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SHIFTED LOVE VOLUME 1

FIONA DAVENPORT

Copyright © 2020 by Fiona Davenport Cover designed by Elle Christensen Edited by Editing4Indies All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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CONTENTS

Shifted Love Her Wolf 1. Allegra 2. Zeke 3. Allegra 4. Allegra 5. Zeke 6. Allegra 7. Allegra 8. Zeke 9. Allegra 10. Allegra Epilogue Epilogue Extra epilogue Her Alpha 1. Larissa 2. Kace 3. Larissa 4. Larissa 5. Kace 6. Larissa 7. Kace 8. Kace 9. Larissa Epilogue

Epilogue Extra Epilogue Her Tiger 1. Calliope 2. Tane 3. Calliope 4. Calliope 5. Tane 6. Calliope 7. Calliope 8. Tane 9. Calliope 10. Calliope Epilogue Epilogue Extra Epilogue Special Scene About the Author

SHIFTED LOVE VOLUME 1

This collection contains the first three novellas in the Shifted Love series plus three brand new epilogues and a special scene featuring Luke, who will get his HEA in Her Mate!

Her Wolf Allegra Hale had no idea shifters existed when she headed o to college with her two best friends. Let alone that her campus was near a shifter town. But that all changed when she got into a crash and was rescued by Zeke Blakesley—the wolf shifter who insisted they belonged together.

Zeke knew Allegra was his fated mate the moment he caught her scent. Now that he has found the woman who was born to be his, he’ll never let her go.

Her Alpha When Larissa Nash went looking for her best friend, she never expected to find her in a town full of shifters. She didn’t even know they existed until Kace Lowell clued her in on the secret by shifting into his wolf.

Mating a human was complicated for the alpha of the pack, but Kace was more than ready to take on anyone who dared to challenge Larissa’s place in his life.

Her Tiger Calliope Taft has wanted a hunky shifter of her own ever since her best friends let her in on the secret of their existence. Just when she started to give up hope, a sexy tiger shifter claimed her as his own.

Tane Ruslan hadn’t expected to find his fated mate right across the street when he returned home to Timber Ridge.

Now that Calliope was where she belonged—with him—Tane intended to make all her dreams come true...and keep her safe from the bad guys who came looking for her.

HER WOLF

Allegra Hale had no idea shifters existed when she headed o to college with her two best friends. Let alone that her campus was near a shifter town. But that all changed when she got into a crash and was rescued by Zeke Blakesley—the wolf shifter who insisted they belonged together.

Zeke knew Allegra was his fated mate the moment he caught her scent. Now that he has found the woman who was born to be his, he’ll never let her go.

1

ALLEGRA

“I

can’t believe we’re finally back at the dorm after what felt like the longest five-day weekend ever.” Larissa spun around in a circle with a big grin, her arms spread wide.

Calliope and I glanced at each other and rolled our eyes.

Neither of us had big plans for after high school, other than wanting to get out of our hometown and from underneath our parents’ thumbs. When Larissa suggested we all apply to the same college, Calliope and I had gone along with the plan. Then again, it wasn’t much of a surprise. We’d been following her lead since kindergarten.

Some of her ideas hadn’t turned out well—like the time we’d gone skinny dipping at Calliope’s parents’ lake house and almost got caught by a group of boys a few houses down —but all of us living together at school had been a stroke of genius. Getting my degree wasn’t super important to me, but I was doing better than I’d expected in my classes. Over the past few months, I’d loved living with my best friends and enjoyed being away from my mom’s watchful eye.

The drive back to my dorm felt almost as long as the entire weekend at home. My poor dad. Even while sitting next to me and talking to me the whole time, Mom managed to be a back-seat driver. “I almost can’t believe they actually

left instead of my mom insisting they should spend the night here in town before heading back,” I grumbled, flopping down face-first on to my bed. Being home over Thanksgiving break had been a huge adjustment. My mom had practically been latched to my hip the whole time, without giving me a minute to myself.

“For a little bit there, I thought your mom was going to pull a blow-up mattress out of the back of their SUV and announce she was moving into the dorm with us.” Calliope sat down beside me and patted my back. “It’s a good thing your dad wasn’t on board with that plan or else we would’ve ended up with a fourth roommate.”

“Can you imagine?” I buried my face in a pillow, my shoulders shaking with laughter.

“Too easily.” Larissa dropped down on Calliope’s other side. The three of us barely fit together on the twin-sized mattress, but we’d squeezed into tighter spaces before—like the bench seats on the middle school bus that had been meant for two but we insisted on sharing anyway. “She’s always brought helicopter momming to a whole new level.”

“She really has,” I sighed, scooting up into a sitting position. I looped my arms around my shins and rested my chin on my knees. “And she took it to whole new levels over the break.”

“Yeah, but I bet you’ll miss her cooking.” Larissa grinned as she slid o the mattress to pad across the room and grab the container of chocolate chip cookies my mom had baked for us. Popping open the lid, she took a big bite out of one of them before bringing the cookies over to share with us.

“Maybe she’ll send more in her next care package,” Calliope mumbled around the cookie she was chewing on.

Larissa snagged another one and nodded. “I’m sure she will if Allegra lets her know how awesome they were.”

“Definitely,” I agreed with a grin. “She was already going on and on about all the things she forgot to get me, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I get a box in the mail next week. I’ll send her a text in the morning to let her know we already polished o this batch.”

Calliope grabbed another cookie. “I’d be shocked if you didn’t get three or four care packages from her before Christmas break even though it’s less than a month away.”

“Totally.” Larissa handed me the container before crossing the room to grab her purse o her bed. Digging inside, she pulled out a rubber banded wad of cash and wiggled it from side to side. “Meanwhile, my dad planned ahead so he wouldn’t need to send me anything for the next semester.”

“I like how your dad thinks.” I jumped up and grabbed the cash. Yanking the rubber band o , I fanned out the bills to count how much he’d given her. When I hit five thousand, my jaw dropped. “Dude. He realizes your books, dorm room, and meal plan are already all paid for, right?”

“Yeah.” She took the wad of money back and shoved it into her desk drawer. “But you guys know how he is, always worrying that I’ll miss out on stu and trying to make sure I have anything I need.”

Larissa’s dad was as protective as our parents, but most people missed it. Not Calliope and me, though. Growing up with her, we understood that his gru exterior masked his big heart. Even though he was kind of clueless about girls, he still rocked the whole single dad thing. “I know what you need right now.”

My friends laughed and started putting their shoes back on because they knew exactly what I was going to suggest.

When we first moved into the dorm, our parents took us to a diner in town for lunch before they hit the road to head back home. They had the best strawberry milkshakes I’d ever

tasted, and anytime we went o campus, I wanted to grab one. Luckily, Larissa and Calliope liked them—and loved me —enough that they were willing to stop there whenever I asked.

Fifteen minutes later, we were sitting at our regular booth in the back corner. It was a good thing the hostess knew our orders by heart because our waitress didn’t bother to stop by our table until we were halfway finished with our shakes.

“What can I get you?” she asked without bothering to look up from her notepad.

Larissa rolled her eyes before answering, “Nothing. We’re good with the shakes.”

Her head jerked up, and she glared at us. “Seriously, you don’t want anything else?”

“Nope.” I let the P pop and grinned when she hu ed in frustration and stomped away.

“I wonder when she started here,” Calliope grumbled before slurping on her vanilla malt. I always got strawberry, and Larissa got chocolate, but she rotated through the flavors. I suspected that sometimes she picked based on what she was wearing. The cream cable-knit sweater she was wearing today was almost a perfect match for her shake.

“She’s got to be new, or else we would’ve seen her here before,” Larissa suggested as she scooped o the last bit of whipped cream from the top of her shake.

“Maybe she replaced Candi since she usually does the Sunday evening shift, and I don’t see her anywhere,” I added.

Larissa and Calliope leaned against each other and giggled, shaking their heads.

“What?” I asked, not getting how I’d made them crack up.

Larissa pulled her straw out of her shake, sucked the shake out of it, and pointed it at me. “Only you would know

the waitresses’ schedules by heart. You’re obsessed with this place.”

“You might be right.” I shrugged and grinned. “Even though my mom made all of my favorites over break, I legit dreamed about these strawberry shakes a few times while I was home.”

“You do realize your mom would’ve made you as many milkshakes as you wanted, right?” Calliope asked. “You should’ve saved your fantasies for something good, like hot guys.”

“She would’ve tried, but they just wouldn’t be the same.”

I sucked down the rest of my shake and pushed my empty glass to the end of the table. “And you know I haven’t found a guy worth dreaming about yet. I thought when we got to college it would be di erent, but the boys here are just as immature as the ones in high school. All they care about is getting into your panties before moving on to the next girl.”

“Yeah, it would be nice to meet someone who was ready for a relationship for a change,” Calliope agreed with a nod after finishing her shake and nudging her glass next to mine.

“Just so long as we remember we’re worth way more than the boys on campus are willing to give, we’ll find the right guys eventually.” Larissa reached out and lifted her pinkie in the air. Calliope and I followed suit, and we wrapped them together as a reminder of the pact we’d made to wait to give up our V-cards until we met guys who we could truly see ourselves spending the rest of our lives with.

She was done with her shake less than a minute later, but the glasses sat there for another fifteen before our waitress stopped by and picked them up. We asked for our check, but she didn’t come back with it for another ten minutes. When she disappeared in the back again, I’d had enough.

“You guys go ahead.” I held out my hand for Larissa to fork over some of the cash her dad had given her. “I’ll pay

the check and meet you back in the dorm.”

The waitress was slow as heck, and another half hour passed before she brought my change back. I’d been tempted to just let her keep it so I could finally leave, but there was no way I was going to leave her that big of a tip after the crap service she’d given us. I dug a few singles out of my purse and dropped them on the table after pocketing the bills she’d given me—because of course she didn’t bother to give me anything smaller than a ten. I heard her hu behind me as I stalked outside to wait for my rideshare. It was cold and snowy, but the car was only a few minutes away, and I was beyond ready to get out of the diner.

When the driver pulled up to the curb, I yanked the rear door open and jumped inside. “Thanks,” I murmured, rubbing my arms in an attempt to warm up more quickly.

“No worries.” After a quick glance in the rearview mirror, he turned up the heat, and said, “It’s cold out there.”

“Yup.” I nodded as I buckled my seat belt. “I’m lucky you were available. Walking back to campus in this would’ve been awful.”

“Yeah, I think you’re going to be my last trip tonight since it’s starting to really come down, and the plows haven’t done a pass yet.”

2

ZEKE

K

icking back in my leather recliner, I grabbed the remote to turn on the football game. With a plate full of chicken wings, a bag of chips, and a cold bottle of beer waiting for me on the table at my side, I was looking forward to a night all to myself without any responsibilities. My week had been jam-packed, and my plans for a chill weekend had been blown out of the water yesterday morning when my mom had called to ask me to come over and help move her living room furniture. It’d turned into a full day of rearranging almost every room in her house, followed by the feast she’d made to thank me for all my help. While we were eating, she’d mentioned that she wanted to go to the farmers’ market one town over this morning, so I o ered to take her and ended up spending almost five hours running errands.

Now that I was finally back home and nobody needed me for anything, I was ready for some alone time. I normally preferred to spend most of my time surrounded by family and friends, but every once in a while, I needed to recharge on my own. Unfortunately, my solitude only lasted for about five minutes before Kace flung open my front door, stomped through my living room, and dropped down on my couch.

“I need you to head over to Stewart and talk to the owner of the liquor distributor we use for Howler’s.” He tossed a sheet of paper in my direction, and I reached out to snag it from the air. Glancing down, I wrinkled my brow when I scanned the list of alcohol bottles with check marks next to way too few of the items.

“They fucked up almost half of our order yesterday, and I’m tired of this shit. A phone call isn’t going to cut it this time. They need to understand there are repercussions beyond losing our business for pulling this kind of shit.”

“Fuck,” I groaned, running my fingers through my hair.

What Kace was asking should’ve been an easy yes for me.

Stewart was only two towns over, and I was always up for knocking some heads together when warranted—plus, there was the fact that I was a wolf shifter, and he was my alpha.

But I’d been looking forward to my low-key night, and I had the worst luck whenever I had to run an errand there. “Can’t Tane do it instead?”

“You got a problem with the shit I tell you to do?” he rumbled, his dark eyes flashing with more than a hint of his power.

“Dude. You know me better than that.” I tilted my head to the side, just enough to show him my throat as a gesture of submission. “I’m a part of your pack not just because I was born into it. You’re my alpha because I respect you and can’t see myself willingly following anyone else’s lead.”

He sighed and dropped his head to stare at his lap for a minute. After he took a few deep breaths, he met my gaze again as the tension between us disappeared. “I’m sorry.

You’re right. I do know you better than that, which is why you’re my second in command.”

Many alphas didn’t bother to apologize, and Kace’s choice to admit when he was wrong was one of the reasons he had my respect. But I’d noticed he’d been doing it more often

than usual over the past few months. “Is there a reason you’ve been so damn grouchy lately?”

“I’m not sure what’s causing it, but my wolf has been on a shorter leash. I noticed it in September, but I think it started before then,” he admitted, shaking his head. “I haven’t been able to figure out why he’s so damn edgy.”

“Maybe you should go for a run,” I suggested. Sometimes the wolf side of our nature needed to work o his excess energy just as much as the human did, especially for those of us who hadn’t found our mates. The female fate intended for us was the only thing that could truly soothe the beast inside our skin, but neither of us had found ours yet.

Kace considered my advice before he nodded. “That’s a good idea. Things have been crazy around here lately, and I haven’t had the chance to go on a run since the last full moon.”

I crumpled up the paper and tossed it back at him. “Since I just solved your grouchiness issue, how about you get someone else to head over to Stewart to fix the liquor issue.”

I pointed at the half-eaten plate of wings and added, “My plans for tonight didn’t include dealing with anything other than a full stomach.”

“Sometimes we’ve got to do shit we don’t want to do.”

Kace shrugged but didn’t look too worried about ruining my night as he grabbed a couple of my wings for himself.

“Sending Tane won’t send a strong enough message. It’s got to be you since you’re my beta.”

