, and I’m not having sex with you, so you might as well put me down.” Vance complied, tossing me to the mattress and coming down over me. His heavy body pressed me into the bedding. “I’m mad at you, too, but that’s not going to stop me from fucking you.” His hands were everywhere, impatiently shredding my apron so he could bare me to his lustful view. His eyes glowed, his teeth lengthened. Fur sprouted along his shoulders. Between my legs, his body grew thicker, bulkier. His penis was a hard bar pressing into my belly, hot and long, its weighty presence a brand against my flesh. My kegels clapped wetly in anticipation, which only made me more furious. How dare my body ignore my commands to remain unaffected by his blandishments? “I’ve told you what to expect whenever you swing your hips at me. I warned you I’d see it as a blatant invitation to dominate you.” Between every other word, Vance dropped stinging kisses -- teething nips soothed with a swipe of wet tongue -- all along
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my chin and throat, evading my mouth. He knew better than to stick his tongue in my mouth when I was so angry. I’d have bitten it off. “I couldn’t care less about your warnings. I’ll do as I please.” Still fuming, I thumped him again, dragging my nails down his back, hoping I was leaving bloody welts. Wrapping my legs about his hips and tugging him closer to me, I snarled, “Get the fuck off me.” Ignoring my irate command, or perhaps obeying the implied ones my body was issuing, Vance flung his head back and howled with greed before bending his head to engulf one of my rebellious nipples in his hot mouth. And why shouldn’t he? The damned thing was practically straining toward him, stiff and eager for his teeth and tongue. Vance supplied both in more than generous measure, licking and suckling like a puling babe, so intent on my dark nub he slipped deeper into his wolf. Now I was holding onto broad, shaggy shoulders that blocked out the light while my thighs strained with the bulk of the large body resting between them. A bushy tail protruded from the base of his elongated spine, the brush of the longer hairs tickling my lower legs. We battled for supremacy, resolved to drag the ecstasy from the other by sheer dent of determination. I don’t know who was more ferocious, the wolf or me, but in the end I was outclassed. He had fangs and claws and when he used them -- bit down on my engorged nipple while compressing the other impudent tip between a hard forefinger and thumb claw -- he won. When Vance goes primal, he drives me wild, makes me desperate. He owns me. We both knew the groans and moans escaping my mouth had nothing to do with anger and everything to do with the pleasure rippling through my body in dizzying waves of heat. Against my will, my hips rocked, trying to connect with the taunting cock spilling pre-cum down the extended curve of my stomach to pool in the kinky curls at my groin. Panting through open lips gone dry from all my body’s moisture having gone
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south, I grabbed fists full of his fur, his hair having shifted into the coarse pelt of his wolf. Tugging, I demanded his attention lower. “Fucking tease!” With a last lick and nibble, Vance released my nipple with a wet pop. He stared down into my eyes for a long while, his wolf gazing at me through pupils glowing golden with the magic of his change. Never blinking, he reached down and circled my ankles in a loose but unbreakable grasp, lifting my legs, pulling them up and out to expose my dripping pussy to his knowing gaze. His lips twisted up in a satisfied smirk. Fangs exposed in a wide parody of a smile, he propped one leg on his shoulder so he could sink his fingers into my cunt, testing my readiness. If the visual hadn’t been enough, the liquid squelching was telling. Vance pulled his dripping fingers back out and brought them to his mouth, licking them clean. “Yumm!” He smacked his lips and I smacked mine in unison. Watching Vance lick my cum off his fingers always made my pussy convulse. “I told you to get off!” “That’s what I’m doing, my Ouida,” Vance drawled. “Getting off. And you, dearling, are a bit too wet to be unwilling, so I shall be getting you off, too.” “Oooooh, you snide motherfucker,” I snarled, letting go of his hair with one hand so I could slap him upside the noggin. “I am so going to get even with your ass!” The smirk became a full wolfish grin. “Not before I fuck yours.” With inhuman strength, he flipped me over and positioned my body so my belly rested on what I’d nicknamed our fuck pillow. My weight didn’t have time to settle before he snatched up my hips and wedged between my legs, his body spreading me obscenely wide. The blunt knob of his cock rested at the mouth of my sex, the tip wet with pre-cum. “You’d better not put that damned thing in my cunt, you filthy beast!” I reached back and ran my curled fingers along his thighs, my puny human claws not doing enough damage. “I told you earlier to watch your language, young lady.” A lightning bolt streak of pain accompanied the thunderclap that was his hand landing on my rump. “Fucking A-hole! You do that again I’m gonna bite something off!”
