GrantThe tavern door slammed shut as I made my escape, my heart pounding in my chest like a war drum coming from across enemy lines. There was a chill in the air that burned my lungs when I inhaled, but I didn’t care.All I cared about was getting the hell out of there.Whatever I expected to happen when I made the decision to give into my desires and fuck Deidre Carey, I didn’t expect this.All I had hoped was that I’d knocked back enough alcohol to keep the beast at bay so I wouldn’t show her my other face and scare her to death—if the animal didn’t rip her to shreds.It was a gamble, but I didn’t expect to hit the jackpot.For the first time since becoming a werewolf, the beast inside of me felt tamed. Sated.I was desperate for a way to control the new monster inside of me, but I never expected to find the answer buried between that woman’s legs.It was more than just the fucking—I’d tried using random hookups to blow off steam in the past, and it didn’t do a damn thing but leave
DeidreThe walk home was awkward and uncomfortable on my wobbly legs, no panties beneath my skater-skirt dress making the chilly night air feel that much colder.Grant Hawthorne was a fucking asshole, but I couldn’t deny the way he turned me on. Never in my life had I been fucked like that—I’d never let a man treat me that way, but there was something about Grant that made even his scowl impossible to resist.The man fucked me like he hated me, but I wasn’t just a hole to him.From everything I’d heard when I was living in the city, men just looking for a quick release didn’t usually make a woman come undone on their fingers and tongue before even getting their cock out.I still remembered the way it felt to have my fingers buried in his hair, and the intimacy in the way he touched me despite the fact that we were relative strangers—antagonistic ones at that.I’d be a liar if I tried to say I wasn’t hoping to get with Grant one way or another, and even if I had envisioned a couple of
DeidreThe backs of my legs stuck to the old vinyl bus seating, and I instantly regretted my decision to wear a dress for moving day.But it was comfortable right up until I sat down, and I didn’t have to bother pulling a pair of pants out of my already packed wardrobe.Everything I owned was stuffed into one large suitcase—well, everything that wasn’t left to me by my grandmother, anyway.A deep ache nestled itself in my chest as I stared out the foggy old window at the scenery that was once so familiar to me. When I was a little girl, I spent every summer here in Moonhollow with my grandmother, but when my father never returned from his annual hunting trip, my mom moved me out to the city, and I never saw my grandma again.There’d been a hole in my heart ever since I last left Moonhollow. Grandma never had a phone in the old cottage, and though I must have sent her dozens of letters over the years, she never sent even one back.I thought she’d written me off for good, so I never tri
GrantAlex snuggled down into her dad’s old hunting quilt, and I pressed a kiss to her forehead.“Goodnight, Kiddo.” I stood up, ruffling her hair before I turned toward the door, hoping to high hell that what happened tonight wouldn’t mentally scar her for life.“Uncle Grant?” She called after me, looking up at me with my brother’s eyes. “We’re safe here, right?”My chest felt constricted, and I had to fight to keep the snarl off of my face when I thought about that weaselly little dirtbag who tried to snatch my niece off the street earlier tonight.All I could think about was tracking the piece of shit down and showing him that he messed with the wrong family. This kid was all I had left, and I’d be damned if I let anyone try to hurt her and live to tell about it.But right now, Alex needed me to keep my cool. Letting her see me get upset would only scare her more.Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to smile at her, leaning against her doorframe. “You’ll always be safe here, Alex
DeidreStepping onto my grandma’s property after all these years felt eerie. Without her here, the place I spent so much of my childhood at just felt like an empty cottage in a plot of woods.She was gone, and she took all of her energy and love with her.“So, what do you think?” I asked the cat, who I’d decided to name Stallone, as I clung to him to stop myself from crying. “I used to spend a lot of time up here, believe it or not.”The small patch of yard she kept was starting to get overgrown, but the rocks I’d painted as a child that marked the path to the house were still there, emblazoned with childish renditions of lizards and bugs, albeit a bit less vibrant than I remembered them.She would have seen these every time she left the cottage, probably missing me on those summer days when I used to skip across the stones pretending the ground was lava.The corner of my lip tugged upward in spite of my grief. The time I did get to spend with her had been idyllic. I couldn’t have ask