“Damn,” I groaned, flipping the handle on the side of my recliner to send my leg rest down. “Fucking Stewart.”

Kace chuckled and tossed his chicken wing bones onto the side of my plate. “I don’t get it. Why do you sound like I’m sending you to your death?”

I wasn’t the kind of guy who got embarrassed, but I felt heat fill my cheeks as I remembered what had happened

when I was in Stewart a few days ago. “My mom wanted a pecan pie from the diner over there to go with the pumpkin one she baked for Thanksgiving. I ran into an issue picking it up for her.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad if you didn’t tell me about it.” He leaned back, stretching his legs out to prop his feet on my co ee table. “What kind of trouble did you manage to get into in a college town full of humans?”

“The new waitress could’ve passed for an octopus shifter with how handsy she tried to get with me.” I shuddered just thinking about it.

Kace cringed at the analogy. “Hopefully, you can duck into their place without her spotting you.”

“It’s not just her, man. I swear, all the girls who go to that school are boy crazy,” I grumbled as I got to my feet.

“Whenever I’m in Stewart, at least one of them tries to throw herself at me. If she were my mate, I’d be all over that shit, but none of them have been, and they don’t take no for an answer. Then when I finally manage to untangle myself, their fucking scent clings to my skin, and it’s all wrong. My wolf gets pissed, and the drive feels as though it takes forfucking-ever before I’m back home and can wash it o me.”

Kace grabbed the last few chicken wings before standing, too. “Maybe you’ll get lucky this time around, and the girl throwing herself at you will turn out to be your mate.”

“It’s not gonna happen. I’m just not that lucky, as proven by you barging in here and interrupting my night,” I denied with a shake of my head. “That’s not taking into account how I’m headed to a town full of humans who don’t even know shifters or fated mates exist.”

“I wouldn’t care if my mate was human as long as I found her.” Kace flashed me a chiding look, and I felt like shit since I shouldn’t have needed the reminder. My irritation over my change in plans had me saying shit I didn’t even mean. “It

won’t matter if yours is a wolf shifter, human, or can turn into a fucking goldfish. She’ll be the best thing that’s ever happened to you because she’s your mate.”

“Damn straight,” I agreed with a small smile as I pulled my coat o the hook by the front door and shrugged it on.

He slapped me on the back as he passed me to head down the sidewalk to where his car was parked at the curb. “You never know. Fate works in mysterious ways sometimes.”

Kace’s parting words echoed in my brain while I drove to Stewart. It wasn’t surprising since mating was a driving force for all shifters. We didn’t feel complete until we found our mates, the other half of our souls. I’d put up with that irritating waitress a thousand times if it helped me find her...the one who was meant for me.

After parking a few doors down from my destination—on the opposite side of the diner because it was insane to think that running into the waitress would actually help—I climbed out of my truck. My wolf pushed against my skin before I even got the door shut, and it took a moment for the reason to click in my head.

The faintest hint of a strawberries and cream scent filled my nostrils. It was unlike anything I’d ever smelled before.

The alluring scent could have only come from one source— my mate.

Mine.

It took all my willpower to keep my human skin as my wolf fought to break free. As it demanded we find our mate.

Now. The only reason he pulled back was that my human half was just as anxious to track the sent to my mate. Scanning my surroundings, I didn’t see anyone nearby on the sidewalk. But the car that had just pulled away from the curb as I had turned into my parking spot was only a couple of blocks down the street. Thinking back to the moment before

it had left, I remembered that a woman had climbed into the back seat. She had been less than ten feet away from where I was currently standing so the lingering scent had to be hers.

My head swiveled in the direction the car had gone, and I sprinted toward the horrifying sight in front of me.

3

ALLEGRA

M

y gratitude that the driver hadn’t called it a night before picking me up quickly turned to terror when we approached a red light, and the car started to skid sideways instead of stopping. He wasn’t able to stop the slide, and we kept going into the intersection. The accident happened in seconds, but it felt as though a lifetime passed before we crashed into the light pole on the other side of the intersection. The vehicle slammed into it so hard, the front end crumpled.

My seat belt prevented me from flying forward, but it hurt like heck where it pulled against my body. I was dazed when the car finally came to a rest, and I slammed back against the back seat. The crash was hard enough that the airbag went o in the driver’s face, and he was slumped in his seat.

Other than the snow falling, everything around us was still. My head felt as though it was spinning. I blinked a few times in an attempt to clear my vision, but it was still fuzzy around the edges. When I tried to undo my seat belt to get to the driver, I discovered it was stuck. The driver hadn’t moved or said anything, and I was starting to freak out. I stretched out my arm to shake his shoulder as I asked, “Hey, are you okay?”

He didn’t answer, so I yanked on the buckle at my left hip and tried to disengage the lock. It didn’t accomplish much.

The buckle didn’t budge, and the belt tightened over my body, biting into my shoulder and making me whimper in pain.

“Here, let me help.” My head jerked to the right, and I was stunned to see a man crouched down next to me. I had no idea where he came from, or how he’d opened the door without me hearing anything. I must have been more out of it than I’d realized because he was less than a foot away from me.

His piercing green eyes were locked onto my face, and it felt as though he could see straight into my soul. My heart started to race, pounding so hard I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had burst through my chest. It could have been because of the adrenaline rush from the accident, but it also might have been due to the fact that the man reaching for the buckle to release my seat belt was incredibly gorgeous.

His dark hair and tanned skin were a stark contrast to the pale green of his eyes. Although he wasn’t standing, I could still tell he was tall, and his muscles strained against the sleeves of his winter coat.

“Wha—” My question turned into a gasp when he slid one arm around my back and the other under my upper thighs to tug me out of the car.

“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” he soothed, carrying me down the street toward the diner. His deep voice felt like a caress across my skin, sending shivers down my spine. My reaction to him was overwhelming and completely out of character for me. I’d never felt this kind of instant attraction to anyone else, and I wasn’t sure if it was somehow partly due to me being vulnerable after the accident. As ridiculous as it sounded, maybe slamming into that pole had made me more open to being attracted to a man. I didn’t know how else to

explain it when I’d never been drawn to a man like this before.

I leaned my head against his shoulder and breathed deep, his masculine scent filling my lungs. There was a hint of pine, which made me think he smelled like Christmas—only better because it was mixed with something purely masculine that sent my already befuddled senses reeling. I was acting so out of character; I was starting to wonder if I’d hit my head during the crash or something.

The man strode past the diner and shifted his hold on me to open the door of a big, black truck parked a few stores down. He’d carried me all that way without breaking a sweat, and I was awed by his strength.

He was incredibly gentle as he placed me on the seat and leaned close. He scanned my face and body, his green eyes filling with concern as he asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I think I’ll be fine.” I lifted my arm to touch my right shoulder, pretty sure it had been badly bruised by the seat belt. I quickly regretted the action, and when I cringed in pain, he wrapped his fingers around my wrist and lowered my arm to my lap.

“Let me check that for you,” he o ered, his thumb stroking the inside of my wrist.

“Okay,” I agreed softly even though I didn’t want him to move his hand because the way he was touching me felt so good.

I held still as he carefully pulled my coat to the side and tugged the neckline of my sweater out of the way. His touch was tender as he glided his fingers over my collarbone. “It doesn't look swollen, which is a good sign when you could’ve ended up with a broken bone. You'll probably end up with a bruise, and the pain will be worse in the next couple of days.

Then you should feel better by Wednesday or Thursday.”

“It sounds like you have a lot of experience with injuries.

Are you a doctor?”

“No, but I've had more than my fair share of bruises and broken bones,” he chuckled and shook his head. “I guess I skipped over a step when I hauled you out of that car. I’m Zeke Blakesley.”

“I’m Allegra Hale.” I o ered him a shy smile. “Thanks so much for stopping to help.”

“Do you hurt anywhere else?”

I shifted in the seat and took stock of how I felt. “No, I just have some aches and pains but nothing else major.”

“Good, I hate the thought of you hurting.” He put my sweater and coat back in place before strapping the seat belt over me.

After he stepped back, I was able to see down the street to the crumpled car. “What about the driver?”

“I’ll call 911 now,” he o ered, glancing over his shoulder.

“I can see him moving, so he must not be hurt too badly.”

My eyes narrowed as I tried my best to focus on the driver, but he was just a blur to me. “You must have really good eyesight.”

“Better than 20/20,” he confirmed as he pulled his phone out of the front pocket of his jeans. He swiped at the screen to make the call to emergency services before closing the door and striding around the truck. When he finished talking to the operator, he climbed into the driver’s side and started the engine.

As he backed out of the parking spot, I asked, “Shouldn’t we wait for them to get here? Maybe go check on the driver?”

“She said the ambulance would be here in a few minutes and didn’t ask me to wait for them,” he explained, heading down the street in the opposite direction of the wreck.

The motion of the car freaked me out a little—probably because I’d just been in a crash—and I squeezed my eyes shut. “I guess if you’re sure I won’t get in trouble for leaving, it’s okay for us to go.”

“You don’t need to be worried. I won’t let anything happen to you,” Zeke promised, reaching out to lace his fingers through mine. “My only concern is your safety and well-being.”

I was so out of it from the accident—and distracted by my overwhelming attraction to him—that it took me until he pulled into the driveaway of a house that I didn’t recognize before I realized he’d headed in the opposite direction from my college campus. “Where are we?”

“My house,” he rumbled as he climbed out of the truck.

I stared at his prowling form while he rounded the vehicle to open my door. For the first time tonight, I realized I was in what many would consider a dangerous position—alone with a strange man. “You do realize that bringing me here instead of asking me where I want to go could be considered kidnapping, right?”

4

ALLEGRA

C

onsidering the accusation I just tossed his way, Zeke’s reaction wasn’t what I was expecting. His green eyes lit with humor, and his lips curved up in a sexy grin. “I wasn’t trying to be funny.”

“I know you weren’t.” He pulled a black wallet out of his back pocket and flipped it open with a flick of his thumb, flashing a shiny badge my way. “But I don’t think I’ll run into any issues with the Stewart PD.” I reached out and traced the metallic surface with the tip of my index finger. “You’re a cop?”

“Not just any cop. I’m the town sheri ,” he corrected.

“Which town?” I wasn’t sure where we were, but I knew we weren’t in Stewart anymore.

“Timber Ridge,” he answered as he lifted me out of the truck.

“Timber Ridge?” I echoed softly, my eyes widening in surprise. I knew the name, but the girls and I had never headed this way before.

“Yup.” He didn’t put me on my feet. Instead, he kicked the door shut with one boot before turning toward the house and carrying me up the sidewalk and through the front door.

He finally put me down on a brown leather couch, placing a

pillow behind my back and stretching my legs out to set my feet on the cushions.

Yup? What kind of an answer was that?

“I get that you’re the sheri around here, Zeke Blakesley, but I’m going to need more information than that.”

“More than you know, but let’s get you comfortable first,” he muttered before he started to unbutton my coat.

Instead of doing the safe thing and crossing my arms over my chest to stop him, I leaned forward so he could tug the sleeves down my arms. When he got up to hang it on a hook by the front door and shrugged out of his coat, I noticed how girly it was next to his. “My mom got it for me. The coat,” I blurted awkwardly. “Red is my favorite color, but I know it's more than a Little Red Riding Hood-ish.”

“Funny you should put it that way,” he chuckled.

I felt as though there was an inside joke I wasn’t getting, and my brow wrinkled. “Really? How come?”

He shrugged his broad shoulders. “I’ll get to that in a minute.”

Considering the wolf wanted to eat the girl in that story— and not in a sexy way to make her orgasm—his reaction to my lame attempt at a joke was more than a little confusing.

“I’m already feeling much better. Maybe you should take me back to campus?”

He shook his head as he strode back to the couch. “You were just in an accident. Someone needs to watch over you tonight to make sure you’re okay.”

“That won't be a problem.”

“Won't be a problem?” he growled, lifting my legs to drop down on the cushion next to me before setting my feet on his lap. “Why? Do you have a boyfriend who’ll want to watch over you tonight?”

“Boyfriend?” I shook my head, my cheeks heating because it would be super embarrassing to admit I’d never dated anyone before. “No, I’m only a freshman. Even if I had a boyfriend, which I don’t, he wouldn't be allowed in my dorm room without getting into trouble. I live with my two best friends.”

Most of the tension drained from his body at my admission, and his thumb stroked the inside of my knee.

Even through the thick material of my jeans, I felt the heat of his touch all the way to my core. “Good, because I’m the one who should be taking care of you tonight.”

I tilted my head to the side, my long, black hair falling over my shoulder. “How come?”

He reached out and twirled a dark lock around his finger.

“Because we belong together.”

I was starting to wonder if I'd hit my head harder than I thought. “Am I in a coma or something?”

“No, why would you think that?”

I waved my hand between us and then in a circle. “How else can I explain all of this?”

“All of what?” he asked.

“You. Me. Us,” I sputtered.

“You’re going to have to give me more than that, baby.”

“I just mean that you’re so...”

He brushed his thumb over my bottom lip, stemming the flow of words before I totally embarrassed myself. “Perfect for you?”

“We just met,” I breathed.

Zeke’s eyes filled with heat as they scanned down the length of my body. “Yeah, but that doesn't mean anything when you finally find the person who is meant to be yours.”

His palm cupped my cheek, and I leaned into the touch. “I thought it was just me. You feel it, too?”

“I do,” he confirmed with a sexy grin.

“Wow,” I sighed, completely blown away by his response.

Zeke has the whole tall, dark, and handsome thing down to a T. I was surprised that he’d be into me enough to feel comfortable admitting it out loud so quickly. “I’m starting to think that being in the car crash was totally worth it.”

His hand slid down my neck, and his fingers drifted over my sore shoulder. “Nothing is worth you being in pain.

Especially since I would’ve found you without the accident.”

“You can’t be sure that would’ve happened,” I disagreed.

“I’m on campus most of the time, and I’m sure you’re busy around here, being the sheri and all.”

“You were only a couple of towns away. Fate would have stepped in at some point,” he insisted.

I liked the idea but had a di cult time understanding why he seemed so certain. “How can you be sure?”

“I need you to keep an open mind.”

“Okay,” I drawled, pressing against the cushion at my back. it probably wasn’t a good sign that he felt the need to ask me that.