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“You’ve already bitten off more than you can chew.” He brought the lightning again, raining blows on my quivering ass cheeks. I swear the dance my bottom did was totally involuntary as the electrical storm raged throughout my body. My pussy gushed, spilling the dew of my excitement onto my thighs and perfuming the air so that even my human nose could smell it. It came as no surprise when Vance growled, burying his muzzle in the bend of my shoulder, nosing his mark. He bit down, setting his fangs in my flesh as he shoved his erection into my pussy, filling me to bursting. He started right off fucking me hard, his heavy balls thudding against me each time his groin slapped against the round cheeks of my ass. My warbling cries for mercy shattered the stillness as my body shuttered and bucked beneath his brutal thrusts. I clawed at the bed sheets, twisted them into balls of convoluted linen, seeking an anchor to hold me back from the coming conflagration. As if in answer to my prayers, one furry arm abandoned my waist. Clawed fingers pinched and tugged at my nipples before dropping down to tickle my clit. Fire burned in my gut, white-hot flames licked along twanging nerve endings as my wolf man once more set his clawed hands at my waist and fucked me faster, harder. The fangs buried in my shoulder were pinpricks of agonizing ecstasy, connecting us in a feral, visceral way that went far beyond anything normal human copulation could aspire to. I felt Vance in my soul, in the very deepest parts of my body. His saliva carried his DNA into my bloodstream, renewing our bonds and strengthening our telepathic communication. I knew it was instinctive in the wolf to capture his mate thusly, hold her down and keep her captive until he fucked her into submission. With me, it wasn’t necessary. I was right where I wanted to be -- between a rock-hard cock and a teasing thumb -- way too busy staving off coming to contemplate going anywhere. “Arrrgghhhh! Coming, Ouida… can’t hold… can’t shift back!” The harsh guttural howls coming from Vance, along with the strong mental words in my mind told me my mate had shifted too far into his beast to control his impending orgasm. Sure enough,
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the walls of my sheath began to stretch until I was straining to contain the growing bulk of his knotted lupine penis. The knot didn’t stop him from fucking me, but his thrusts slowed as the walls of my pussy contracted around his larger girth, constricting his flesh and impeding his rhythmic advance and retreat. The slapping, slurping sounds of our sexes colliding inundated the room, adding a salacious background for the animalistic soundtrack of our moans and groans. Vance bared his fangs and snarled, grunting over me as he continued to slam into my sopping cunt. The abrasive drag of that thick, veined muscle along the walls of my cunt was just the torture I needed to come. However, even as far gone as I was, I knew better than to do so without permission, considering how angry he’d been with me. “Please, Vance!” I couldn’t catch my breath, lost my train of thought halfway through begging. What words did escape my mouth were so garbled even I couldn’t understand what I meant to say. I switched to our -- until recently mostly neglected -telepathic mode of conversing. Please, I need to come. I want to come with you, Vance. Then come for me, beloved. Come with me. Be one with me. With a glad cry, I gave up the struggle to hold back and relaxed into the pleasure inundating my mind and body. Hearts and thoughts connected now, our mutual need and love looped back and forth between us, ramping higher each time it cycled. The smells and sounds of our primal, driving sex, as experienced through the eyes of my mate, drove my libido through the roof. I screamed as my body bowed, thoughts splintered, sex convulsed in the soul-stealing culmination I’d been hungering for. Behind me, Vance’s hulking body strained, digging his cock in as deep as he could power it. With a loud shout, his thrusts stalled as his orgasm overcame him. The lusty sounds he made, the feel of his hot, thick semen jetting high inside me, made me shiver, made my orgasm redouble. My body seized up, every muscle locking in a rictus of pleasure. I came harder than I ever had before as Vance resumed pumping his hips, ensuring his cum flooded my pussy to overflowing. Together, bound bodies
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and souls, our cries rang out in unison as we clung to the edge of sanity, blinded by the brilliant starbursts of loving fulfillment. What seemed like an eternity, but was only a few moments later, Vance managed to gather enough strength to lift himself up to rest half propped on my back. Thanks to nature’s way of insuring there’d be another generation of wolf shifters, my cunt was sealed tight. We were joined together by the knot at the base of his cock, swelled into a barrier that wouldn’t release for at least half an hour. Careful not to squash me, Vance sagged against my back, his breath coming in great gasps as he labored to recover from our lusty session. I felt proud as punch, knowing his current weakness was due to my loving. I’d done that! Worn him out so thoroughly he -- this strong alpha male -- couldn’t find the strength to hold his own body up. He wasn’t the only one worn out. I couldn’t find the strength to move, either, so I contented myself with verbal teasing. “I always knew you were an animal, Wolf Man, but today you were off the chain.” I sighed, so mellow and well-loved I couldn’t even contemplate moving. “That was the bomb. You are the supreme coochi-nater! Gawd, you were hitting that thang like a jackhammer. If this is what angry sex is like, we have got to do it again!” Vance groaned. “Female, I don’t know that I want to do that again. It was too intense. I lost all thought of protecting you and our pups. I am ashamed I was unable to control my beast.” Leaning up, he turned us on our sides, ran his hands all over my body in a blind-man’s-bluff search, checking me for injuries. “Please tell me I didn’t hurt you.” I laughed. Reaching back and up to cradle his face in one hand, running that hand through his sweat-dampened hair, I tugged him closer. “You were in my mind. You have to know how silly you’re being.” The overwhelming sense of being bombarded by his seeking thoughts inundated me. What he saw must have reassured him, because his next phrase was a whispered prayer of gratitude. “Thank Goddess Moon.”
