I grin at my reflection in the mirror, at the dazed green eyes and flushed cheeks and messy dark hair of the woman staring back at me. Then I wipe up the sticky mess between my legs and return to the bedroom, flicking on the light as I enter.Kian is stretched out on the bed with one arm propped behind his head, completely naked. Even in this shitty lighting, he looks gorgeous. His skin is a dark tan color, and the tattoos that arc over his flesh are intricate and beautiful. His cock still hasn’t completely softened, and I let myself stare at it for a moment as Kian stares at me.He seems completely unbothered by me ogling him like a piece of meat, probably because he’s running his hungry gaze over me in pretty much the exact same way. I like the feeling of his attention on me, the way I can feel his gaze tracking up and down my form.I saunter back into the room and crawl onto the bed, but instead of lying down next to him, I crawl up to straddle him, resting my knees on either side
A rush of emotions surge in my chest, matching the flood of pleasure racing through my veins, and combined, it’s all too much. I bury my fingers in his hair and buck beneath him as white-hot pleasure erupts inside me.He lets out a deep groan, pounding into me before burying himself to the hilt. His face drops to my shoulder, and he bites down on the spot low on my neck, sending another jolt of sensation shooting through me.“Mine,” he grinds out, and the word sounds like it comes from the depths of his fucking soul.His.Mine.He knows it too. He felt the same thing I did.Our sweat-slicked skin sticks together as he rests on top of me for a moment, then he slowly pulls out and collapses to the mattress next to me. Breathing hard, I stare at a crack in the ceiling, trying to focus on slowing my heartbeat and getting control of my breaths. Every part of me aches in all the best ways, and that transcendental orgasm still quivers through me in tiny aftershocks.I had no idea sex could b
Present DayMy motorcycle purrs like a tiger beneath me as I lean into a curve on a remote highway, taking the turn a little too quickly. Adrenaline skitters through me, and I laugh out loud when I can sense the road only inches from my leather boots. Danger makes me feel alive, more than anything else has in years, so it’s par for the course for me to take a few chances here and there. Once through the curve, I straighten out on a long stretch of empty road as flat as a board beneath a sunset sky.I like sunset in New Mexico. It’s the only time I see color in this desert country. Everything’s brown—brown mesas, brown dirt, brown rocks, green shrubs that are so dry they’re a hair shy of brown. I miss the green mountains of Montana, the colorful wildflowers, the big blue sky. The sky here isn’t ever brown, but when temps soar into the nineties, into triple digits, the sky turns colorless. Might as well be riding my bike on Mars.I open up the throttle and shoot forward, taking advantage
I pull up to the first motel I see and park my bike near the front door. My knees are wobbly as I slide off the seat, and I pause to stretch my arms and legs. Usually, I try not to be on the road so long, but shit happens.The glass door is so light that a strong breeze could throw it open. I yank it shut behind me, then pass under a flickering light and wrinkle my nose at the very obvious scent of mildew beneath the pungent odor of bleach. Just another run-down hovel clinging to capitalism, like all the dozens of other places I’ve lain my head.“Need a room,?I greet the guy at the front desk.At first glance, I think he’s young. But when he smiles, his eyes fold into laugh lines. His tan is too dark. Not “I spend time outside” dark but “I’m terrified of getting older so I bake in a sun bed every other day to halt my existential crisis” dark. There’s a white line on his left ring finger. Recently divorced, or pretending she doesn’t exist on the off chance he can stick his dick in som
The front door is open to the evening air, spilling the mouthwatering scent of fried food and beer into the lot. I bypass a large group standing around just inside the doors, all of them with glasses in hand, then weave through a sea of high top tables to get to the bar.The bar’s magnificent—dark, heavy wood that’s as aged as a fine wine. The same rich wood lines the wall behind the bar, planks intersected by mirrors and shelves holding rows and rows of liquor. It gives the whole area a kind of rustic, pirate ship feel.I’m not even seated on one of the high-backed stools before the bartender comes to greet me. He’s a tall, lanky man with limbs that seem too stretched for his body and a head full of thick gray hair. His name tag declares him “Joe.” The owner, maybe.He tosses a white rag over his shoulder and gives me a lopsided smile that seems more genuine than I’m used to. “You look like a whiskey girl.”Just the word whiskey sends fury racing through me.It’s an immediate, viscer
Motherfucker.Of all the fucking bars in all the fucking cities in this country, Kian has to walk into this one when I least expect him. I’m three drinks in, filled to the brim with a burger and fries, and half-dead from traveling all day.Things just got really complicated.He’s standing in the doorway, his gaze sweeping the bar for an open table. I’m transported back to Keggers in Montana, watching him walk into my life like a human wrecking ball. Here he is, doing the exact same thing in an obscure hole in the wall in middle-of-nowhere New Mexico like nothing’s changed.Things have changed though. In the three years since I last saw him, he’s gotten harder, both in his face and in his sinewy, muscular body. His hair’s longer with a hint of curl at the tips, like he’s forgotten to get a trim. He still has broad shoulders and an imposing height as he looms in the doorway—a demon in black jeans. He’s got more tattoos, too, swirling up both sides of his neck and down to his wrists on e