Resting one hand on my thigh and wrapping the other around my calf, he said, “There are things in this world that are kept a secret from a lot of people because they wouldn't be able to understand the truth or accept it.”

“Whoa, hold up! Are you trying to tell me you're married or something?” I squeaked in horror as my gaze moved to his left hand, but there wasn't a wedding ring there.

“No! Of course, not.” He dropped his head to stare down at his lap and heaved a big sigh. “There's no other way to say this other than to just put it out there. I’m a wolf shifter, and you are my fated mate.”

“I’m sorry. Did you just say you’re a...a...a werewolf?” I sputtered.

“No.” My sigh of relief abruptly ended when he continued, “We prefer to be called wolf shifters. There are

too many negative connotations with the term werewolf.”

“Negative connotations?” I echoed softly, scooting deeper into the cushion at my back.

“Yeah, popular culture got so many things wrong, and it’s a big part of the reason we keep our animal sides hidden from humans.” I was close to hyperventilating, but he didn’t seem to notice how freaked out I was. “We don’t turn other people into shifters by biting them. We’re born this way. And it isn’t just during the full moon that we change. Our animal side is just as much a part of us as our human halves. We can shift whenever we want.”

I shook my head, back to thinking the coma explanation made sense. Then I came up with another possibility.

“Seriously? That’s the story you’re going to try to tell me to get into my panties?”

“It isn’t a story,” he insisted, his hand tightening around my leg as I tried to scramble o the couch.

“Oh, yeah?” I hu ed. “Then prove it. If you don’t need to wait until the next full moon, show me how you can shift into a wolf. Right now.”

5

ZEKE

M

y gorgeous mate was already fair skinned, but the news I had just dropped on her had made her even paler. Her skin looked almost translucent in contrast to her long, dark hair and brown eyes. Her curvy body looked so small as she tried to curl up in the corner of my couch. I wanted to cuddle her on my lap until she wasn’t scared of me anymore. This was the first time I resented the animal side of my nature because it was frightening her.

I had never told a human that shifters existed—not only was Timber Ridge an all shifter town, but we also had rules about not sharing information about our existence without a damn good reason—but I figured her shock was to be expected. “Are you sure you're ready to see my wolf?”

She nodded. “Yup, totally ready.”

Her tone made it more than obvious that she didn't believe a word I was saying, and I wanted to howl in frustration. I had hoped to introduce Allegra to the other side of my nature under better circumstances, but if this was what it took to convince her I was telling the truth, then it had to be done. I couldn't risk losing my mate when it was easy to prove I was telling the truth.

I glided my hand down her leg, wrapping my fingers around her ankle for a moment because I was loathe to let go of her. I savored the feel of her beneath my palm—even with her jeans between us—and inhaled her scent deep into my lungs. It helped soothe my beast as I stood from the couch and stripped my shirt over my head.

“Um...wait...why are you taking your clothes o ?” she asked. Her dark eyes were locked on my bare chest, and she was biting her bottom lip with a hungry look on her beautiful face.

“I only leave them on when I’m in a rush. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have anything to wear.” My lips curved up in a smug grin when her gaze followed my hands down to my jeans and her eyes widened as I popped the snap open before lowering the zipper. She gasped and her cheeks pinkened when I dropped my jeans to the floor after kicking o my boots. My cock strained against my boxers, and I was sorely tempted to let them fall to the floor too. But then shifting would be the last thing on my mind, and I needed to focus on proving to my mate that shifters were real—and that she’d been born to be mine.

“Ready?” I asked.

“Uh-huh.” Her answer was distracted, but the sensual fog cleared from her eyes when I called my wolf forward. Fur swelled under my skin as my muscles rippled. Cracking and popping sounds filled the room as my human form retreated, allowing the wolf to come out. Landing on all fours, I padded closer to Allegra.

“Oh, my gosh! You’re a wolf,” she gasped. Her hand shook as she reached out, and I rubbed my muzzle against it.

Her fingers dug into my fur as she ran her hand across my back. “And you’re gorgeous.”

I let out a soft bark of appreciation and carefully set my paws on either side of her body to climb up and give her chin

a lick.

“Ah! Why is your tongue so cold?” she cried, scrubbing her hand over the spot to dry it o . “I think that might take some getting used to.”

I gave her another lick—just because I could—and then I rubbed my fur against her. I felt a driving urge to mark Allegra with my scent. Any shifter who came near needed to know she was my mate. Mine.

I basked in the sound of her giggles as she let my wolf rub all over her body. Then I settled next to her on the couch while she petted my wolf’s fur and scratched behind my ears.

My wolf wanted to soak up her acceptance of our dual nature, but my human side knew there were things we needed to discuss, and we couldn’t do that until I shifted back. I forced the wolf to take a back seat, changing from my wolf form to human in the blink of an eye.

“Oh, my,” Allegra breathed, my naked body sprawled between her legs.

I pressed one hand against the back of the couch and the other against the arm beside her. Leveling myself over her, I brushed my lips against hers. “Do you believe me now?”

Her hands clutched my bare shoulders as she kept her eyes locked on mine. “Yeah, it’s hard to wrap my brain around everything, but it’s not like I can accuse you of making it up when you just changed into a wolf right in front of me.”

“I’ll never lie to you, Allegra,” I swore, staring into her eyes so she could see the sincerity in mine. “I get that it’s hard for you to process that shifters are real, but I want to make sure you know you can trust me. Even though we just met, I’ve been waiting for you my entire life, and I won’t do anything to mess this up.”

“My instincts were telling me to trust you from the moment you pulled me out of that car,” she admitted softly.

“But I do have some questions for you.”

“Ask me anything,” I o ered.

“Um.” Her gaze started to drift lower, but she jerked her head up again and asked, “Could you pull on some pants first? It’s kind of distracting with your...um...junk hanging out.”

“My junk, huh?” Damn, she was so fucking adorable, it hurt. I flashed her a wink, rolled o her body, and snagged my jeans o the floor. After I pulled them on, I lifted Allegra o the couch before sitting down and settling her on my lap.

“Is that better?”

“I wouldn’t say better, exactly,” she teased with a little grin. “But it’s easier to talk this way.”

She wiggled in my lap, making me groan as my dick pressed against my zipper. I’d been waiting forever to sink deep inside my mate, and my willpower was only so strong now that I’d found Allegra. “Go ahead and ask me whatever you want, baby.”

She rested her head against my shoulder, getting comfortable in my embrace. “Well, you said you’d waited your whole life for me. How long is that?”

“I’m thirty,” I answered, rubbing my chin across the top of her head. Just like the animal side of my nature, I felt the urge to leave my scent all over my gorgeous mate. “How about you?”

“I turned nineteen a couple of months ago,” she admitted softly.

It was a good thing she wasn’t young for a freshman, or else I would’ve been stuck waiting until she was legal before I’d be able to claim her. “I’ll have to do something extra special to celebrate your twentieth since I missed your last birthday.”

Her plump lips curved up in a pleased smile. “I guess that means you think we’ll still be together next year, huh?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely, baby. Mates are forever, and I knew you were mine the second I smelled you. Your strawberries and cream scent called to me from blocks away,” I explained.

“So if one of my friends had gotten a strawberry shake at the diner and then waited around for the check instead of me, you’d be acting like this with them instead?”

Her dark eyes spat fire at me, and she crossed her arms over her chest, blocking my view of her perfect tits. I loved how pissed o the possibility seemed to make her because I wanted my mate to be as territorial over me as I was her. But I didn’t want her to feel pain over something that never would have happened, so I hurried to reassure her. “Your friends could drink a million strawberry milkshakes, and I’d never want them.” I pressed her against my hard length as I tilted my hips up. “You’re the only woman who can do this to me. The only one I’ll ever want.”

6

ALLEGRA

I

’d never seen a penis in real life before, and I’d really wanted to stare at Zeke’s when he’d been naked. It had taken everything in me to force my gaze away from it, and now he was telling me that I was the only woman who could make him hard like that. But I wasn’t sure if I was taking it the wrong way. “When you say you’ve waited thirty years for me and I’m the only one you’ll ever want, you don’t mean like...ever, right? As in you’ve never, um...you—” He saved me from being super awkward by pressing his finger against my lips and finishing my sentence for me.

“Did I mean I’ve never had sex before? Yes, that’s exactly what I was saying.”

This incredibly sexy man just kept surprising me in the very best ways. His confession made it easier for me to admit, “I...um...I’m a virgin, too.”

His hold on me tightened as he pressed his face into the crook of my neck. “I’m so fucking happy to hear that, baby.

Shifters don’t feel desire for anyone other than their mate, and the same tends to be true for their mates even when they’re human. But so often, human mates are completely unaware of why they aren’t attracted to anyone else and aren’t still a virgin when they finally meet the one.”

I’d never expected that I would end up with a man who had such a strong but also positive reaction to my virginity. I kind of assumed it would make guys second-guess being with me. It was a relief to know that Zeke valued the fact that he would be the only man I’d ever slept with, and even more so that I was the only woman he’d ever want to be with. The whole fated mate thing was kind of incredible, especially since it seemed that I was the possessive type when it came to Zeke. But his reaction showed me I was in good company.

“You don’t have anything to worry about there. I’ve never even had a boyfriend or gone on a date with anyone.”

His hold on me tightened again, and I shifted on his lap. A sharp pain radiated up my arm to my shoulder, and I let out a small whimper. “C’mon, let’s get you in a hot bath to help loosen up your muscles so you’re a little less sore tomorrow.

Once I’ve got you settled in the tub, I’ll grab you a pain reliever and something to drink.”

“A bath sounds amazing,” I agreed.

He stood with me in his arms, and I wrapped mine around his neck. I caught glimpses of his home as he carried me through the living room, up the stairs, and down the hallway to a large bedroom decorated in dark blues and grey. He passed the California king-sized bed and brought me directly into the bathroom. After he set me on the vanity between the double sinks, I stared at the oversized Jacuzzi tub and separate rain shower in awe. “Wow, this is gorgeous. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a tub that big before.”

“I put it in for you,” he said as he bent over to play with the knobs until the water pouring out of the faucet was to his satisfaction. He opened a small door on the cabinet built into the bottom of the tub and pulled out a bottle of bubble bath, dumping in a capful before putting it back. Then he looked over his shoulder at me and caught me staring at his butt. He winked at me and added, “I wanted my mate to be

comfortable in our home, so I tried to keep what you might like in mind while I was picking stu out. My niece discovered the tub when they visited last month and took several baths each day.”

“I can see why she enjoyed it so much. You did an excellent job,” I complimented as I traced my fingertip over the marble top of the vanity, grinning at his explanation for the bubble bath since it was di cult to picture him in a bath full of bubbles.

He brushed a soft kiss against my forehead before reaching over my shoulder to open the medicine cabinet.

“I’m glad you think so since I did it all for you.”

“Seriously, what did I ever do to deserve a guy like you?”

Zeke seemed too good to be true.

“You don’t have to do anything other than be yourself,” he answered as he shook a couple of pain relievers out of the bottle and handed them to me. “You were born to be mine, and I’ll always treasure the gift you are.”

He had the art of the perfect answer down pat, making me swoon before I popped the pills in my mouth and swallowed them down with the glass of water he gave me. Then I handed it back and looked at him expectantly. He cocked his head to the side, and I blurted, “The tub looks like it’s just about full.”

“Good catch.” He crossed the room to turn o the faucet and returned to my side to help me o the vanity. “You should get into the water while it’s still hot, or else it won’t do much good.”

Although he’d gotten naked in front of me without blinking, my cheeks filled with heat at the thought of stripping out of my clothes in front of him. “Are you going to at least turn around while I get in?”

“Shit, sorry.” He flashed me a sexy grin as he walked over to the doorway. “Nudity isn’t as big of a deal for shifters, and

I forgot it isn’t the same for humans.”

“Oh.” I wasn’t sure what else to say since I hadn’t expected that to be his reason for wanting to see me strip.

Zeke stopped and turned to face me again. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. It’ll be a big damn deal for me from now on. No way in hell do I want anyone other than me to see your beautiful body.” He swept his hand down in front of his chest. “And I’m all yours, so I’ll be careful about who’s around me when my clothes come o before shifting.”

I grinned, happy with how he just put everything all out there. “Thank you.”

He returned my smile before walking away. The door was still open, so when he was out of my line of sight I hurriedly stripped out of my clothes and climbed into the tub. The bubbles were thick enough to cover my body, but I still let out a surprised squeak when Zeke strode back into the room.

Shifters were real, I was the fated mate of a sexy wolf, and I was naked in a tub only a few feet away from him. It was a lot to take in.

“Is it like this with all fated mates?” I asked as he dropped a big T-shirt on the vanity.

Pulling my knees up to my chest, I covered myself a little more. “Like what?”

I was acutely aware of the fact that I was completely naked with only the bubbles stopping Zeke from being able to see my body. My nipples pebbled, and I felt a slickness between my legs that had nothing to do with the bathwater and everything to do with my overwhelming attraction to him. “This instant connection to someone you’ve just met who seems to have been tailor-made for you.”

“For the most part, yeah,” he confirmed with a grin, his green eyes gleaming with male satisfaction. “So you think I’m perfect for you?”

“I mean...I don’t really know much about you except that you can shift into a wolf, are the sheri , and have a niece.

But from what I’ve seen so far—which has only been about an hour—yeah, you seem pretty perfect to me.”

“What do you want to know about me? I’m not the best at sharing stu with people, but I’m an open book for you,” he o ered.

I figured the whole getting to know each other thing would work best if it was a give and take thing. He’d mentioned having a niece, so I assumed talking about siblings was an easy place to start. “I’m an only child, but I didn’t feel lonely growing up because I had my best friends.

How many brothers or sisters do you have?”

“Just one brother,” he answered as he bent over to pull some more bath stu out of the cabinet under the tub. “He found his mate almost a decade ago when he was only eighteen. He was one of the lucky ones. I spent years being jealous of him and worrying I’d never find you.”

My heart raced at how grateful he sounded. I’d always known my parents loved me, but I’d never experienced romantic attention like he was giving me. “Does that happen often?”