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Breath huffing in a relieved sigh, my mate wrapped his arms around me -- one hand cradling my left breast and the other nestled in the puffy hair-covered mound at the juncture of my thighs -- and twisted to lay back so we were spooned with my back against his chest. I’d missed cuddling this way while we waited for his knot to dissolve. The wolf hadn’t been allowed near while we made love since Vance realized I carried his pups. It felt good, right, but this time, Vance’s enjoyment was missing. All along the length of his rangy body, I could feel the tension almost pouring from him as he geared himself up to confront me. “Ouida, we must talk.” I cringed. Having been inside his head, too, I’d learned something so momentous I had yet to assimilate it. I didn’t want the peace of our recent joining shattered by the rising unrest I was experiencing. “Please, Vance. Let’s just go with the flow for right now. I’m barely over my mad with you. I don’t want to discuss something that will bring those feelings back. Not right now.” “You’re bonded to him. I saw it.” Fine. If he was determined to do this now, I had some issues of my own to bring up… some major ones, in fact. Face twisted in a scowl that didn’t begin to express my growing pique, I pushed away as far as our bound flesh would allow. “Ouch! Ouida, be more careful. That hurt.” The sharp bark of pain Vance emitted was music to my ears. It meant I’d managed to put a kink in his still-knotted cock, which served him right. “You think that hurt? How about learning your mate has kept something world-shatteringly important from you?” All my anger came welling back, overflowing my soul to flood my eyes with tears. Refusing to dash them away, I clenched my fists and beat on the mattress. “How could you keep that from me, Vance? How can you justify not telling me one of my pups was Xen’s?” “Ouida…”
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“No!” I shook my head frantically. Bringing my hands up, I covered my ears and la-la-la’d to block out his words. There was nothing he could say. Xen and I had bonded and made a child together, and Vance had kept it from both of us. Loud as I sang, I couldn’t keep out his mental pleas and explanations, but I didn’t have to respond. I wouldn’t listen. He couldn’t make me. Could he?
Chapter Nine Recruits Elmer Smith turned from washing his hands at the kitchen bowl and smiled at Patrick, his boyish blond looks defying his actual age. “Pattie, yer welcome to stay here, you know that. I kint tell you how good it is to see ya, boy. We worried a mite when no one could find ya. There was no body, so we hoped ya were alive somewhere. We jes didn’t know wheres to look.” Trey -- Elmer’s twin -- busted into the conversation. “The family was that sorry to lay Ro and Bo to rest last winter. It ain’t good to lose kin, but to lose ‘em to murderers…” Elmer shook his head, expression sorrowful. After a moment, his demeanor lightened. “On another note, you know y’all’s homestead was taken over by Aunt Gertie Jo’s boy?” Patrick Smith rocked back on the hind legs of his chair, still tired from the long drive and even longer walk he’d made after ditching his “borrowed” car. “I figured someone would take it over, and I don’t mind, since its family. Reckon I’m glad kin is getting some use from it. To me, makes no sense to let the land lie fallow.” “Right… thought that’d be yer take on it.” Trey flashed a grin as he stirred the cooking grits with one hand and shook the pan holding the bacon with the other, giving it a practiced toss that turned the slices over in mid-air without spilling a drop of grease. They were between wives, so the brothers had to do their own cooking. After today, he’d be helping, but for now, he was accorded guest status.
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“Burtus and Kerri Lyn are doing pretty good on it. They done put in a big home garden plus a couple cash crops. ‘Course, they got their five boys and three girls to help with the work, so it makes sense to plow as much dirt as possible. And the boys are grown big enough to be good help. Burtus says the three eldest boys will stick close since his gals are ‘bout ripe enough to act as wives. The boys won’t need ta go out and hunt some.” Pat just nodded at the information. It was their way. They followed the Good Book, and it clearly said Cain and Able took their sisters to wife. “Hey, also heard tell they been putting away a portion of each crop for iffen ya ever showed back up.” Patrick perked up hearing that. “Damn glad to hear that ‘cause I’m low on funds at the moment. What did they do with Bo’s still?” “Oh, Cletus Miller is running it. Puttin’ out a good shine, too. I got a couple jugs laid up in the cellar. We can tap one later. Now, tell us how you let a woman get the best of you.” “Her name is Ouida Jackson, and she worked in the same place I did.” Pat sighed. “I wish I’d never picked her as our replacement wife. Really, she was too heavy to be a real looker, and she’s black besides, but brother Ro was hard on women and he’d run through the last few real quick like. We all wuz lonely and hurting for a wife’s comforting.” “She don’ sound too appealing to me,” Trey muttered, slopping some grits onto the plate in front of him before passing the pot. “You want toast?” “Yeah, please.” Patrick served himself a large-sized portion before passing the almost empty pot on to Elmer. Elmer grimaced when he saw the small amount his brother and cousin had left. “Gee, thanks, guys.” His sarcasm was lost on Trey, who muttered a gruff “welcome” as he finished serving the eggs and bacon, along with strong hot coffee and thick slices of bread