GrantThere was a chill in the air when I walked out of the rinky-dink small town police station. It was the second time I ever walked in there of my own volition, and I hated the way everyone’s eyes lingered on me—especially the sheriff.As far as he was concerned, I was still that same fourteen year old boy who used to break into the local convenience store after closing to steal snacks and shitty cheap beer with my brother.River had cleaned himself up, became a model citizen for Alex’s sake. As far as the village was concerned, the wrong Hawthorne brother had died, even if the police knew I hadn’t had a drop to drink the night we had our accident.And I agreed with them.I dropped off the hoodie and filed an official report about the attempted kidnapping, just like I promised Alex I would, but not before taking a good, long whiff of that hoodie’s stench for myself.That piece of shit was in for a world of hurt if I ever smelled him around the village again. He was scared enough wh
DeidreWith my floor—mostly—repaired, I decided to reward myself with a trip to one of the few buildings in town I’d never been in before.The Full Moon inn, the village’s local tavern and undoubtably the place to be if I wanted to get to know my new neighbors.When I was a little girl the place was obviously off limits, so even if I wasn’t generally one for drinking, I couldn’t resist the urge to check out what passed for nightlife in a small town like Moonhollow.A bell jingled above the heavy wooden door, and I was immediately enveloped by the soft glow of warm lights, the savory aroma of traditional bar food, and the melancholic crooning of the live band.It was peaceful, inviting even, until I met eyes with the big man sitting at the bar.Grant Hawthorne eyed me sharply as he nursed his mug of beer, pointedly turning away as if to say, ‘Don’t you dare come near me.’It gave me half a mind to march my happy ass over and sit next to him, purely out of spite after the way he acted t
DeidreThe walk home was awkward and uncomfortable on my wobbly legs, no panties beneath my skater-skirt dress making the chilly night air feel that much colder.Grant Hawthorne was a fucking asshole, but I couldn’t deny the way he turned me on. Never in my life had I been fucked like that—I’d never let a man treat me that way, but there was something about Grant that made even his scowl impossible to resist.The man fucked me like he hated me, but I wasn’t just a hole to him.From everything I’d heard when I was living in the city, men just looking for a quick release didn’t usually make a woman come undone on their fingers and tongue before even getting their cock out.I still remembered the way it felt to have my fingers buried in his hair, and the intimacy in the way he touched me despite the fact that we were relative strangers—antagonistic ones at that.I’d be a liar if I tried to say I wasn’t hoping to get with Grant one way or another, and even if I had envisioned a couple of
GrantThe tavern door slammed shut as I made my escape, my heart pounding in my chest like a war drum coming from across enemy lines. There was a chill in the air that burned my lungs when I inhaled, but I didn’t care.All I cared about was getting the hell out of there.Whatever I expected to happen when I made the decision to give into my desires and fuck Deidre Carey, I didn’t expect this.All I had hoped was that I’d knocked back enough alcohol to keep the beast at bay so I wouldn’t show her my other face and scare her to death—if the animal didn’t rip her to shreds.It was a gamble, but I didn’t expect to hit the jackpot.For the first time since becoming a werewolf, the beast inside of me felt tamed. Sated.I was desperate for a way to control the new monster inside of me, but I never expected to find the answer buried between that woman’s legs.It was more than just the fucking—I’d tried using random hookups to blow off steam in the past, and it didn’t do a damn thing but leave
Deidre“There’s nothing gentlemanly about me.”“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, my voice coming out a little more breathy than I’d intended. My eyes were fixed on his, like I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to.Luckily, I didn’t want to.He extended his hand to me, all his attention on me as though the rest of the bar had stopped existing. “Come with me, and you’ll find out.”I’d have to have been stupid not to understand what was on offer. Young me would have lost her mind if she knew that one day, I’d be sitting here with Grant Hawthorne.But I was a kid back then, and my stupid little crush on the town delinquent didn’t change the fact that we were adults now, and even if he just threw a scumbag out of the bar for harassing me, he was still an asshole when I tried to talk to him this morning.Narrowing my eyes, I shifted on the bar stool, holding my ground as though it didn’t take every shred of willpower in my body. “Why should I?”“You shouldn’t.”But his hand was sti