“Before I met you, I would’ve said it wasn’t too bad because most of us find our mates. But now that I’ve experienced what meeting you feels like, I understand that even one shifter never being mated is too many.”

It was impossible to resist Zeke when he kept saying things that made me want to cry in the best way possible.

7

ALLEGRA

Z

eke poured body gel onto the washcloth and stretched his arm out, his hand hovering in the air for a moment before he o ered it to me. I had a feeling he’d intended to wash me himself and then decided I wasn’t quite ready for that. And I really shouldn’t have been, considering we’d just met, but I had the whole fated mate thing to blame for it when I leaned forward so he could reach my back instead of taking the washcloth. Goose bumps broke out along my spine in the wake of his touch.

I rested my chin on top of my knees while he cleaned my back and arms. It felt so good to have him pamper me. And incredibly sexy. I watched the flexing of the muscles in his arms and breathed in his scent as he leaned down to reach into the water and lift one of my feet higher. The bubbles were still thick, but he still ate me up with his eyes. When his nostril flared, I wondered if it was possible that he could smell the proof of my desire. His fingers grazed my skin, and my need for him intensified.

“The water’s getting a little cold,” I whispered, blaming my shiver on the temperature instead of the desire burning through my veins as the washcloth moved up my calf.

My need turned into an inferno when his fingers drifted above my knee and he suggested, “Maybe there’s something I can do to help you stay warm.”

My legs parted a little, giving him more room as his hand continued up my thigh. “How would you do that?”

“It depends on what you want.” The washcloth continued up my thigh, almost to the crease near my core.

My legs parted slightly more, and I breathed, “I’m not sure what I want.”

“I bet an orgasm would make you feel better,” he suggested as he dropped the washcloth into the water. “Tell me yes, and I’ll give you one.”

Even with all the fated mate stu —or maybe because of it —I probably should have thought twice before I answered, but I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.” “Thank fuck,” he growled, his green eyes riveted on my face as his fingers slid up to my pussy.

My gaze dropped to watch his hand move between my legs, my breath catching in my throat as his finger brushed against my clit before dipping down to slide through my wetness. “Oh, wow.”

“Feel good?” he rasped.

“Uh-huh,” I breathed, moving my knees as far apart as I could get them in the tub.

He increased the pressure of his touch and asked, “How about this?”

“Even better,” I gasped as he inched one of his fingers inside me. Then he twisted his wrist to circle my clit with his thumb, and my orgasm came out of nowhere, crashing over my body as I gripped his arm to keep his hand in place. He kept stroking me through it and pressed a kiss to my forehead when my shudders finally subsided.

When he lifted me out of the tub and covered me with a flu y white towel, the sensual fog he’d wrapped me in lifted,

and my senses returned. “Oh, my gosh! My friends!”

“What about them?” he asked as he carried me into the bedroom and set me on the bed.

“They’re probably scared out of their minds. It’s been a couple of hours since they left the diner. I definitely should’ve been back way before now,” I explained, my gaze searching the room for any sign of my purse but not finding it. “Have you seen my bag? It was with me in the car.”

“I’ll run down and check the truck.” He padded across the room to grab the T-shirt from the bathroom and came back to give it to me. When he left to look for my purse, I finished drying o with the towel and slipped the shirt on. Then I went into the bathroom to grab my panties.

I had just gotten them in place when he came back with my purse. “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” I dug inside for my cell phone and cringed when I saw that I had three missed calls and about a dozen text messages from Larissa and Calliope. There wasn’t anything from my mom yet, so I hoped I was in time to stop them from letting her know they didn’t know where I was.

I figured it was best to try Larissa first, and she answered before the first ring was done. “Where are you? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” My mind blanked for a moment. It wasn’t as though I could tell them what had happened, not without making sure that was okay since Zeke had said the existence of shifters was kept a secret from most people. I didn’t know if it was okay to share with my friends or family, and I couldn’t ask since Larissa would be able to hear me. “There was a little issue with the rideshare.”

She didn’t sound any less worried as she asked, “What kind of issue? Did it break down? Are there no more cars out tonight because of the snow? You should’ve been able to get another one by now.”

“Ah, no.” I widened my eyes at Zeke and grimaced. He stroked his hand down my back. “The roads were icy, and the car slid through an intersection and crashed into a tra c light. But I wasn’t really injured, just some bruises from the seat belt.”

“Where are you? At the hospital?” I heard the murmur of Calliope’s voice in the background. I was doing a crap job of coming up with a story that would make them less worried about me.

Staring up into Zeke’s face, I was struck by inspiration. I couldn’t tell them I’d met a guy who turned into a wolf, but Zeke’s job was sure to make them feel better about me not being back yet. “I’m not at the hospital. Like I said, I only have some bruises. The sheri from a couple of towns over was nearby when it happened and stopped to help.”

“Oh.” She heaved a deep sigh of relief. “There’s probably a bunch of paperwork if the cops are involved. Will you be done soon?”

“Um, yeah...about that. It’ll probably take a while longer, so you guys should just head to bed. I’ll be good. The sheri is a really good guy, and he’s taking care of me, so I’m more than okay.”

“More than okay, huh?” Any trace of concern had disappeared from her tone as it turned teasing. “Is the sheri sexy, and exactly how is he taking care of you? Give me all the details.”

Calliope shrieked something about me meeting a hot guy in the background, and judging by the smirk on Zeke’s face, he was able to hear everything my friends were saying. My cheeks filled with heat as I said, “I can’t really talk about it right now.”

“Oh, my gosh! Is he there with you right now?” Larissa cried. “Get o the phone, girl. You can tell us all about it

when you come back. Just don't have so much fun with him that you forget you have class tomorrow at eleven.”

The call disconnected, and I stared at my phone in shock.

I hadn’t expected her to let it go so easily, especially since she knew I’d never dated anyone before. None of us had ever spent the night with someone, and it was kind of shocking she’d just assumed I wouldn’t be back tonight—let alone in time for my class in the morning.

Zeke wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his chest. “Your friends sound nice.”

“No, they sound crazy! I can’t believe she just assumed I was spending the night with you. I mean, maybe if she knew about shifters and fated mates, it might make sense. But she doesn’t.” I tilted my head back to stare into his eyes. “I’m guessing I can’t tell them?”

“No, I’m sorry, sweetheart.” He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “For now, you can't say anything, but I’ll talk to my alpha after he gets the chance to meet you and maybe them too. He might give me permission if he decides they wouldn’t be a risk to our pack.”

“They love me too much to risk my safety,” I assured him. “My parents will be more di cult to handle. Keeping a secret from my mom is almost impossible. It’s a good thing I got a hold of Larissa before she called them. They would’ve hightailed it here, and that would be bad. Very, very bad. She would burn Stewart to the ground if it meant she could find me.”

He laced his fingers through mine. “Then I guess we’ll get along since we have that in common. Because I’d set the whole world on fire if that’s what it took to keep you safe.”

There he went with the swoony comments again, but I was skeptical. “Yeah, probably not. My mom is a lot to handle, especially when it comes to me. She takes helicopter parenting to a new level, and the chances are probably

around ninety-nine percent that she’s not going to be a fan of yours since she’ll see our relationship as you taking her baby girl away from her. You need to be prepared for her to do something crazy,” I warned. “If she decides you aren’t what’s best for me, she’ll try to tear us apart.”

“Then I’ll just have to do my best to convince her I’m perfect for you.” He flashed me a cocky grin. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes.” I was shocked how easily my answer came out.

“Good, because I’ve got you, sweetheart.” He gave me a tight squeeze. “Get some sleep, and we’ll figure it out in the morning.”

8

ZEKE

W

aking up with my body wrapped around Allegra was the best start to a day I’d ever had, even with my balls feeling as though they were about to burst and my cock hard enough to hammer nails into a board. I’d spent the night dreaming about driving my dick inside her tight pussy, not that I was surprised since I’d been hard from the moment her strawberries and cream scent hit my nostrils. After spending thirty years never getting a hard on for another woman, I had a sneaking suspicion I was going to spend the rest of my days with one now that Allegra was in my life.

Her perfect ass was pressed against my dick, and the shirt she’d slept in had ridden up so her thin panties and my boxers were the only thing between us. I normally slept naked, but I’d kept them on when I’d stripped out of my jeans because I hadn’t wanted Allegra to wake up in the middle of the night and freak out over my nudity. She’d already taken everything I’d thrown at her in stride, but I didn’t want to push her too far too fast.

Not wanting her to wake up with my dick poking her in the ass, I shifted my hips back, but I was too late. Her curvy body rolled toward me as her eyes popped open. They were

heavy-lidded and hazy for a moment before they filled with recognition, and she smiled. “Good morning, handsome.”

I shifted my arm so her head was resting on my bicep.

“Hey, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?”

“Better than I have in ages.” She stroked her hand up my bare chest. “I like sleeping in your arms.”

I brushed my mouth against hers. “That’s good because you’re going to be doing it for the rest of your life.”

“The rest of my life,” she echoed softly. I searched her eyes for any sign that she was struggling with the idea of being with me forever, but they shone with happiness. “This fated mate stu sure does take the guesswork out of dating.

It would be awesome if my friends found shifters of their own.”

“You never know, stranger things have happened.” Her lips curved up in a smile, and I couldn’t resist claiming them in a kiss. It quickly turned heated, our tongues tangling together as her body pressed closer to mine. Her pebbled nipples poked at the thin material of the shirt I’d loaned her, and the heat from her pussy practically scorched my cock.

Wrapping her hair around my fist, I tilted her head back as I feasted on her mouth. When she was writhing in need, I tore my lips away to trail kisses down her neck. Tugging the shirt lower, I palmed one of her tits and lifted it to drag my tongue over the top of the creamy mound. “You’re fucking perfect, sweetheart.”

“That feels incredible,” she moaned, her hips shifting until her pussy was lined up with my cock.

The scent of her need was thick in the air, and I felt how drenched her panties were through my boxers. It would only take the smallest movement on my part for the tip of my cock to notch inside her pussy.

“Please, I need you,” she whimpered.

“Are you sure you’re ready?” It killed me to ask, but I wasn’t going to rush Allegra into anything she wasn’t ready for. “I can give you relief with my mouth and fingers instead if you want. I don’t want us to take this step unless you’re sure it’s what you want.”

Her brown eyes had darkened, and there was no mistaking the desire in them. “I was already sure, but the fact that you’re willing to wait”—she slipped her hand into my boxers and wrapped it around my cock—“when you want me so much makes me feel even better about my decision.”

That was all it took for my self-control to snap. I yanked the shirt over her head and pulled her panties down her legs, then I removed my boxers and tossed them onto the pile. I knew I needed to make sure she was ready so I didn’t hurt her, so I kissed my way down her body. I stopped at her chest and flicked my tongue over one of her nipples as my fingers tweaked the other side. Her back arched when I sucked hard, being sure to leave a mark because I wanted signs of where I’d been all over her body. Not that anyone other than me would see them, but it soothed me to know they were there.

I kissed across her chest and gently nipped at the side of her other breast, earning me a moan. “Fuck, I love that I’m going to hear those sounds every day for the rest of my life.”

My hands slid down to her hips, and I held her down as I kissed across her stomach to her pussy. Her legs parted, and I wedged my shoulders under her thighs. Breathing in her scent, I groaned, “Can’t wait to get my first taste of you.”

“Then it’s a good thing you don’t have to wait.” Her fingers dug into my scalp, guiding my face closer.

I slid one of my hands up and spread her pussy open.

When I circled my tongue over her clit, her flavor burst on my tongue, and I couldn’t get enough of it. Licking lower, I sti ened my tongue and buried it deep inside her hole. Her body writhed beneath me as I tongue-fucked her until she

flew over the edge, and her cries echoed around the room.

Then I sank a finger inside and worked her back up and over a second time before rising on my knees and lining my cock up with her entrance.

I waited for her eyes to open and meet mine, and then I surged forward, filling her with one powerful thrust. “I’m sorry it hurt, sweetheart,” I murmured when she whimpered in pain. After kissing a couple of tears from her cheeks, I held still until she adjusted to having me inside her. My cock was crying out for relief by the time she wiggled her hips and I felt a gush of wetness bathe my hard length. “Are you ready for more?”

“Yes,” she gasped, her nails digging into my shoulders.

“Please.”

I circled my hips, and her walls clenched around me.

“Your pussy feels so fucking good, sweetheart. You were made to take my cock.”

I slowly slid out and then inched my way back inside.

When I didn’t meet any resistance, I started out slow, keeping a steady rhythm until I could fuck into her hard with quick thrusts of my hips. She encircled my waist with her legs and held on while I pounded in and out of her.

Her tongue darted out to wet her plump lips, and I bent my head to nip at the bottom one. The needy expression on her face made it more di cult to hold onto my control, which was already hanging by a thread. “C’mon, sweetheart.

Let me feel you fly apart around my cock before I come.”

“I’m close,” she panted.

I continued to pump my hips, aiming to hit her G-spot each time. My fingers dug into her hips, and the headboard was slamming into the wall from the power of my thrusts.

Gliding my hand up her back, I pulled her toward me so I could wrap my lips around her nipple. When I gently bit it,

her pussy clamped down on my cock, and she screamed my name.

My nostrils flared, and I dragged our mixed scents deep into my lungs as I lifted her and filled her to the hilt as my climax roared through my system. My cock jerked inside her, my come splashing against her walls. When my balls finally emptied, I collapsed against her soft body and buried my face in her neck. My canines extended, scraping against the sensitive skin of Allegra’s shoulder. “If I mark you now, while your pussy is full of my come, it will complete the mating process. There won’t be any going back. You’ll be mine forever.”

Fear shone from her eyes. “Will it hurt?”

“Not even close.” I licked over the spot I wanted to sink my teeth into. “From what I’ve heard, since you’re my fated mate, my bite will trigger another orgasm for you. It’s supposed to be stronger than anything you’ll ever experience.”

“Then yes, please. Make me yours forever.” She tilted her head to the side, giving me better access to her neck.

A growl rumbled up my chest as fur brushed the inside of my skin. My wolf was beyond ready to mark her and needed to be a part of this for the mating to fully take hold. With both sides of myself close to the surface, I sank my teeth into her flesh. It felt as though time stood still as my soul flew apart and came back together better than before. My fated mate was mine, and I was finally complete.