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toasted in the broiler. There was a moment of silence as all three bowed their heads in silent thanks. Mouth full of the first good food in ages, Patrick chewed and swallowed before taking up his explanation. “Her most attractive feature was the absence of kin in her life. There was no one to look for her if she turned up missing. I figured me and my brothers done her a favor taking her away from the drudgery of her life. Instead of being properly thankful, she repudiated us, wouldn’t participate in our little bit of fun and kept going on about how I’d fooled her and how she was gonna turn me in for kidnapping.” Elmer looked up from stirring honey into his grits, nodding sagely. “Women folk can get like that sometimes. Got no thanks in ‘em. Us men folk got to beat the right attitude into ‘em, is all.” Patrick nodded agreement, mouth too full of thick-sliced home-cured bacon to answer verbally. Trey sopped up the last of his eggs with a slice of white bread. “Me and Elmer’ll be more than willing to help you get revenge, Cousin Pat. I’m thinking you owe that bitch something special for the way she treated you.” Smith threw down his fork. “You’re damned straight, cuz. Thanks to her, Bo and Ro are dead, while I’ve spent almost a year locked up in a place not fit for human or beast. If I hadn’t been so angry and focused on getting my revenge, damned loony bin would have drove me mad. I survived so I could do to Ouida what was done to me.” His lips drew back in what no one would call a smile. “With your help I’m gonna find them. When I do, I’m gonna cripple that monstrous wolf man like he done me, and while he’s bleeding out, I’m gonna make him watch me fuck that big heifer in the ass without lube and without mercy.” Elmer chuckled. “Hoowee! That sounds like our kind of fun! Listen, iffen she’s still alive when yer done with her, give her to me and Trey. We’ll show her what life with real back country men is like.”
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Trey grinned, his cunning expression at odds with his boyish, innocent face. “Me and Elmer might be hard on a woman, but we make ‘em last a long, long time.” Patrick laughed in true enjoyment. “That’s the goll-darn truth you’re speaking, Cousin Trey. Ma always did say you and Elmer made Ro and Bo look like churchgoers.” The twins chuckled at that. Feeling in better sorts himself, now that he had a belly full of good grub and a cup of mountain-brewed coffee at his side, Patrick Smith leaned back in his chair, raised his arms, and linked them behind his head. The visual of Ouida being forced to service Trey and Elmer brought a smile to his lips and hardened his cock. “You know, I believe I’ll do jes’ that, cousin Trey. The thought of seeing that gal under y’all’s hands does my heart good. You can have whatever’s left of Ouida when I’m finished with her. My only stipulation is that I get a conjugal visit every once in a while. After all, she was my bride first.” Trey looked to Elmer, who nodded. They answered in concert, “Done.” Elmer continued, “I reckon yer close enough kin for it not to matter. In fact, iffen you’ve a mind to, you could help us with the coming harvest. When the corn and wheat’s in, we’ll help you find yer missing filly and that stud she run off with. Then, iffen we found favor with ya, you could stay on here with us after you’ve done finished with vengeance. We could use an extra hand.” After a pause, he added, “Equal share of all we bring in, and equal time with any wives we take.” Taken aback, Patrick ran his hand over his chin, contemplating the offer. “That’s mighty big-hearted of you, Cousin Elmer… you, too, Trey. ‘Course, if I did join up with you two, I wouldn’t be coming empty-handed. I’d be bringing the still and the share from the farm crops.” Trey grinned. “You’ll be bringing something more valuable, to my mind. The whole mountain knows you are one of the best bride fetchers.” Patrick frowned and muttered, “Didn’t do so good the last time.”
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“Never you mind that. It weren’t yer fault. Outside meddling’s what messed y’all up, and that don’t lessen yer status none. You brung a bride, right?” “Yeah, I did.” Pat brightened. “Ya know, Trey, I reckon I just might be of a mind to join up with y’all. Got to think on it a mite… Can I get back to you?” The twins nodded in sync. “Take your time.” Elmer spat a wad of tobacco juice toward the can, missing it. “We ain’t in no hurry. Cain’t go nowheres ‘til after the crop’s in.”
Chapter Ten Winds of Change With an almost human grin on his face, Xen loped up to me, trailed by an exuberant Brax and Usher. “Vance, I’m glad you came, but before we go forward I have to ask… Are you here against orders, or did Westyn approve this journey?” I clasped Xen’s outstretched forearm, gripped his right hand with mine and pulled the slighter wolf to me in an embrace of camaraderie before offering the same greeting to my former lieutenants. “As always, I am the Alpha’s Prime Enforcer and here with his full approbation, empowered to speak on his behalf.” Xen’s shoulders relaxed. “I’m glad for that. This situation is hairy enough as it is.” I eyed my former second, wondering for the nth time what crisis could have precipitated him contacting the pack with his strange message. “While I am glad to see you, in fact, had planned to hunt you up, I regret it is danger to the pack that makes this meeting necessary.” Xen leaned slightly to the left, surreptitiously searching the area behind my right shoulder. He disguised it well, but I’d noted and understood. He was looking for Ouida, but he should have realized she wouldn’t have been behind me waiting for permission to speak. Not her. My mate would have already defied tradition and pushed past me to embrace her ex-lovers. “I didn’t allow her to come.” The chagrined expression on Xen’s face revealed how much he disliked being caught out. “Did you fear I would be inappropriate with her?”