Slouching casually against the booth seat, I grip my glass in one hand and go for my best bored voice. “You’re a hard man to find.”Kian raises an eyebrow, then lifts the menu back up to peruse the selections. “You didn’t find me.”I reach out and slam my palm into the laminated paper, knocking it to the table.“What the hell are you?” I snap.He purses his lips for a moment, the first sign of emotion I’ve seen on his face. “I’m a shif—”“Bullshit,” I cut in before he even finishes speaking. “You’re not a shifter. You’re more than that.”Joe appears next to the table and slides my change across the sticky surface. He glances between me and Kian, then raises an eyebrow at me. “You forgot your change.”“Thanks,” I say and peel off a ten for him.With one last suspicious glance between us, Joe leaves us to the rising tension.Kian leans forward, lacing his fingers on the table top. With his elbows out and his chest so fucking broad to begin with, the position makes him loom, makes his bo
He knew what was between us just like I did that night. He knows what he turned his back on.I stare him down, every cell in my body on fire with loathing. Gritting my teeth, I promise myself that I will stop him. No matter what it takes.An explosion of glass and liquid next to our table startles me out of my vengeful thoughts. I jolt away from the splatter of alcohol and turn to find Brandee standing over an entire tray of shattered glasses, her big eyes shiny with unshed tears.“I’m so sorry!” she squeaks. “The glass didn’t hit you, did it? It just slipped right out of my hands! I should have dried them off...”I catch a blur of black out of the corner of my eye and realize Kian’s on the move.“Fuck!” I leap to my feet to follow him.Glass crunches beneath my boots as I run through Brandee’s mess. I slip on a puddle of sharp-smelling alcohol and catch myself on the back of a chair, then launch forward on Kian’s heels. He weaves through the crowd of bar patrons like he’s made of wat
Fuck. Could Amora even survive what exists in the other realm? Unease prickles up my spine at how close we just came to losing her.We need to take those shadows out, I tell my brothers. As fast as we can.We’re yanked back into combat as several of Quinton’s wolves burst into our little circle, breaking up the party.I pounce on the nearest Blood Moon wolf, taking him down to the ground, while Malix and Frost tag team a shadow shifter. Picking up the wolf with my teeth, I fling him at two more advancing wolves, taking them down like pins in a bowling lane.When I glance back up, Malix and Frost are having trouble with their shadow shifter. The beast is big, and he must’ve been pumped full of more shadow magic than the rest, because he fights almost like a Berserker, wild and brutal. I leap over one of the fallen wolves and head toward them to help, only to stop cold as Amora screams my name.Kian!Whirling around, I find her darting over the uneven terrain in a mad zigzag pattern whi
KianJust like thenight when Quinton nearly executed our mate with a bullet to the head, I don’t hesitate.I’m in the air a split second after my old alpha’s paws have left the dirt. I intercept his leap and slam into him in mid-air, angling so that I hit his head with my chest. He’s so massive that it feels like a rock wall slamming into me, and I huff out a pained breath. If I were any smaller or weaker, I have no doubt his skull would have broken a few bones in my torso.Quinton flies away from me while I fall to the ground, winded. I barely manage to land on all fours as he skids away from me, kicking up dirt and stones and clumps of grass. All around me, chaos breaks loose as the Silver Crest wolves and Blood Moon pack launch into an all-out war.In the very short half second I have before Quinton stands, I glance around and consider our odds. We’re on Felicity’s turf now, and there are more of us physically than there are of them. Both will give us an advantage. Unfortunately, t
AmoraFuck. Not Quinton. Please, don’t let it be Quinton. We’re not fucking ready.I’m not sure who moves first, but within seconds of the piercing howl outside, the four of us are racing across the dark, silent cabin toward the front door.Kian reaches the door first and flings it open, launching himself out into the night with Malix and Frost right behind him. As I come even with the door and prepare to shift, I pause for a fraction of a second, mesmerized by the sight of them leaping from the small front stoop.They trail black smoke as they shift, morphing like shadows. It’s beautiful in a deadly sort of way, as if they’re more than limbs and torsos and heads, but something more metaphysical. More fluid. A macabre dance of shadows.Then they land on the dusty front lawn in full shadow wolf form and take off. I hurry to follow behind, letting my own shift take over my body in the split second after I leap off the porch stoop.Another howl lights up the night, and I put on a burst o