9

ALLEGRA

F

our incredible orgasms—the last of which was as mindblowing as Zeke had said it would be—turned out to be more powerful than prescription strength sleeping pills. We fell back asleep and didn’t wake up again until hours later when there was a knock on the bedroom door. Zeke sprang o the mattress, a deep growl rumbling up his chest. “Do not come in,” he barked.

“Chill the fuck out, I’m not going to barge in there like I normally would,” an amused masculine voice replied.

“Meet me downstairs,” Zeke said as he grabbed a pair of sweatpants from the dresser and tugged them on.

I sat up, dragging the sheet to my chest as the other person commanded, “Bring your mate.”

“Who’s that?” I whispered-yelled.

“Kace, the alpha of my pack,” he explained, handing me a matching set of black sweatpants and shirt that was several sizes too big for me.

The clothes I’d worn during the road trip back to school and had on during the accident were beyond dirty, so I was going to have to make do with what he’d given me. “Alrighty then.”

After shoving a shirt over his head, Zeke padded over and rolled the waist of my pants up until the bottoms were at my ankles. He did the same with the cu s of the sweatshirt until it didn’t cover my hands, and then he pressed a finger under my chin to tilt my head back. He brushed his lips over mine and murmured, “Don’t worry about Kace. He’ll be thrilled as fuck that I found you.”

I didn’t know the guy, so I had no idea what to expect. But I’d trusted Zeke so far, and it seemed silly to stop now. “If you’re sure.”

“You never have to worry about anything with me at your side,” he promised as he laced his fingers through mine.

Opening the door, he led me downstairs to the living room where Kace was sprawled on the recliner. He stood when we neared and waited for Zeke to nod before he approached us.

He clapped Zeke on the shoulder and grinned. “See, I was right. You should listen to me more often.” My eyes widened in surprise, and he added, “Zeke was all grouchy about running an errand in Stewart for me last night. I was giving him a hard time when I told him he might meet you, but it turned out to be true.”

“Shit, about the liquor distributor,” Zeke groaned, running his hand through his hair.

“Don’t worry about it.” Kace waved o his concern. “If I can’t go over there myself today, I’ll just ask Tane to do it instead. Spending time with your mate is more important than that small issue.”

“It was important enough to interrupt my dinner and football game last night,” Zeke grumbled, giving me a squeeze. “But I’m not going to complain because it led me to Allegra—the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“Hello, Allegra. I’m Kace Lowell,” he introduced himself with a grin.

I wasn’t sure what the etiquette was in this situation, so I returned his smile and replied, “Thanks, it’s nice to meet you.”

“Welcome to the Timber Ridge Pack.” Kace gripped my upper arms as he brushed the briefest of kisses across my forehead. He started to pull away, but then his hold on me tightened. “Your scent.”

I was starting to wonder what the heck was going on when Zeke wrapped his arm around my back and growled, “You might be my alpha, but I’ll still find a way to take you down if you don’t move away from my mate.”

Kace nodded and took a step back, holding his hands up, palms facing us. “Sorry, there’s something about Allegra’s scent that’s gotten my wolf’s attention.”

Zeke shoved me behind his back, and I peeked around his shoulder to keep an eye on what was happening between him and his alpha. “Stop smelling my mate.”

“You know I can’t just turn this o .” Kace tapped his nose. “And I didn’t mean that I thought she was mine or—” “She’s nobody’s but mine.” Zeke’s body tensed, and I pressed my hands against his back in the hope that it would calm him.

Kace walked over to the recliner and sat down, and I felt some of the sti ness in Zeke’s body ease under my fingertips. He shifted me to his side—the one farthest away from Kace—and led me to the couch. Dropping down on the cushion at the far end, he pulled me onto his lap and wrapped his arms around my chest. His possessiveness was incredibly flattering...and turned me on.

It was di cult for me to focus on talking when Zeke’s hard on was poking into my buttcheek, but I lifted my head and looked at Kace to remind myself we weren’t alone.

“I’m well aware that she’s your mate, Zeke. Your scent is all over her.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his

knees. His dark eyes shone with sincerity. “I’m your alpha and best friend. Your happiness is important to me, and I’d never do anything to interfere with your mating. You know I wouldn’t.”

Zeke’s hold on me tightened as he grumbled, “I do, but your wolf’s reaction to her scent is confusing.”

“It is,” Kace agreed with a nod. His attention shifted to me. “Do you have any sisters? Maybe it’s a family connection he’s sensing.”

I shook my head. “Nope, I’m an only child. My parents are too, so I don’t have any female cousins either.”

“I’m not sure what it could be then.” Kace grimaced as he shrugged.

“Maybe it’s one of your best friends,” Zeke suggested.

“Since you live with them, a trace of their scent would be embedded in your skin.”

“Roommates? That could be it,” Kace agreed.

“I’m not sure about all that,” I drawled, my lips curving up in a tiny grin as I tried to picture this bossy man with either of my friends. Although it would be cool if my friends found shifters of their own, I couldn’t see it because Kace would butt heads with Larissa and steamroll over Calliope. “I mean, my best friends and I do share a dorm room. But from what I understand, I can’t tell them about shifters so I’m not sure how this is all going to work. We’ve known each other since kindergarten, and it’s going to be di cult to keep the truth from them when they’re really good at telling when I’m lying. Not that I have much practice at it since they’ve always been a part of any trouble I’ve gotten into growing up.”

Zeke chuckled and pressed a kiss against my neck. “What my mate is trying to say is that she’d like permission to tell her best friends about us.”

“I’ll consider the request,” Kace conceded. “After she’s had the chance to settle in a little and learn about life in the pack and what it means to be mated to my beta.”

I twisted my neck to stare at Zeke. “Beta?”

“It just means I’m Kace’s second in command,” Zeke explained, his hand stroking down my back in a soothing gesture.

“I thought you were the sheri ?”

“Many betas tend to be in law enforcement,” Kace added.

“It’s one of those shifter things you’ll learn over time.”

“Adjusting to pack life and the shifter world is nothing you need to worry about. I’ll be with you every step of the way, sweetheart,” Zeke swore as he stared into my eyes.

I was still a little worried about how I would fit in, but I had no doubt Zeke would do everything in his power to help me. After giving him a soft smile and nodding, I settled against his chest. With the change in position, his hard on pressed between my legs. I felt the heat of him against my core and bit back a moan, squirming in need.

“Like I said before, stop smelling my mate.” It took me a moment to figure out why Zeke felt the need to give his alpha that warning again. When I realized it was because their superior sense of smell meant they knew my panties were damp. My face burned with heat, and I buried my face in Zeke’s shoulder.

“I’ll give you two some privacy.” Kace stood and strode over to the front door, pausing to look over his shoulder as he pulled it open. “But I’m going to want to know more about Allegra’s friends when I come back.”

I waited until the door closed behind him to turn to Zeke and ask, “What in the heck was all of that about?”

Zeke shrugged his broad shoulders and shifted my position so I was straddling him. “I’m not sure, but whatever

it is can’t be more important than me giving you the orgasm your body is crying out for.”

When he put it that way, who was I to argue?

10

ALLEGRA

I

twined my arms around Zeke’s neck as he stood and carried me up to the bedroom. He dumped me on the mattress, his dark eyes raking down my body. “Strip,” he commanded as he tugged his clothes o and tossed them on the floor. “I need you naked for everything I’m about to do to you.”

Spurred on by the hunger in his tone, I yanked the sweatshirt over my head. His hands beat mine to the pants, and he ripped them down my legs. I let out a surprised shriek when he rolled me onto my stomach and lifted my butt into the air. Then he slid a pillow under my hips, raising me higher. I didn’t have the chance to react before he shoved his head between my legs and started to devour my pussy. His hands gripped my hips while his tongue fucked in and out of me.

I buried my face in the pillows as he quickly forced me to the edge, nipping and sucking at my pussy as though he was starving for the taste of me. His deep groan sent shivers down my spine as his tongue stroked through my slit to circle my clit. Then he added his fingers into his sensual assault, and I couldn’t see straight. My head thrashed back

and forth while he worked one finger, and then another, into me.

“Come for me, sweetheart,” he growled against my damp flesh. “I want your sweet nectar all over my face and dripping down my throat when I sink my cock into your tight pussy.”

He twisted his wrist, and his fingers found just the right spot to send me flying. Replacing them with his tongue, he stroked in and out of me until my pussy stopped clenching around it. My body was still trembling from the power of my orgasm when he flipped me over, my butt landing on the pillow beneath me. Yanking my thighs apart, he settled his body over mine. One of his hands pressed into the mattress at my side to hold him up over me while the other cradled my cheek. “I’m so fucking lucky I found you, sweetheart. I know it’s only been a day, but you make me happier than I’ve ever been before.”

My heart felt as though it was overflowing with emotion. I stretched my neck up to brush my lips over his. “It’s the same for me, handsome. I never expected something like this to happen to me, but I don’t have a single regret. I wouldn’t change a thing.”

“Good, because I’m never letting you go.” He lined his cock up with my entrance and slowly sank inside me. “Fate picked perfectly for me, and I’m already falling in love with you.”

“I—” He cut o what I was going to say by claiming my mouth in a deep kiss, his tongue sweeping inside to tangle with mine. When he lifted his head again, he whispered, “You don’t have to say it yet. I know we’re moving fast compared to most human relationships.”

I nipped his bottom lip and smiled. “Sure, it’s crazy fast, but that doesn’t change my feelings. You’re more than I

could have ever hoped for in a husband, and I’m falling in love with you, too.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes so you never regret loving me,” he promised.

I glided my palms down his back and wiggled my hips.

“You could start by moving.”

“Your wish is my command,” he rumbled as he slowly withdrew, only to slam back inside me. “Especially when you want me to fuck you. I could stay in this bed for weeks with your tight pussy squeezing the hell out of my dick, the scent of your desire filling my lungs, and the sound of your cries ringing in my ears.”

He circled his hips and made me gasp, “Holy crap, that feels good.”

“I can do better,” he promised, licking over the mating mark on my shoulder.

I felt the touch of his tongue all the way in my core as though there was a string connecting the two places on my body. I tilted my head to the side and panted, “Please.”

He fucked me slow and deep, his cock dragging against my pussy walls with each thrust of his hips. I gasped with pleasure each time he filled me and whimpered in need when he pulled out. He tangled his hand around his fist, staring into my eyes as he pumped in and out of me. “You’re close. I can feel it.”

“Uh-huh,” I whimpered as he kissed down my jawline.

His lips continued along my neck, stroking my sensitive skin all the way to my mating mark.

“Yes!” I screamed as I flew over the edge, my pussy clamping down tightly around his hard length. He thrust hard and anchored himself deep, his cock jerking as streams of his come filled me to overflowing.

As I collapsed against the mattress, there was a pounding on the front door, making me groan in frustration. “I hope it

doesn’t become a habit for people to interrupt us like this.”

“At least we were already done both times.” He stroked his hand down my spine and patted my butt before rolling o the mattress to pull on his sweatpants.

“And it’s the front door instead of the bedroom,” I added, trying to look at the bright side as he tossed my clothes at me.

“I’m coming!” he roared when the person banged on the front door again.

“Not without a shirt,” I muttered as he headed toward the hallway, eyeing up his muscular chest.

He changed direction and grabbed his sweatshirt o the floor, flashing me a sexy grin before he slipped it on. I dashed into the bathroom while he went downstairs, needing to at least attempt to clean up a bit before I put clothes on. It was a good thing I did it quickly because I recognized the voice yelling at Zeke.

“Where is Allegra? She missed both of her classes today, and I haven’t heard from her since last night,” Larissa shouted. “I don’t care that you’re the sheri around here, if you’ve hurt her in any way, I’m going to make you pay.”

“I’m okay,” I cried as I tossed on the pants and top before hurrying out of the bedroom. Larissa’s gaze was aimed my way when I reached the top of the stairs, and I saw the relief fill her blue eyes when she spotted me. She stepped around Zeke as I rushed down to her, apologizing. “I’m so sorry I disappeared all day. I don’t even know where I left my phone.”

“It’s in my o ce.” Zeke moved to my side, wrapping his arm around my back and pulling me close. “I noticed your battery was low after you fell asleep last night. Since we have the same model, I plugged it in to recharge in case you needed it later.”

“If you were trying to be helpful, you should’ve set an alarm so she wouldn’t have skipped the entire day and worried her friends.” Larissa’s gaze softened when she switched her attention to me. “It was a good thing your location is shared with me on our phones, or else I wouldn’t have had any idea how to find you.”

“I didn’t mean to scare you.” Gesturing at Zeke with my free hand, I added, “I just lost track of time.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” she snorted as she pointed at my messy hair. “But you’re going to need to figure out how to juggle having a guy and school, or else your grades will plummet and then your mom will be all up in your business even more than usual.”

“You know getting a degree has never been important to me. I enrolled in college more because of you and Calliope than anything else,” I reminded her.

“Yeah, but you can’t just drop out before the end of the semester,” she argued, crossing her arms over her chest in a gesture I was familiar with. She wasn’t going to let this go until she was satisfied with my answers.

“There’s only three weeks to go, so of course I’m not going to drop out,” I assured her with a smile.

Zeke gave me a comforting squeeze. “The campus is only a ten-minute drive, and my job is flexible. I’ll make sure she doesn’t miss any more classes.”

Larissa’s eyes widened in shock. “Hold up! Are you trying to say Allegra is moving in with you? After only one night?”

“Good question.” I tilted my head back to stare up at him.

“Are you?”

He nodded. “Absolutely.”

I beamed a smile at him before looking back at my best friend. “Yup, that’s what we’re saying.”

“I don’t even know what to say to all of this.” She shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose between her

thumb and forefinger.

I leaned into Zeke’s side, my grin widening. “Is it really that much of a shock? You know that all I’ve ever wanted is a family of my own. I finally found a guy I could picture myself growing old with, so why should I go slow?”

“I’ll be more than happy to give you as many babies as you want,” Zeke o ered.

“You’re already talking about babies?” she sputtered. “Do I need to remind you again that you only met this guy last night? You haven’t even had time to introduce him to your best friends.”

“I can fix that with half of my best friend duo right now.”