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Anger bled through his tones, sparking a reciprocal reaction within me, so my answer was stiffly worded. “Not at all, Xen, but when you send a cryptic message to the pack warning of danger and momentous change, only a fool would bring his most precious treasure into possible peril.” He bristled even more. “I would have warned you if that were the case.” “I took your message as that warning and acted accordingly. Would you have done differently?” “No.” Xen bowed his head. “Forgiveness, Alpha. I…” He paused halfway through the traditional apology, and I watched him recall he was no longer my beta, but an alpha in his own right, on his own terms. This was the first wolf I’d ever trained, the first I’d chosen as trusted backup. I was proud to see him matured into a wild, fierce animal that faced the world fangs bared. Xen’s head snapped up. Shoulders braced, he stood and faced me, meeting my eyes without flinching. “As I was saying, I ask forgiveness for questioning you, Vance. As her mate, Ouida’s safety must always be your primary concern. I would have it no other way.” My wolf still felt riled by Xen’s implied insult and was not even a little mollified by the stiff apology. Being fair, I suppose a good portion of that anger was due to the twinge of guilt I felt over failing to protect Ouida from that bear. Ignoring my animal’s desire to strike out, I answered with a slight nod of my head. “Believe me, I sympathize with you more than you can imagine.” The twist of Xen’s lips didn’t denote humor. “Somehow I doubt that. After all, you are in sole possession of the treasure. I have nothing, not even a pack anymore.” “That could change if the two of you would quit pissing on the bushes long enough to get to the issue at hand. Focus on what precipitated this meeting, Xen, and introduce me.” I turned to confront the person who’d dared to interrupt my conversation and froze in shock. The male -- a stranger who had managed to get within ten feet of me
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without my knowledge -- was one of my kind, but not of my pack, for I know each and every member. This one I did not know. More shocking to me than his ability to blindside me was the aura of supreme confidence rolling off the stranger. This male was something outside my experience, but not outside my knowledge. He was an Alpha Prime, recognized as a natural leader among my people. My eyes almost crossed as I realized the most powerful wolf I’d ever encountered also seemed to be the first metrosexual wolf I’d ever met. He could have stepped off the cover of GQ. This wolf stood at least six foot five. His thick, dark gold hair swept back from a strong, wide brow, then fell to lay in a sleek salon power-cut that had to have cost hundreds of dollars. His lashes and eyebrows were a darker brown than his hair, the brows so perfectly arched they too had to be courtesy of the salon. Tall, raw-boned and powerfully built, he sported an Armani suit that had obviously been tailored to fit his muscular body. Large, well-manicured hands swung in relaxed ease at his sides. Xen stuttered over the introduction. “Vance Forrester, this is Chase McCallum. I met him a week ago. Chase, this is Vance, the wolf I told you about.” Stunned, I stared into hazel eyes that were tinted in nothing like the muddy colors found among humans. No, this one’s eyes were a clear green with sparks of warm gold sprinkled throughout. Our legends spoke of beings like this, of those among us with the changeable eyes humans called hazel -- eyes designating the bearers as members of the ruling family. I couldn’t stop my neck from bending in recognition of one superior to my wolf, could barely control my urge to shift from Skin form into my true self so I could show true obeisance by exposing throat and belly. And that frightened the hell out of me, because not even Westyn was able to call my wolf. Xen had been right to alert the pack. This man spelled danger and change and so much more than I could wrap my head around. The stranger chuckled, my confusion a cause of amusement. “If I affect you like this, I can’t wait to see how you respond when you meet my cousin.”