DeidreWith my floor—mostly—repaired, I decided to reward myself with a trip to one of the few buildings in town I’d never been in before.The Full Moon inn, the village’s local tavern and undoubtably the place to be if I wanted to get to know my new neighbors.When I was a little girl the place was obviously off limits, so even if I wasn’t generally one for drinking, I couldn’t resist the urge to check out what passed for nightlife in a small town like Moonhollow.A bell jingled above the heavy wooden door, and I was immediately enveloped by the soft glow of warm lights, the savory aroma of traditional bar food, and the melancholic crooning of the live band.It was peaceful, inviting even, until I met eyes with the big man sitting at the bar.Grant Hawthorne eyed me sharply as he nursed his mug of beer, pointedly turning away as if to say, ‘Don’t you dare come near me.’It gave me half a mind to march my happy ass over and sit next to him, purely out of spite after the way he acted t
GrantThere was a chill in the air when I walked out of the rinky-dink small town police station. It was the second time I ever walked in there of my own volition, and I hated the way everyone’s eyes lingered on me—especially the sheriff.As far as he was concerned, I was still that same fourteen year old boy who used to break into the local convenience store after closing to steal snacks and shitty cheap beer with my brother.River had cleaned himself up, became a model citizen for Alex’s sake. As far as the village was concerned, the wrong Hawthorne brother had died, even if the police knew I hadn’t had a drop to drink the night we had our accident.And I agreed with them.I dropped off the hoodie and filed an official report about the attempted kidnapping, just like I promised Alex I would, but not before taking a good, long whiff of that hoodie’s stench for myself.That piece of shit was in for a world of hurt if I ever smelled him around the village again. He was scared enough wh
DeidreStepping onto my grandma’s property after all these years felt eerie. Without her here, the place I spent so much of my childhood at just felt like an empty cottage in a plot of woods.She was gone, and she took all of her energy and love with her.“So, what do you think?” I asked the cat, who I’d decided to name Stallone, as I clung to him to stop myself from crying. “I used to spend a lot of time up here, believe it or not.”The small patch of yard she kept was starting to get overgrown, but the rocks I’d painted as a child that marked the path to the house were still there, emblazoned with childish renditions of lizards and bugs, albeit a bit less vibrant than I remembered them.She would have seen these every time she left the cottage, probably missing me on those summer days when I used to skip across the stones pretending the ground was lava.The corner of my lip tugged upward in spite of my grief. The time I did get to spend with her had been idyllic. I couldn’t have ask
GrantAlex snuggled down into her dad’s old hunting quilt, and I pressed a kiss to her forehead.“Goodnight, Kiddo.” I stood up, ruffling her hair before I turned toward the door, hoping to high hell that what happened tonight wouldn’t mentally scar her for life.“Uncle Grant?” She called after me, looking up at me with my brother’s eyes. “We’re safe here, right?”My chest felt constricted, and I had to fight to keep the snarl off of my face when I thought about that weaselly little dirtbag who tried to snatch my niece off the street earlier tonight.All I could think about was tracking the piece of shit down and showing him that he messed with the wrong family. This kid was all I had left, and I’d be damned if I let anyone try to hurt her and live to tell about it.But right now, Alex needed me to keep my cool. Letting her see me get upset would only scare her more.Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to smile at her, leaning against her doorframe. “You’ll always be safe here, Alex
DeidreThe backs of my legs stuck to the old vinyl bus seating, and I instantly regretted my decision to wear a dress for moving day.But it was comfortable right up until I sat down, and I didn’t have to bother pulling a pair of pants out of my already packed wardrobe.Everything I owned was stuffed into one large suitcase—well, everything that wasn’t left to me by my grandmother, anyway.A deep ache nestled itself in my chest as I stared out the foggy old window at the scenery that was once so familiar to me. When I was a little girl, I spent every summer here in Moonhollow with my grandmother, but when my father never returned from his annual hunting trip, my mom moved me out to the city, and I never saw my grandma again.There’d been a hole in my heart ever since I last left Moonhollow. Grandma never had a phone in the old cottage, and though I must have sent her dozens of letters over the years, she never sent even one back.I thought she’d written me off for good, so I never tri