I patted Zeke’s chest. “This is Zeke. I get that it’s super crazy, but I’m already falling in love with him.” I pointed at Larissa. “Zeke, this is Larissa, one of my best friends in the whole wide world.”

“Nice to meet you.” Zeke jerked his chin in her direction.

“Allegra has told me a lot about you.”

“I wish I could say the same.” I knew Larissa couldn’t possibly understand why we were moving so quickly, and I was surprised when she didn’t try to drag me away from Zeke. “If my mind is blown by all of this, I can just imagine how your parents are going to react.”

I wasn’t quite ready to find out. I wanted at least a little bit of time to settle into my relationship with Zeke—and pack life—before we tackled my parents. “I think I’ll wait until Christmas break to tell them about Zeke, and then I’ll have a whole month to decide if I want to take any classes next semester.”

Larissa’s back was to the door, so she didn’t see it open as she snorted, “Good luck with her mom.”

A wide grin split Zeke’s face as he looked over her shoulder. “Good luck with my alpha.”

“Huh?” Her brow wrinkled in confusion, much of which was probably due to the fact that I hadn’t been able to let her in on the shifter secret yet, so she had no idea what an alpha was. But with the look on Kace’s face as he strode toward her, I had a feeling she’d understand soon.

“Oh, boy.” I shook my head, my jaw dropping open when Kace tossed my best friend over his shoulder and carried her away while she pounded her fists against his back.

“What?” Zeke wrapped his arm around my waist. “Kace hauling her o isn’t that much di erent to what I did when I found you.”

“Larissa isn’t like me,” I warned. “She isn’t the type to go with the flow. She tends to make the flow go her way instead.”

“I think my alpha has finally met his match.” Zeke grinned. “I think fate nailed it on the head because your best friend seems to be exactly the kind of mate Kace needs.”

I leaned into his side. “It’ll be interesting, that’s for sure.”

“I’ll show you something interesting.” He swept me into his arms and carried me back to the bedroom, where he fulfilled his promise...over and over again.

EPILOGUE ZEKE

A

llegra’s hand squeezed mine tightly as we walked up the steps to a pretty house in a typical suburban neighborhood. “Relax, sweetheart,” I murmured before leaning over to brush a kiss over the top of her head. The curtains in the picture window to our right shifted slightly, and Allegra’s grip tightened again.

She took a deep breath and blew it out. “I just want them to like you and to tell them…” She shivered, and I wasn’t sure if it was nerves or the cold, winter air.

I stopped on the porch and turned to face her, wrapping her in my embrace. “We’ll tell them together, and even if they are resistant to the idea in the beginning, I’m sure they’ll come around eventually.” I wasn’t as confident as I sounded, but I wasn’t about to do anything to upset my mate any further. I couldn’t stand it when she was unhappy.

I wasn’t sure what I’d do if her parents didn’t accept the idea of shifters or having their daughter mated to one. For a moment, my wolf pushed against my skin, and I almost gave in to the urge to bare my teeth as we considered simply killing her parents and removing them from the equation.

Just as quickly, I told my wolf to back the fuck o and

reminded him how angry and sad it would make our mate.

He immediately calmed down and retreated.

The solution was to make them like me enough that they would accept anything else we told them. I could be docile.

Like a cuddly dog. My wolf nudged against me again, and I could practically feel him shaking with laughter.

Allegra’s head tilted to the side as she stared up at me.

“Are you ready for this?”

I smiled tenderly and gave her a whisper of a kiss on the lips. “Definitely. I just want to get this over with so you can stop worrying.”

She returned the gesture, and the love shining from her eyes had my beast and me practically purring. “I want them to love you like I do,” she admitted quietly.

I grinned wolfishly. “Not exactly like you do, I hope.” I didn’t bother to hide the hungry expression on my face and pushed my erection into the apex of her thighs.

A shiver skittered down her spine, and her tongue darted out to lick her lips, making me groan. “Definitely not,” she agreed. Then she went up to her tiptoes and pressed her lips to mine.

I was about to deepen the kiss when the front door suddenly flung open, shattering our moment, and an attractive woman who looked a lot like my mate burst out of the house. She yanked Allegra out of my arms and into a tight hug. Since it was her mom, I reluctantly let her go.

Looking past them, my eyes met those of an older man who was shaking his head with an exasperated smile. “I held her o as long as I could.”

“Hi, Mom,” Allegra gasped as she struggled to breathe while returning her mother’s hug. I was about to yank her back when her mom finally let up. She kept an arm around my mate when she turned to face me.

She had a tight smile on her face, and though I wanted to growl at her possessive gesture, I reminded myself of the goal and gave her a bright greeting. “Mrs. Hale. It’s great to finally meet you and your husband. Allegra talks about you constantly.” That was a bit of a stretch, but her mother’s expression softened, so I knew it had been the right move.

Allegra’s father stepped out and gave her a warm hug, before her mom, once again, put an arm around Allegra. My wolf pushed against my skin in annoyance, and I held in a growl. Neither of us liked anyone else trying to lay claim to our mate.

Allegra must have seen the warning in my expression because she hurried to introduce us. “Mom, Dad, this is Zeke Blakesley. The sheri of Timber Ridge and my…” She trailed o and looked at me with a hint of desperation.

I gently extracted her from her mother’s grip and tucked her into my side. “The man who is hopelessly in love with your daughter.” Allegra melted into my side, and I gave in to the urge to punctuate my point with a kiss on her crown. It was a small gesture, but it was still staking a claim, and it soothed my beast for the moment.

Allegra’s parents looked a little surprised at my answer, but they also seemed pleased by it. “Nice to meet you,” Allegra’s dad said as he held out his hand for a shake. I took it firmly, and he nodded, clearly happy with the exchange.

“Call me Joe, and this is my wife, Hannah.”

“Why don’t we go inside?” Hannah suggested. Her demeanor had softened noticeably toward me, but I didn’t miss her eyeing my hold on Allegra. “It’s freezing out here.”

In an e ort to extend another olive branch, I kissed Allegra on the forehead and murmured, “Why don’t I get our things and the gifts out of the car? It’ll give you three a little privacy to say hello.”

Hannah brightened at my suggestion, and I was pretty sure I saw another small crack in her armor. As I headed back to the car, a satisfied smile spread across my face.

I STRETCHED as I woke and rolled over to take Allegra into my arms, but I found an empty space next to me. A scowl formed on my face as I remembered why I was in bed alone. Over the past two days, I’d worked my way into Allegra’s parents’ good graces. However, that had included sleeping in separate rooms. I hadn’t spent a night away from my mate since the day we met, and it was driving me crazy. It made me even more impatient to give her the present I had stashed away. I was also more than ready to come clean with her parents about what I was and deal with their reaction, whatever it would be. Allegra and I had decided to wait until after Christmas to give them the full story. She wanted time for them to get to know me first, and she didn’t want it to ruin the holiday if things didn’t go well.

A soft knock had me sitting up, but before I could call out for whoever it was to wait, the door inched open and Allegra’s sweet face popped inside. Her eyes swept hungrily down my bare chest and paused on my morning wood tenting the sheet. It had hardened even more the moment I’d felt her eyes on me, and I fisted the sheet on either side of me to keep from racing across the room and dragging her back to bed.

“Don’t look at me like that until you’re going to do something about it, baby,” I growled. Her eyes bounced back up to my face, and she grinned sheepishly.

“Sorry.” Then she beamed at me and did an excited little jump. “It’s Christmas, sleepyhead. Get your sexy butt out here so I can open my presents!”

I laughed because she was just so fucking adorable. “Give me a minute to get some clothes on, sweetheart. I’ll be right there.”

Her eyes narrowed, and her gaze swept over me once more, this time without the heat. “Are you sleeping naked in my parents’ house?” she whisper-yelled with a cute glare. I loved how jealous she got and how possessive she was over me. It was sexy as fuck, and it kept me from any worries I might have had about my caveman instincts when it came to her.

I shook my head as I rose from the bed. “I wouldn’t do that.”

She looked slightly mollified but still a little put out.

“Wear some pajamas, would you?”

I grinned and winked at her. “You’re hot as hell when you get territorial, you know that?” Her cheeks bloomed with pink, and she shrugged.

“I don’t like the idea of another woman seeing you in just your boxers, not even my mom.”

I closed the distance between us and pulled her into my arms as I kicked the door shut. “You’re the only woman I want seeing me naked, baby. The only woman I’m interested in looking at me at all.” Allegra’s frown curved up into a sweet smile. “Besides that, you know I’ll always do whatever it takes to make you happy,” I reminded her. She nodded and leaned up for a kiss. Before I had a chance to enjoy it, or take it any further, she slapped me on the ass and broke out of my embrace. The next thing I knew, the door was once again shut, and I was all alone. Laughing, I padded over to my suitcase and hurried to throw on a T-shirt and pair of sweats before joining the family in the living room.

I saved the best gift for last, and the wait had nearly driven me out of my mind. Especially with my impatient wolf growling and practically pacing inside me.

Allegra gasped at a beautiful scarf silk scarf she’d just received from her parents. While she ran over to give them each a hug, I slipped her last present from my pocket and placed it in her spot next to me. “You missed one,” I announced, attempting to sound surprised.

“I did?” she asked excitedly as she spun around and came racing back to me. All morning, I’d watched her light up with every single gift she opened. Her mom had mentioned to me that Allegra still loved the holidays every bit as much as she had as a kid. It was adorable, and Allegra’s enthusiasm was contagious. But what truly got to me was this glimpse of what our daughters would look like at Christmas someday.

Which brought me back to the matter at hand.

Allegra stopped when she reached the couch and stared at the small box wrapped in silver paper and red ribbon. Her eyes darted from the gift to me and back, then she snatched it and gave me a bright, hopeful smile. “From you?” she asked excitedly.

I winked and grinned as I shook my head. “Santa,” I joked.

She laughed and plopped down into her seat before ripping the wrapping o the present. Her breathing halted as she stared at the black velvet box, then it whooshed out as I dropped to one knee in front of her.

“Allegra, sweetheart. I knew from the moment we met that you were destined to be mine. Even if my mind hadn’t known you weren’t my fated m”—I paused when I realized what I’d been about to say and quickly adjusted—“soul mate, my heart would have made it clear. I belong to you, and you belong to me. Forever.” My eyes drifted to the spot on her neck that sported a barely noticeable reminder that I’d marked her. “And I want the rest of the world to know that we’ve mat—committed ourselves to each other.” I popped up the lid to the box and removed the diamond

solitaire from its velvet bedding. “Will you marry me and wear this ring that”—I gave her a sly grin—“marks you as mine?” I didn’t wait for her answer as I slipped the ring onto her finger.

When I looked up, tears were streaming down Allegra’s beautiful face, but she was smiling from ear to ear, beaming brighter than the sun. “Yes!” she shouted before throwing her arms around me and almost knocking us backward. Then she pulled back suddenly and frowned. “I want everyone to know you’re taken too,” she grumbled as she looked pointedly at my unmarred neck. I almost laughed, but I knew the fact that I didn’t carry her mark upset her more than she let on. It wasn’t like human women could smell her scent on me the way shifters could.

I dug into my opposite pocket and produced another ring.

This one was a solid, white gold band. It was a little thicker but almost an exact match to the one I would add to hers on our wedding day. “I figured you’d feel that way, and I completely agree.” Allegra practically bounced with excitement as she snatched the ring from my hand and quickly pushed it onto my finger.

Before I could steal another kiss, the sound of her father clearing his throat drew our attention. He gazed at us proudly, and I patted myself on the back for taking her father aside yesterday and asking him for his blessing. Not that his disapproval would have stopped me, but I would have waited until we were home to pop the question.

Hannah was also gazing at us happily, her hands clasped in front of her, and when Allegra glanced over at her, I felt the tension in her melt away. She jumped up and ran to her mother, giving her a fierce hug. Joe shook my hand and congratulated us before giving Allegra a big bear hug.

Hannah walked up to me, and Allegra couldn’t have smiled any wider when her mom gave me a hug. “Take care

of my baby girl, Zeke. It’s hard for me to let her go, and if I find out you’re not treating her right, I’ll find you and put you down like a rabid dog. Got it?”

I almost chuckled, considering how fitting her analogy was. Instead, I nodded solemnly and assured her that I would always do whatever it took to make her daughter happy. She seemed content with my response and suggested we all have lunch. Allegra readily agreed and started for the kitchen, but I tugged her back and raised my brows in a silent question.

“This afternoon,” she conceded. “Just give me a little more time to enjoy their happiness.”

I gave her a swift kiss before pressing my forehead to hers, keeping our eyes locked. “It’s going to be fine. I promise.” She sighed and nuzzled her nose against mine before pulling away to lead me to the kitchen.

It was just after dessert that night when I finally put my foot down and stopped waiting for Allegra to make the first move. “Joe, Hannah,” I said as I stood from the table.

“Allegra and I would like to discuss something with you.” I tugged my mate to her feet and gave her a reassuring smile.

“Trust me,” I whispered. She nodded, looking a little less terrified.

We all sat in the living room, and I was about to start when Hannah piped up, “Did you knock up my baby girl before you married her, Zeke Blakesley?”

Allegra fell into a fit of coughing, and I patted her on the back as I considered how to answer. I didn’t want to lie, and the truth was, it was possible that Allegra was pregnant. I hadn’t used protection even once since I’d popped her cherry. “I promise, we’ll be married before we have any children.” Hannah considered my answer for a moment, then relaxed in her seat.

“There’s something about myself that I haven’t shared with you, and I’d like there to be complete honesty between

us,” I started.

“Zeke’s a wolf shifter!” Allegra suddenly blurted, then she slapped her hands over her mouth and stared at me in shock.

“Well, that’s one way to do it,” I sighed.

“Oops,” she mumbled.

Allegra’s parents stared at us in stunned silence, and I took it as a good sign that they weren’t freaking out or trying to shove me out the door. Taking advantage of their speechlessness, I began to explain exactly what and who I was. Unexpectedly, they were calm as they asked questions.

It was clear that they weren’t sure whether to believe me or think I was crazy. Allegra piped in every once in a while, and that seemed to boost my credibility.

The whole thing went better than I could have hoped for.