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Pulling myself together, I closed my mouth and stood to my full height, which while actually a tad taller than the wolf confronting me, though that did little to make me feel his equal. “Who the fuck are you?” “As Xen told you, I am Chase McCallum, Alpha Prime of the Eastern American Pack under Lachlan McCallum… and your overlord.” “The hell you are!” My mouth denied his claim, but my body couldn’t. My wolf was clawing at my skin, demanding freedom, not caring a bit we were here in the middle of a human city on a damned sidewalk full of middle class American humans. The big wolf smiled. “Son, your wulf thinks differently. He’s halfway here and I’m not even calling him. If I command, you will answer. I’d say that makes me your overlord.” Something about the way he said wolf, giving the word an accent I hadn’t heard before, almost gave me pause. I set the thought aside for now. A snarl wrinkled my nose. “I’m not your son and I resent being talked down to. If you choose to challenge, do so honorably.” “My apologies, Alpha.” He gave a curt bow. “A challenge will not be necessary. That was just a test, man. Wanted to make sure what caliber of wulf I’d be dealing with.” Chase relaxed. His lips turned up in a grin, and the warm smile had the power to draw the anger out of me. My wolf wanted to curl up at this male’s feet and place my ruff under his hand for petting. “I’ll tell you what… I’m impressed. Most wulves don’t even have enough willpower to speak up to me, let alone challenge for perceived insult. I need wulves like you and Xen around.” He sobered. “Vance Forrester, trouble is coming. The death and destruction kind of trouble, and every wulf on this planet will be a part of the solution or part of the problem.” Drawing in a deep breath, I looked to the others, my mind reeling. “Xen, what’s happening here?” Xen clasped my shoulder, squeezed in a show of support. “I’ve always said Westyn keeps us too closed off from the rest of the world, shut away from information
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that could prove vital. Welcome to the real world. Now let’s take this off the street. We don’t need Humans overhearing our conversation…”
*** Chase pushed his plate away and sat back from the table, linking his hands over his belly. “Good grub. Thanks.” Xen nodded at Usher and Brax. Least alpha among us, they rose and cleared the dishes. Soon the sound of running water and clinking dishes sounded from the small kitchen attached to the tiny apartment Xen had procured for them. I glanced around the dingy space again, my lips thinned in renewed anger that my pack members had been reduced to living like this. I’d had no idea. Westyn should have given them money to get on with. I thought he had. The three had worked as enforcers for the pack all their lives and deserved a share of our wealth. They shouldn’t have been forced to live hand to mouth, eking out odd security jobs, though Xen had done well with what he had. Still, he should have said something to me… “Okay, the way I see it, the most important element about your pack is the very isolation Xen complained about.” Chase’s words jolted me back to the conversation. “How so?” “Thanks to the seclusion you’ve been forced to endure, your people are the purest strain of wulf since landfall. On the one hand, you are dangerously close to inbreeding. But much more importantly, other than the rare infusion of new blood courtesy of the one or two breeds in your past, this pack is the most genetically uncontaminated sampling available of our race. Our scientists will be able to conduct quantitative and empirical testing to measure the exact amount of gene shift that might have occurred, if any, since the original landing. And on top of that, you have fullblooded females, mature and ready to mate.” “But our females have problems carrying to term, and we lose a lot of our infants before they reach first shift.” Chase sighed. “I’m not going to lie. That’s a concern, but not my major one, simply because I believe the losses are the Goddess Moon’s way of preventing
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wrongness. I mean, look at you.” He pointed to me and then to Xen. “You are almost albino. An ice-white wulf. And Xen is at the dead other end of the spectrum -- jet black. You are dangerously interbred at this point.” I looked down at myself and over at Xen. His black eyes gazed back at me, a quirk tilting his lips. We both looked back to Chase. “I wasn’t aware I was an aberration.” “I didn’t say you were. What I said was you were dangerously close.” “So what does that mean? What do we need to do to stop our children dying?” Chase sat forward. “It means the cause is reversible. It means all this pack needs is an introduction of new genes. Lucky for us, we have packs all over the world in need of fresh females. Like you, we have females too interbred within their home packs who can be exchanged for yours. Trust me, thanks to the purity of your blood strain, you’ll be inundated with offers from other alphas seeking mates because, though the breeding program is proving successful, viable breeds are still hard to find.” “Breeds?” I was unfamiliar with several of the terms Chase had introduced during the course of our conversation, but something in the way his voice changed when he spoke this particular word told me the term might prove important. “Care to elaborate?” “If I gave you the long version, we’d be here all night, and I’m determined to get back to my own mate. The simplistic answer is this. Our ancestors crashed here, betrayed by traitors from within their own ranks.” I had assumed as much. His confirmation was something else I’d consider -later. “Shortly after the crash, our scientists determined our race would die out within two generations unless they did something about the shortage of females. They took a thousand volunteers and spliced human genetic material into their DNA, and did the opposite with humans who had been tested and proven capable of withstanding the procedure. Then they set them loose among the populace to breed at will, spreading the wulf DNA and gathering any viable offspring to return with them to the conclaves. A
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lot of lives were lost on both sides while they streamlined the process. It was a longterm program not meant to mass produce immediately, and after a few thousand years, it is only now coming into its full potential, giving us a steadily increasing supply of bioengineered humans compatible with wulf-kind, able to give us offspring and, in the females’ case, to handle our greater than human-sized sexual organs.” “Pick your jaw up off the floor, Vance.” My ex-best friend’s laughing comment broke my disbelieving shock. To think, we’d never known this part of our own history, yet we were living it. “Bite me, Xen.” I didn’t like being caught flatfooted more than once in one day, and it rankled that he was displaying far greater panache than I, handling the information with a sophistication I presently lacked. Then again, he’d had days to assimilate all this, whereas I was being bombarded without advance notice. “So what do these breeds look like?” “They are spread across the spectrum of humanity, with a heavier concentration among those of African descent since they proved to be the most adaptable, the most suited for survival. Breeds are human until their latent wulf DNA is triggered.” I was intrigued. “How does one go about triggering them? And how would you know they are breeds?” Chase grinned as he ticked off points on his fingers. “Kissing, biting, and fucking. That’s how you trigger wulf DNA in a breed. And you can’t miss one. They smell like dessert, and I don’t know a wulf yet who doesn’t have a sweet tooth. But you ought to know… If what Xen tells me is correct, you’re mated to one.” I turned to stare at Xen, wondering why he would have said such a thing. “You think Ouida is one of those breeds?” Chase answered for him. “She’s pregnant, isn’t she?” “Well, yes…” “Which means you’ve mated her in mid-shift and full wulf, correct?” He didn’t wait for me to answer, just steamrolled on. It was so easy imagining him in his