AmoraI surfacefrom a dreamless sleep to the deep, dark of night, cocooned by the warmth of the three men sleeping around me.I’m on my back, completely pinned in by them—something that, once upon a time, would have sent alarm bells clanging through my head. Instead, it’s peaceful and comforting, if a little too warm.The ceiling is barely visible in the blackness, small cracks in the paint standing out like spider webs made of ink. I take a couple of deep breaths, staring up at them as I try to figure out where I stand. How I feel.The past few weeks still weigh on my shoulders, although I imagine that’s not something that’s just going to go away. Things still aren’t good here. We lost against Quinton, and I’m not naïve enough to think he won’t retaliate. Felicity is dead, and that’s a pretty permanent problem that’s going to throw her whole pack into a state of flux for a while.On the other hand, for the first time in a while, I’m okay. Even if the external world is chaos, my inter
In this moment, it’s just me and my men.Finally, Malix lifts his head and drops a kiss to the tip of my nose. “God, I love fucking you,” he murmurs.“Good.” I chuckle. “Because I’ve got lots of plans for more of this.”He waggles his eyebrows. “Dirty girl. You really are my fated mate.”I breathe out another laugh at the idea that my dirty mind is the true proof that we’re a fated match, shaking my head and grinning at him as he draws back, his cock sliding out of me.Frost, Malix, and I all look toward Kian next.The final piece of the puzzle. My third mate.He’s kneeling on the bed beside me, and when I reach for him, he comes willingly. He settles between my legs, his cock hard and thick. But he doesn’t slide into me right away. Instead, he trails one hand down my stomach, and all four of us watch the path of his fingers as they move lower and lower. When he reaches my pussy, he dips two fingers inside. I moan at the feeling, and heat flashes in his eyes.“You look so stunning lik
His gold-rimmed eyes gleam darkly, as if he knows exactly what I’m doing—trying to get a rise out of him. But the heated possessiveness never wavers in his expression as he gives me an answer.“Because I want to look at you. I want my brothers to see what’s theirs. What’s ours.”Oh.Oh fuck.I didn’t expect his answer to turn me on so much, but after everything that just happened between us in the bathroom, every word he just spoke is loaded with meaning.So I don’t push back against his order, staying still just like he told me to and allowing the three men to stare down at me. Frost reaches down to grip his cock, and I wonder if he’s squeezing himself to get a little relief or to try to get his arousal under control. Maybe a bit of both.That thought makes me whimper softly, and although I make no move to reach for the feral shifters, I can’t resist reaching down to slide one hand between my legs.“Shit, kitty,” Malix chokes out as I use my fingertips to spread my pussy lips, giving
“Fuck prophecies,” I repeat as I swipe at the tears threatening to crest over my eyelashes. “I make my own fate. We’ll make our own fate. Together. And it won’t end in murder. Got it?” I jam my finger into Kian’s chest and cut a glare toward Frost. “We aren’t going to go down like that. Not like them. I couldn’t stand it. I can’t even stand the thought of… of hurting you or killing you. Jesus. I can’t believe I ever tried—”Suddenly, Frost’s arm snakes out and hooks around my waist. He yanks me to him, my arms crushed between us as my fingers still cling to my towel, and his lips cover mine, cutting off my rant.There’s a salty, spicy taste to his skin, and when his lips part in that tentative way of his, I’m surrounded by the familiar scent of his body. Warmth unfurls in my belly, heating my skin, and I tilt my face up to his, opening to his kiss.It’s soft at first, but then he catches my face in his hands and deepens the kiss, his tongue sliding against mine with deliberate possess
AmoraHeat risesin my eyes as I flip the water on in the shower and climb inside. I don’t even wait for the water to warm, and the shock of cold zings through me, giving me a rush of adrenaline to chase away the sheer exhaustion that’s settled over my bones. The cold quickly fades, replaced by lukewarm water. Another twist of the pipes gives me the scalding temperature I need to ease the emotional turmoil I feel.Weeks of grime slosh off my body beneath the shower head while my tears disappear into the water on my face. I dump shampoo on my hair and scrub vigorously with my fingernails, scratching harder than necessary. If I focus on the little pinpricks of pain, maybe I can get the sight of Quinton standing over Felicity’s body out of my head.If only for a moment.His mate.His mate.How could he do that?I turn, ducking my head under the water to rinse out the suds. I grab the bar of soap off the ledge beside me and lather my hands, then use my nails again to scrub at my face.How
So we travel quickly, digging deep into our energy reserves to race headlong across state lines. Micro-naps and brief pauses to eat or drink are the only breaks we allow, and surprisingly, nobody falls behind. I assume the weaker shifters are still running on pure adrenaline.Most of the adrenaline has faded by the time we cross the state line into Wyoming, but it doesn’t matter. We keep pushing anyway.When we finally reach the Silver Crest pack’s boundaries two days later, a heavy feeling falls over the group. Felicity’s shifters slow, as if dreading to bring the news of her death to those left back home.Many of the wolves limp or nurse wounds that have yet to fully heal, and it doesn’t take more than a glance to understand every one of them is completely demoralized by what happened. It’s late in the day, and although the last rays of the sun paint the buildings with a warm, glowing light, despair hangs around us like a weight in the air.When pack members begin to emerge from the