Apparently, the past two days had been enough for them to not only believe me, but still trust me to care for their daughter. In the end, we all had the same goal, to make Allegra happy.

When we returned home, she told me to forget everything and dragged me into the house and up to our bedroom. An hour later, we both collapsed onto the bed in a panting, sweaty mess. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“You have nothing to thank me for, sweetheart.” I summoned a small amount of strength and rolled on top of her. “I love you, and there is nothing I wouldn’t do to make you happy.”

“I love you, too.”

“I’ll never tire of hearing you say that.”

Allegra grinned and bucked her hips, pressing her drenched pussy against my already thick and hard cock.

“Seems like it gets a whole other reaction from those words.

Guess I better say them often if I want lots of orgasms.”

I shifted my position so I could slide my length into her tight pussy. “All you have to do is ask, baby. I’ve got a lifetime of orgasms to give you.”

EPILOGUE ALLEGRA

F

itting into the Timber Ridge wolf pack went more smoothly than I expected. It helped that I wasn’t alone in making the adjustment since my wish that my friends found shifters of their own came true. But what really clinched everyone’s acceptance of me was when we found out I was pregnant shortly after the holidays. I’d been carrying the first baby to be born into the pack in almost eight years, so the pregnancy was a big deal to everyone. It also turned out to be the start of a baby boom.

Jake, the son I gave birth to five years ago, had plenty of other children to grow up with. He mostly hung out with Larissa and Calliope’s firstborns, but he always made time for his younger sister, Elora. She had him wrapped around her little finger, and it wasn’t rare for her requests to get him in trouble.

“Jacob Joseph Blakesley, what in the heck do you think you’re doing up there?” I raced across the kitchen floor to brace my hands against his back so he didn’t fall o the counter he was perched on top of.

“Gettin’ Elora’s sippy cup. She wanted milk.” He wiggled the pink plastic cup in my face. “See?”

“If Elora wants a drink, tell her to come ask Daddy or me for one. No climbing on the counter,” I reminded him for about the hundredth time as I slipped my hands under his armpits to set him on the floor.

“But I didn’t climb up there, Mommy,” he insisted with a frown.

“Oh, yeah? How did you get on the counter then?” I asked, taking the cup from him so I could fill it with milk for his sister.

“I jumped!” he exclaimed.

“Don’t be silly, you can’t jump that high,” I chided as I opened the fridge to pull out the almost full gallon of milk. I cringed at the thought of how much would’ve spilled if I hadn’t caught Jake before he’d started pouring.

“Can too,” he insisted in a stubborn tone that had me stifling my grin when I turned back in his direction. It turned out that I hadn’t needed to worry because my lips formed a perfect circle as I gasped in surprise at the sight of Jake in his furry wolf cub form in a low crouch, getting ready to jump.

I had never considered the possibility of him shifting to get on the counter any of the times I’d caught him up there.

Looking at the small pile of clothes on the floor, I asked, “How come you weren’t naked when I came in?”

He leapt o the counter and shifted back to his human form. “Eww, bein’ nekked on the counter is gross. I put my clothes on the counter before I shift.”

I rolled my eyes at his explanation and started to pour the milk into the pink cup as he got dressed.

“I’m going to have to disagree,” Zeke whispered in my ear, coming up behind me around wrapping his arms around my body. “I’ve done lots of ungross things to you while you’ve been naked on this counter.”

“What’re you sayin’ to my mommy?” Jake asked, narrowing his dark eyes at his dad suspiciously. His hearing was already better than mine, but Zeke seemed to know exactly how low to speak when he didn’t want little ears to catch what he was saying.

“I’m just telling my mate how much I love her,” Zeke replied as he stared our son down. It had taken me a little while, but I’d gotten used to the dominance games they’d been playing since Jake turned three and his wolf tried to get territorial with me and he’d bared his teeth at his dad. Zeke was an amazing father, but he had no problem putting our little cub in his place when necessary.

“Uh-huh,” Jake hu ed, taking the now-full cup from me.

“I’ll bring this to Elora for you, Mommy.”

“Thank you, sweetie.” I pressed a kiss to the top of his head, and he flashed a triumphant look at his dad before trotting past us.

“That boy,” Zeke grumbled.

“Is just like his daddy,” I teased, turning around to smile up at him.

“He’s a handful, that’s for sure.” He brushed his lips against mine. “I have a feeling his wolf will end up being just as dominant as mine when he grows up. Be prepared for some interesting times when he’s a teenager and all that testosterone starts flowing through his system.”

I pressed his palm against my slightly rounded belly.

“Maybe we should hope for another girl this time around.”

He bent low to press a kiss over the spot where our third baby was growing. “Nah, I’ll take whatever you give me and be damn happy, sweetheart.”

I ru ed my fingers through his thick hair. “Another perfect answer, just like always.”

“Only because fate did me a solid and gave me the most perfect mate in the entire world, and I’ve been thanking my

lucky stars ever since.”

I couldn’t agree more since I’d ended up with an amazing husband and the family I’d always wanted. “Me too, handsome.”

EXTRA EPILOGUE

I

laughed as I watched the large gray wolf romp in the snow with a group of young pups before he let himself be tussled to the ground. He howled in fake protest for a minute before jumping onto all fours and letting out an overly ferocious roar. The pups yipped—a sound I’d long ago learned was laughter—and scampered away.

The wolf lifted his snout to the group before lumbering over to my side as the pups began to wrestle and play amongst themselves. He plopped down next to me and rested his head in my lap. I ran my fingers through his thick fur, and he let out a contented sigh, making me smile. His eyes drifted up, and I could see a little of Zeke staring back at me along with his wolf. The adoration in their stare made me feel warm and fuzzy, and I was sure they could see the emotions reflected in my gaze.

We watched over the children for a little while longer, then my wolf pushed o the ground and trotted over to our house, slipping inside the back door. A minute later, my sexy husband strode outside and made a beeline for me. He’d put on jeans and a sweater, and as usual, the sight of my man made my mouth water and my body grow hot.

Zeke narrowed his eyes in warning when he scented my arousal, and I couldn’t help the sly smile that spread across my face. He walked to my side and scooped me into his arms before taking my seat and settling me sideways in his lap.

“Don’t look at me like that, sweetheart,” he growled in a low tone.

I shifted, and my butt bumped a hard bulge in his pants, which only served to make me wet with need. “I can’t help it,” I muttered. Okay, so that was only partly true. I might have been teasing him with my wiggling.

Zeke grabbed my hips in an iron hold, forcing me to sit still. “Calliope and Larissa won’t be here to pick up their pups for another hour. If you don’t stop teasing me, I’m going to spank your pretty little ass once we’re alone tonight.”

I giggled and looked up at my mate through my lashes.

“Promise?” My tone was breathy as I practically panted over the idea.

He closed his eyes and held his breath for a beat. Then he exhaled with a resigned sigh and buried his face in the crook of my neck. “You’d think after ten years; I wouldn’t feel like a horny teenager whenever my mate is around. But sometimes I think it’s only gotten worse.”

Laughter bubbled up, but his statement did nothing to help me tamp down the desire that was building in my body.

I knew exactly what he meant. Every day, I loved Zeke more.

And every day, I felt more attracted to him.

“Especially when you’re in heat,” he grunted, nipping at my nape. I mentally smacked my forehead at my stupidity for not figuring it out sooner. My lack of control made much more sense. I had gained some shifter qualities when I mated with Zeke, and one of them was the increase in desire at my most fertile times of the month. Not that my mate ever complained about my insatiable appetite. But with three

kids, adult time was hard to come by. However, Zeke was definitely creative with the quickies.

My mate grabbed my chin and lifted my face so he could cover my mouth with his in a deep kiss.

“Mommy!”

Zeke groaned and tore his mouth away at the sound of our four-year-old daughter, Merren, came running out of the house, her lips turned down in an adorable pout. She was wearing her clothes, so I assumed she’d gone inside to shift while I was distracted by my mate’s kisses.

“What’s wrong, baby?” I asked as I zipped up her coat.

“Izac threw a snowball at me!”

I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing, especially when I spied the boy tiptoeing out from behind a bush, also shifted and wearing clothes.

“Izac?” Zeke called. The pup froze for a second, then turned toward us, a look of trepidation on his little face. “Did you throw a snowball at Merren?” My mate stood and set me down in the empty seat.

His shoulders drooped as he nodded. Merren looked smug, and I frowned at her, causing her to blush.

“Thank you for being honest, pup. But now you’re going to have to deal with the consequences.”

Izac nodded dejectedly again.

Zeke beckoned for Merren to join him as he walked out into our yard. He crouched down and mashed some snow together, shaping it into a ball before handing it to his daughter. Then he made another ball of snow and stood.

He glanced at Merren, and she smiled widely as they both pulled back their arms and let their snowballs fly. They both hit Izac in the chest, and his head flew up in surprise.

“SNOWBALL FIGHT!” Merren screamed as she took o running.

Suddenly, the backyard was a flurry of flying snow as the kids, who’d all shifted and dressed at this point, raced around throwing and ducking the icy projectiles.

Ryker, Larissa and Kace’s youngest, was “hiding” in the bushes—not all hidden—so I hurried over and knelt next to him. “Here,” I mock-whispered as I handed him a snowball.

I made up another one and looked at him with as serious an expression as I could muster. “One, two, three!” We lobbed our ammunition and laughed when they missed their targets.

“I’ll be your teammate,” I told him as I held out my hand.

“Ready?”

Ryker squared his shoulders and smiled as he placed his palm in mine. Then we both yelled out battle cries as we darted out into the fray.

“H OLY COW ,” I muttered as I dropped my cold, wet clothes on the bathroom floor. “So freaking cold!” I shivered as I danced from foot to foot, trying to get warm while I waited for the shower spray to heat up. Finally, it was hot enough for me to step into the glass enclosure, and I sighed as the water poured over me.

Suddenly, a blast of cold air hit my back, and I yelped before it was immediately replaced by a body that radiated extra heat. “Need some help warming up, sweetheart?” Zeke practically purred, his hands sliding up my sides and around to cup my breasts.

“Mmmhmmm,” I sighed as I leaned back against him. “Is Jake watching Elora and Merren?”

“Nope,” he mumbled, using his chin to drag my hair away from my neck so he could rest his lips over his mark.

“What?” I nearly shrieked.

“Relax, Allegra,” he soothed. “Calliope agreed to a sleepover for the girls while Larissa took the boys.”

Zeke pinched both of my nipples, sending streaks of pleasure straight to my pussy, making me moan. Then his words sunk in, and my eyes flew open. “Does that mean…?”

“We’re all alone,” Zeke answered. Then he spun us around, so we were facing the shower bench. He released my breasts to place his hands on my back and push me down, so I was bent over, ass in the air. Before I could say anything, he popped one of my buttcheeks with a loud smack. “Which means I get to hear you scream while I give you your punishment,” he growled before slapping the other cheek.

By the time he was done spanking my ass—and my pussy —I’d screamed through four mind-blowing orgasms. I was about to drift o , cuddled in his arms when a thought occurred to me. “Dang it! We didn’t use—” “Nope,” Zeke interrupted as one arm curled around to rest the palm of his hand over my belly. The other was already firmly wedged between my thighs. “You graduated in August, and Merren will be four next month. I’m ready for another one.”

We’d talked about having a fourth child, but we’d decided to wait a little longer this time around. I’d finally gone back to college and earned my degree. Not because it was expected of me, but because I wanted to.

“Okay,” I whispered happily as a grin split my face. His hand flexed between my legs, two long fingers sinking into my drenched channel. I moaned as he moved them in and out.

“You need to rest,” he growled even as he thrust his hips forward, rubbing his steel shaft against my bottom. “But I need to fuck you one more time first.”

“Yessss,” I agreed as he removed his fingers and replaced them with his cock, shoving it deep inside me.

Nine months later, we welcomed our second boy, Abel, into the world.

HER ALPHA

When Larissa Nash went looking for her best friend, she never expected to find her in a town full of shifters. She didn’t even know they existed until Kace Lowell clued her in on the secret by shifting into his wolf.

Mating a human was complicated for the alpha of the pack, but Kace was more than ready to take on anyone who dared to challenge Larissa’s place in his life.

1

LARISSA

“D

id you find her yet?” one of my best friends asked as I pounded on the door in front of me.

“I’m at the house where her phone’s location shows she’s at.” I switched my cell phone to the other ear and looked over my shoulder. “There’s a big truck in the driveway, so hopefully she’s here, and someone answers the door soon.

I’ll call you back when I know what the heck is going on with her and the sexy sheri .”

“Don’t disappear on me, too,” Calliope warned before hanging up. If I hadn’t been worried sick about Allegra, our other best friend, I probably would’ve laughed because of how ridiculous the idea was. I highly doubted I’d find a guy who’d make me forget to check in with my friends like Allegra did, the day after she stumbled upon her hot cop at the scene of an accident. None of our trio had gotten into the dating scene in high school, so it would be super weird if two of us threw ourselves into the deep end at the same time.

Scared that Allegra had ended up in water too deep for her to handle, I slammed my fist against the door again. I almost took a step back when a deep male voice roared, “I’m coming!” But I held myself in place, refusing to back down when Allegra might be in trouble. Steeling my spine, I lifted

my hand to knock again, but held it in the air when the door was flung open by a muscular guy with dark hair and green eyes. “Who are you, and what the hell do you want?”

Refusing to be intimidated by him, I crossed my arms over my chest and stared him down. I wanted to see my best friend with my own eyes to make sure she was okay, and I wasn’t going to leave until it happened. “Where is Allegra?

She missed both of her classes today, and I haven’t heard from her since last night. I don’t care that you’re the sheri around here. If you’ve hurt her in any way, I’m going to make you pay.”

The big lug’s lips curved up in a smirk at my threat, and I clenched my fists at my sides. But then a familiar voice called, “I’m okay!”

My gaze darted over his shoulder, and I spotted Allegra at the top of the stairs. She was practically swimming in the sweats she was wearing, but she made it look good. The surge of relief racing through my system was so strong, my knees trembled a little as I stepped around her guy to get closer to my best friend.

She rushed down the stairs and said, “I’m so sorry I disappeared all day. I don’t even know where I left my phone.”