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boardroom, handing out orders and assignments, and Goddess help the wulf that fell behind. “Humans and wulves can’t interbreed. Not without scientific manipulation. And human females can’t take a wulf in battle form. So if your mate survived and she’s pregnant, she’s a breed.” He grinned. “Congratulations, by the way. My cousin and I are both mated to breeds, and I can tell you from experience that you have a treat in store when she comes into her own.” I rubbed the back of my head, thinking Chase’s mate couldn’t possibly be as feisty as mine or he would have been offering his condolences. “Thank you. Xen tells me you’re only recently mated, yourself. Congratulations are in order for you, as well. Chase’s focused expression softened. “My mating is the best thing to happen to me in too long a time.” He jolted to a halt, face brightening as if a light bulb had been lit behind his eyes. “It’s just dawned on me that your pack has to be derived from the missing life-pod occupied by the scientists and their families. Tell me something.” He jumped up and paced, eyes wild with excitement, ignoring the mess his fingers were making combing through his uber-sophisticated hair. Ouida, with her thing about mussed hair, would be cringing. “Do you guys have a lot of smart wulves among you? Maybe a good lot who excel in mathematics and science?” “We do, in fact.” Chase nodded sagely, open speculation on his expressive face. “You’d pretty much have to. You wouldn’t happen to have heard of a physicist named Starkor? Dude fell off the grid a few years back?” I nodded reluctantly, not sure why I hesitated to confirm information he’d obviously already surmised. “He’s a pack member.” “Yes!” The exuberant shout was accompanied by a fist pump. “I knew it! Thank you, Mother Moon!” Another jubilant air pump was followed by the wolf planting his left fist in his right palm with a meaty thud. Grinning maniacally, he sat back down and scooted his chair in to the table. “Better get comfortable. This is going to take a while. First order of business is for you to get back to… what did you say his name was?”
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“Westyn.” “Okay, get back with Westyn and take control of your pack.” No matter how much my inner animal accepted this man was a superior, his commanding words had me bristling. “Who are you to decide how our pack is run?” Chase sighed. “Either you will be the alpha of the Forrester Pack and work with me, or I’ll come in and challenge, take control and place someone else over you. Your choice. Either way, this pack is coming into the twenty-first century, like yesterday.” My hands curled into fists. “I will be the one you will meet in challenge, and you might not win.” The wulf didn’t even pause. “I’ll give you that. But I have an older, meaner cousin who is equally on board with what I’m trying to do, and I can pretty much guarantee Hunter will stomp you into kibble if you manage to steamroll over me.” My brows twitched together. “Hunter? As in Hunter McCallum, leader of the NHP?” “The same.” With that piece of information, Chase’s name snapped into place, and I realized exactly who I was talking to. Even isolated as our pack was, I’d lived among the Humans long enough to have heard his name. The man dominated business news as head of one of the largest corporations of the world. His company was always on the cutting edge of innovation and development. What I’d heard was all to the good, but I hadn’t known the person involved was one of us. That made a whole load of difference. “Wild Wolf Enterprises.” Chase chuckled. “I see the penny’s finally dropped.” I locked gazes with Chase. “Why do you insist on me being the one you work with? Why not choose Xen or Westyn?” Chase straightened and returned my gaze, hazel eyes earnest. “When I shared this information with Xen, he sent for you. When Westyn got the notice there was trouble, he sent you. Obviously, both believe you are the wulf to turn to in time of trouble, and that is the true definition of an Alpha Prime. Finally, when I mentioned
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challenge, you stepped up and informed me I’d be facing you. You didn’t run back to see what Westyn would have to say, and you didn’t look to Xen for permission to speak for him.” Chase lifted his hands and let them fall. “Vance, our kind breeds a lot of alphas, but being alpha doesn’t make them leaders. You are a leader, whether you choose to accept the title or not.” He shrugged. “Bottom line, it’s easier for me to work with one person rather than through several. Now let me ask you something.” “Go ahead.” “You’re obviously the alpha of this outfit, so why didn’t you take control?” I could feel the flush staining my cheeks as I knuckled my hair back off my face. “The alpha must be the mate of the alphene, and I didn’t want Mala. She and Westyn had been in love since they were cubs.” It was my turn to shrug. “It didn’t hurt me to allow him to carry the title while I did the work. I was already doing it.” “I knew it!” Xen roared, thumping Brax on the back and pointing at Usher. “You both owe me. I told you that was probably how it went down, didn’t I? Back when it first happened, I said there was no way Westyn could take Vance in a real challenge. No fucking way!” “Wow!” Chase’s shocked exclamation stalled Xen’s crowing. I was surprised to find the alpha wulf’s jaw sagging. His gaze ricocheting between the four of us. “You guys really are old school if you’re actually practicing home world rules! Originally, the Great Pack was ruled by the Prime Alphene, avatar of the Goddess Moon. Her mate became the Prime Alpha. But we haven’t determined rule by that criteria in over five hundred years. Mother Moon, I bet this pack will prove a treasure house of our lost heritage. I can’t wait for Lachlan and the historians to get a hold of you.” Xen, Brax, and Usher’s nonplussed expressions mirrored the uncertainty I was feeling. Our beliefs were more than a religion; they were bred into our bones. The idea that a wulf could turn away from the Goddess’s will was more than I could take in. “You mean to tell us the rest of the packs no longer hold to the old ways?”
