“Lola? Lola, it’s time to wake up,” a gentle voice called.My eyes fluttered open and I saw Sheila sitting on her cot. She stretched, lifting her arms above her head. “You were out.”Surprisingly, I slept like the dead. I didn’t even remember falling asleep and I’d had no dreams. I rubbed my eyes, then sat up and stretched before standing up. “How long were we asleep?”“Few hours,” she said.My stomach growled and I covered it with my hand.Sheila laughed. “Let’s find some dinner.”I pulled on my combat boots, which looked amazing with the shorts Sheila procured for me, and then the two of us emerged from her tent. The sky was purple and I couldn’t even see the sun anymore. It was that magical time of evening right before it changed from day to night.There had been people around the common area every time I’d passed through, but as we got closer, I realized I’d only seen a fraction of the shifters who lived here.There were easily a hundred or more shifters gathered around the massiv
“You can feel it, can’t you?”I turned to see Alec, shirt off, walking toward me. His gorgeous eyes pulled me in right away and I had to fight to break eye contact. Fortunately, there was plenty to look at. All those muscles. Holy hell, he was easy on the eyes. My gaze drifted down to his rounded shoulders and his biceps, then I moved lower, checking out his six pack which took me right to his happy trail. Finally, I was staring at the bulge in his pants.And let me tell you, it was an impressive bulge.“My eyes are up here,” he said.Fuck. What was wrong with me? I looked back up at him. “I see you’re making a habit of not wearing a shirt.”“Shifting with clothes on isn’t a great idea. I’d ruin too many shirts if I did that,” he said. “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.”“I grew up in a pack of shifters, naked people don’t bother me,” I said.“No?” He raised a brow. “Good.”Alec didn’t waste any time unbuttoning and dropping his jeans. Turns out, the man didn’t bother with underwear
By the time the wolves started returning to human form, I had to make a choice. I could either enjoy the limited time I had here, or I could mope and make myself miserable.I’d spent too many years being unhappy. I wasn’t going to do it anymore. I knew I wouldn’t go back to Wolf Creek for anyone or anything. It wasn’t worth it. Even if I did want to make Tyler, Julian, and Kyle feel the kind of pain they’d inflicted on me. I wasn’t like them. I didn’t get off on causing harm. It was better for all of us if I vanished. Besides, Tyler would have to deal with the bond between us his entire life. That was probably a greater punishment than killing him.Sheila was back in her clothes, her face flushed and her eyes wild. “That was a great run.”“You looked like you were having fun,” I said.“I can’t wait till you get to join us,” she said.My chest tightened but I managed a smile. I knew that once I could shift, I was out of here but I didn’t need to think about that tonight.“Drinks?” Shei
He pulled his hand out of my pants, then gripped me closer, pushing his lips on to mine again. The pressure was intense, and it was hurting me. I shoved him again, but he held me closer, forcing the kiss on me.I pulled away again. “Stop!”“Just give in, baby,” he said. “I’m going to make you feel so good.”“I said stop.” My mind wasn’t fuzzy anymore. I knew I didn’t want this.Growling came from behind me and the man holding me suddenly released his grip.“The lady saidno.” Alec looked like he was ready to attack.I scrambled away, giving distance between me and the male I’d been making out with.“I didn’t know she was yours,” he said. “I wouldn’t have kissed her if I knew.”“You pack your things and leave now. She saidno.” Alec growled.“We were drunk, she was enjoying herself,” he said.“You leave or I will make you leave,” Alec said.The man growled and his hands balled into fists. My chest rose and fell as my breathing quickened. He looked like he was ready to attack.“This place
Sheila wasn’t in her bed when I woke the next morning. I figured that meant things went well with her hookup. At least one of us was getting some action.I cringed at the thought. I could have had some if I wanted it, but I wasn’t interested in the pushy male who had his tongue down my throat. Lucas, I think Alec called him.Tossing the sleeping bag aside, I climbed off the cot and stretched. I was still in the same outfit from yesterday and since I didn’t have a change of clothes, this was as good as it was going to get.My temples throbbed and my tongue was like cotton. The forth cup of beer was probably a mistake. Since I didn’t drink often, I wasn’t great at holding my liquor.I ran my fingers through my hair to work out some of the tangles, then slipped on my boots. Hopefully, there was coffee to be found. Then I needed to find Alec before I went to Greta. It felt a little weird with how we’d left things last night and I wanted to assure him that I would respect his decision to se
Growing up, we’d been taught that the Wolf Creek Pack was powerful. A favorite pack of the wolf shifter king, a model pack, blah blah blah. It got old fast. All the crowing about how excellent we were while keeping strangers out and never allowing us to explore the rest of the world.I’d grown up so isolated in my pack, that I no longer knew what was true and what had been hidden from me. Why didn’t I know about a toxin that could prevent a wolf from shifting? Was that something the others knew about? Or was it only Ace and his crew?It was odd that there was a toxin that existed that could cause the exact problem I had. If not for the fact that you had to be shot with it, I might have worried it was used against me. But why bother with me? I wasn’t important enough for them to care about. Plus, there was that whole mated to the alpha’s son thing.I stopped walking as a strange sensation washed over me. Longing, desire… there was a tiny part of me thinking about Tyler.Fuck no.I push
“What do you mean?” I asked.“We could break that bond you have with your mate,” he suggested.“You mean I could kill him?” I clarified.“You can’t, he’s your mate. But I could,” he said.I shook my head. “I can’t ask you to do that for me.”“Can’t or won’t?” He narrowed his eyes. “Have you forgotten what he did? Or is the bond taking hold?”“No!” I recoiled, taking a step away from Alec. I had a lingering memory of wishing Tyler dead, but now I couldn’t make myself want that for him. “Is there another way to break the bond?”“Yes. But you’d have to go back to Wolf Creek.” His eyes were locked on mine. He was deadly serious.“You know that’s a death sentence for me,” I said.“Not if we’re smart. You need to get close to him, but not that close,” he said.“I don’t want to go near him. What if…” I couldn’t finish the thought.“What if you start to feel things for him?” Alec asked. “That’s going to happen no matter what. The longer you fight the bond, the more it will build. I wager you
My head was pounding by the time Alec left me at Greta’s tent. I think I mumbled a thank you before he left, but with the hangover in full force, it was difficult to remember.“Is it bright out there or did you have too much to drink last night?” Greta said by way of greeting as she opened her tent flap.“Both,” I admitted.She chuckled. “Come on in, I have something to fix that.”I followed her into her tent and sat down in a chair next to her little table. She busied herself pouring something into a cup, then walked over to me.“It tastes like death, but it’ll knock the hangover out.” She set a glass of brown liquid down in front of me.I picked up the cup. “Cheers.” After a hesitant sip, I nearly spit the liquid across the room. “You were not kidding.”She sat in the chair across from me. “It’s easier if you do it all at once.”After a steadying breath, I knocked the drink back, fighting my gag reflex as I swallowed it all. Wincing, I set the glass on the table. “What was that?”“Y