Camille Anthony
Bunny Tails: Bad Hare Day
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Chase cocked one of those finely sculpted eyebrows. “Not totally, no. How could we? We were mainly a military expedition. There were so few females among us. But everything is about to change.” Chase told us of the journal his father had found, of the threat looming over the entire planet. He ended by saying, “Events are happening that we have to get on top of or perish! And I need the help of every able-minded, able-bodied wulf.” My heart burned within as he presented his plea for help. I believed everything he’d said, and Xen’s reactions told me he felt the same way. The cause was worthy, the wolf, admirable. My mind was made up. I rose slowly, coming to my feet as was customary when pledging one’s allegiance. Fully aware of what I was doing, of what the consequences of my actions might bring, I swept my hair up and bared my neck in offering to McCallum. As I opened my mouth to speak my vows, I heard chairs scrape behind me -- Xen and the other two coming to their feet. Chase raised a hand, halting their actions. “I will accept the pledge of Vance Forrester alone. If you so choose, you may offer your vows of service to him directly.” I turned to see Xen nod his head with a curt jerk. Our gazes met, and in his dark eyes I saw approbation, approval, and something else. Warmth flooded my heart as I realized what that something was. Like Ouida, I finally understood what had been lacking these last few months… Xen’s love. As soon as possible, I’d get Xen alone and tell him about his cub, offer him the opportunity to become part of our family. No. That wasn’t right. Xen was already that. I’d offer him the opportunity to take his rightful place beside Ouida in our mating bond. But for now, I had to render my vow to my new alpha. I turned back to McCallum with renewed resolve, baring my neck once more. “I, Vance Forrester, Beta to Westyn Forrester and captain of the pack’s enforcers, do hereby offer my full loyalty to Chase McCallum, Alpha of the Eastern America Pack. As long as you lead with honor and faith, always mindful of the good of the pack, I will be yours to command.”
Camille Anthony
Bunny Tails: Bad Hare Day
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Chase stared at me a long moment, his hazel eyes alight with the golden glow that signifies the beginning of the change. I wanted to fidget under his steady gaze, feeling judged and possibly found wanting. It was an unfamiliar feeling for me. I squared my shoulders and did the only thing I could -- matched the alpha stare for stare. Finally, Chase nodded. Placing his hand on the bend of my neck in a gesture of acceptance, he spoke the words that completed the ritual. “I accept your oath of loyalty and service in the stead of my Prime Alpha, Lachlan McCallum. In turn, I swear to answer any call for assistance, and will deal with your pack with the same honor and loyalty you cede to me.” Chase stepped closer, tilted my head up and shifted just enough to grow an impressive set of fangs. He bit into my shoulder, branding me as his. My wolf whimpered. I gave in to the urge, and turned my head, rubbing the side of his face, gathering his scent. My new leader withdrew his fangs, patted my shoulder, and grinned as he licked the line of trailing blood from his lips. “Okay, now that’s over, I need to get back to what I was saying. I’m going to need Starkor and all your other scientific brains on tap and ready to roll, because I wasn’t kidding when I said we’ve got trouble with a capital T heading our way. Let me finish bringing you up to speed…”
Camille Anthony A funny thing happened on the way to the grave… In 2006, I was diagnosed with Pulmonary Sarcoidosis and given two weeks to live, whereupon I promptly discharged myself against medical advice, since -- as I stubbornly informed the doctors -- I could die at home far more comfortably than at the hospital. Resigned, I prepared to meet my maker. But then… I got an idea for a new story. No way could I check out before finishing it. So I did. Then, another idea came, and another… Then, one day, I got a bee in my bonnet. Tales of the Quiet Kitty was my first series and for some reason, I feared if I finished the last story that would be the end of MY story. So the series has languished for several years. Recently, I’ve decided not to live my life in fear. The Quiet Kitty will sail on. I’ll simply write the stories of the next generation: the stories of Taelen’s journeys with Nyla and Jason as he searches for his true mate, and those featuring the children born to Willa and her great love, Brant as well as their cousins, the children of Bevel-leveB and Letshya, queen of the Sh’Bahkyr. These tales are all begging to be told and I couldn’t possibly ignore their vehement cries. So there you have it. A new motivation to continue bringing you the stories I love to tell and that you love to read. As always, I encourage you to embrace adventure, even if the only journey you undertake is through the pages of a book. Enjoy every moment of this life we’re gifted with. Whatever you do, keep reading! Peace! Cammy
Camille Anthony
Bunny Tails: Bad Hare Day
For a list of my books and publishers or just to chat, connect with me at:
[email protected], www.camilleanthony.com, www.myspace.com/quietkitty1, and www.Facebook.com
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