“It’s in my o ce.” Allegra’s sheri moved to stand next to her, wrapping his arm around her back and pulling her close. “I noticed your battery was low after you fell asleep last night. Since we have the same model, I plugged it in to recharge in case you needed it later.”

As thoughtful as it was that he’d thought to take care of Allegra’s phone for her, I wasn’t ready to cut him any slack yet. “If you were trying to be helpful, you should’ve set an alarm so she wouldn’t have skipped the entire day and worried her friends.” Shifting my focus to my best friend, I added, “It was a good thing your location is shared with me

on our phones, or else I wouldn’t have had any idea how to find you.”

“I didn’t mean to scare you.” She gestured toward the guy at her side with an awkward wave and explained, “I just lost track of time.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” I snorted, pointing at her bed head.

“But you’re going to need to figure out how to juggle having a guy and going to school, or else your grades will plummet and then your mom will be all up in your business even more than usual.”

“You know getting a degree has never been important to me. I enrolled in college more because of you and Calliope than anything else,” she reminded me.

“Yeah, but you can’t just drop out before the end of the semester.” Her point was fair, but I wasn’t going to back down just because she’d never been interested in getting a degree. I needed some answers before I’d accept that she’d change her whole life for a guy she met last night. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for her to give me something that would help me understand what the heck was going through her head.

“There are only three weeks to go, so of course I’m not going to drop out,” she assured me with a smile.

“The campus is only a ten-minute drive, and my job is flexible. I’ll make sure she doesn’t miss any more classes.”

The sheri ’s announcement shocked the heck out of me.

“Hold up! Are you trying to say Allegra is moving in with you? After only one night?”

“Good question.” She tilted her head back to stare up at him. “Are you?”

He nodded. “Absolutely.”

She beamed a smile at him before looking back at me, her brown eyes full of happiness. “Yup, that’s what we’re saying.”

“I don’t even know what to say to all of this.” My brain felt as though it was about to explode. I shook my head and pinched the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger.

Allegra’s grin widened. “Is it really that much of a shock?

You know that all I’ve ever wanted is a family of my own. I finally found a guy I could picture myself growing old with, so why should I go slow?”

Her guy stunned me by o ering, “I’ll be more than happy to give you as many babies as you want.”

“You’re already talking about babies?” I sputtered. “Do I need to remind you again that you only met this guy last night? You haven’t even had time to introduce him to your best friends.”

“I can fix that with half of my best friend duo right now.”

She patted his chest. “This is Zeke. I get that it’s super crazy, but I’m already falling in love with him.” Then she pointed at me. “Zeke, this is Larissa, one of my best friends in the whole wide world.”

“Nice to meet you.” Zeke jerked his chin in my direction.

“Allegra has told me a lot about you.”

All I’d gotten from her about him on the phone last night was what he did for a living. “I wish I could say the same. If my mind is blown by all of this, I can just imagine how your parents are going to react.”

Her eyes went wide at the reminder of how badly they would take the news of her having a boyfriend. “I think I’ll wait until Christmas break to tell them about Zeke, and then I’ll have a whole month to decide if I want to take any classes next semester.”

Allegra was kidding herself if she thought the holiday was going to help her family accept Zeke more easily. I snorted, “Good luck with her mom.”

A wide grin split Zeke’s face as he looked over my shoulder. “Good luck with my alpha.”

His alpha? What the heck did he mean by that?

“Huh?” My brow wrinkled in confusion, but I didn’t get the chance to ask what Zeke was talking about before strong arms grabbed me from behind. I was tossed over a broad shoulder, and some random guy carried me away while I pounded on his back with my fists. Allegra just whispered, “Oh, boy.”

Being kidnapped while my best friend did nothing to help me was beyond wrong. Especially when she was the reason I was there in the first place. If love at first sight made her look at everything with rose-colored glasses, I wanted nothing to do with it.

2

KACE

T

ossing my human mate—who didn’t know shifters existed—over my shoulder and carrying her away might not have been my smartest decision ever, but I didn’t regret it. Not when she was exactly where I wanted her to be— under my roof where nobody else could see her. The mystery of my wolf’s reaction to Allegra’s scent had been solved the moment I stepped out of my house and the sweet aroma with a hint of chocolate hit my nostrils. When my wolf had caught the faint trace of it on Zeke’s mate earlier, he’d wanted to hunt the source down.

I’d had to force him to stay inside my human skin when I’d left without the information I needed. Nothing but a mating would’ve made me walk out before I got the answers I wanted. Zeke and Allegra were in the early stages of theirs, and privacy was a necessity. The last thing I wanted was for my beta to challenge me because the mating urge whipped him into a jealous rage. Now that I had found the woman who was born to be mine, I wished I had those lost hours back. She, on the other hand, did not seem to be thrilled with me as I set her on her feet after slamming my door shut and flipping the lock.

Her blond hair was disheveled, with one long lock curled around a plump breast. Twin spots of color filled her cheeks, standing out against her fair skin. If she had the power to kill me with the glare from her pretty blue eyes, I would’ve died on the spot. She was a fierce little thing, and both sides of my being heartily approved. Being mated to the alpha was a challenge for shifter females and even more so for a human.

Her intensity would serve her well as she took her rightful place at my side. But first, I had to convince her that was where she belonged...before my wolf broke free and clamped his teeth into her shoulder when she didn’t even know what the hell was going on.

Holding my hands up, palms toward my gorgeous mate, I murmured, “Relax. You’re safe. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Relax?” she yelled, her eyes narrowing as she pointed her index finger at me. “I don’t know you.” Her middle finger joined the first. “You just carried me out of my best friend’s boyfriend’s house while I was kicking and screaming for you to put me down.” Her ring finger got in on the action before she waved her hand in a small circle. “You brought me to another house, locked the door before putting me down, and you’re standing in front of it to block my exit.” Her hand dropped, and she pressed her fists to her hips. “Don’t you dare tell me to relax after doing your best to scare the crap out of me.”

Knowing she was afraid of me was like an arrow to my heart. I wasn’t about to let her escape until I had the chance to explain who she was to me, but I could at least give her access to the door since I was fast enough to catch her if she somehow got past me. Taking a few steps to the left, I apologized, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Her gaze slid to the door before returning to my face.

“You do realize how ridiculous that sounds, right? How else did you expect me to react to the stunt you pulled? You can’t

just go around kidnapping people and then act all surprised when they’re afraid.”

“It worked for Zeke,” I grumbled, wondering how my beta had gotten Allegra to accept him so damn quickly.

“I’m still unclear on exactly what happened between my best friend and Zeke last night, but I’m pretty sure you can’t compare him rescuing her from a car accident to you carting me o in the middle of a conversation you weren’t even a part of.” The cutest little wrinkle formed in the middle of her forehead, and I wanted to brush my lips across it. “He was acting like a hero, but what you did was more along the lines of a villain.”

My wolf almost went berserk at the possibility of my mate preferring Zeke over me. I held still, forcing my beast to remain within my skin until she was ready to meet him. Once he was no longer ready to tear across the street to rip Zeke’s throat out, and I had him back under control, I prowled closer to my mate. My lips curved up in a satisfied smirk when she held her ground, refusing to back down from me.

There was only the slightest whi of fear in her delicious scent. No matter how scared my mate thought she should be, she felt the pull between us the same as me, and it was stronger than her uneasiness with the situation. “You can kid yourself all you want, but Zeke would’ve done the same damn thing with Allegra if he’d had to.”

“I find that di cult to believe,” she sco ed with a frown.

“He’s the freaking sheri . It’s not like he’s going to run around kidnapping women when his job is all about upholding the law.”

I shrugged my shoulders, and my smile widened. “So what if he’s the sheri ? I’m the mayor of Timber Ridge, and that didn’t stop me from taking you out of his house.”

Her blue eyes widened as her gaze swept down my tall body to take in the flannel shirt and faded jeans I’d put on

after my run earlier. “You’re the mayor? You’ve got to be kidding me. Is this why I never heard much about Timber Ridge even though I moved to Stewart three months ago?”

She paced back and forth in front of me, waving her hands in the air. “With you at the helm of this town, there are probably all sorts of illegal things going on that you need to keep quiet.”

I barely held back the chuckle that rumbled up my chest at her rant. Pressing my lips together, I shook my head.

“Nope, there’s no illegal shit going on in Timber Ridge that we need to hide.”

We didn’t need to add crime to our collection of secrets.

The fact that we were a town full of people who could shift into animals was more than enough to keep on the down low from the human world.

“Oh, really?” She quirked a brow at me and tilted her head to the side. “What do you call kidnapping me then?”

“I wouldn’t call it a kidnapping, that’s for damn sure.” I grinned when she parted those plump lips of hers to argue, hurrying to add, “And based on the lack of reactions from the sheri and your best friend when they saw me carry you away, they didn’t think so either.”

“Thanks for reminding me”—she marched past me —“that I have a bone to pick with Allegra. Just because she’s all loved up doesn’t mean she should let some strange guy haul me away like a sack of potatoes.”

When her hand wrapped around the knob, I came up behind her and crowded her against the door. “There’s a flaw in your logic.”

Her lungs expanded, her back brushing against my chest.

She held perfectly still as she asked, “How so?”

“I’m not just some strange guy.” I wound a stray lock of her hair around my finger and let it drop down her back. My wolf wanted to mark her bare neck, and my canines pressed

against my gums as I rasped, “Your best friend already trusts Zeke, and he knows you’re safe with me because I’m his alpha.”

“Alpha?” she echoed, twisting her head to meet my eyes.

“Do you guys have a whole di erent vocabulary or something? Zeke wished me luck with his alpha, but I didn’t know what he meant.”

I knew a few shifters besides my beta who’d mated humans, and I’d heard stories about how they’d broken the news to them. Learning from their experiences, I figured it was best to spit it out sooner rather than later. Otherwise, I was running the risk of her discovering my secret when I shifted in front of her without any warning, which was the worst-case scenario when it came to her accepting who and what I was. With no better choice, I said, “It’s fair to say shifters have our own language since we need words for things that don’t exist in the human world.”

Her eyes widened, and the wrinkle popped up on her forehead again. “What in the ever-loving heck do you mean?”

“The residents of Timber Ridge aren’t fully human,” I confessed, my muscles tensing as I waited for her reaction.

“We’re able to shift into animal form.”

3

LARISSA

I

blinked up at him before turning to face the door and letting my forehead drop against the hard surface. For a little bit there, I’d thought maybe Allegra had stumbled across an awesome town full of hot guys, and I was looking forward to visiting her on the regular. And that was after being kidnapped, which just went to show how good-looking these guys were.

Zeke was attractive enough to make any woman look twice, but the guy who’d dared to snatch me out of his house was the one who called to me. He was a good nine to ten inches taller than me and had muscles on top of his muscles.

His light brown hair was long enough for me to run my fingers through it, and his eyes were a rich chocolate brown.

It really was too bad he was the one who caught my attention since he was completely out of touch with reality. And lucky me...I was trapped inside his house with him. “Why me?”

It was a rhetorical question, but the guy who thought he was part animal decided to answer anyway. “Because you’re my fated mate.”

“You’ve got to be freaking kidding me.” Squeezing my eyes shut, I lifted my head and banged it against the door again.

Gently gripping my shoulder, he turned me to face him.

Then he cupped the back of my head so his hand was protecting me from the door. “Stop, you’re going to hurt yourself.”

Startled laughter burst from my lips. “Oh, that’s just great. The guy who kidnapped me because he thinks he can turn into an animal and I’m supposedly fated to be with him is worried that I’ll bruise my head or something during my perfectly reasonable reaction.”

“Kace.”

He stared at me as though I’d know what his random, one-word response meant. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I figured it’d be easier for you to refer to me if you knew my name.” His lips curved up in a sexy grin, and I wanted to kick my own butt for reacting to it. “Kace Lowell.”

My dad had drilled the importance of a firm handshake so deeply into my head that my response was automatic.

Stretching out my arm, I replied, “Larissa Nash.”

Kace’s palm slid against mine, and I felt his touch all the way to my core. “Larissa,” he repeated in a low, raspy tone.

“A unique name for a beautiful woman.”

I tried to tug my hand from his hold, but he didn’t let go.

“Oh, sure. Now you pour on the charm after you already showed me your faults.”

“I can be a fuck of a lot more charming where you’re concerned,” he promised with a sexy smirk. “And being a shifter isn’t a fault. It should go in the plus column because you’ll never have to worry about how I’ll treat you. You are the center of my world. The one person I put above my pack.”

He had me falling for his line, right up until the last bit.

“Is your pack part of the whole changing into an animal thing?”

Tightening his hold on my hand, he guided me over to the couch. After getting me settled, he crouched down until we were eye level. “I get that it’s di cult to believe that shifters exist, and I don’t expect you to take my word for it when we only just met.”

He was back to sounding reasonable, and I felt as though I had mental whiplash. “That’s good because I’m not going to believe you can change into an animal without seeing it with my own eyes.”

“Deal.” He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt before tugging it over his head. My gaze was glued to his sixpack abs, so it took a moment to register in my brain that he had kicked o his boots and popped open the snap on his jeans.

I slapped a hand over my eyes, but I was super tempted to peek through my fingers because he was so darn sexy. “What are you doing?”

There was a rustling sound, and then his jeans landed on top of my feet. “Showing you my wolf.”

His answer was so matter-of-fact, as though people claimed they could shift into an animal every day. “Your wolf?”

“He’s bigger than most since I’m the alpha, but you don’t need to be scared of him,” he promised. “My wolf would die to protect you.”

My eyes popped open at his vow, and I stared at my hand until I felt the brush of fur against my legs. I dropped my arm and gasped in shock at the huge wolf sitting in front of me. Its head was several inches above mine, and familiar dark brown eyes stared down his snout at me. “Holy crap!

You were serious. You really can change into a wolf.”

He chu ed at me and lowered his head, his rough tongue swiping against my hand.

“Okay. Wow,” I breathed. “I’m going to take that as a yes.”

Remembering what he’d said about not being afraid, I reached out to stroke my hand down his back. “Your fur is so soft.”

With his tongue hanging out, the wolf jumped up next to me on the couch. He rested his head on my lap, and I took it as an invitation to keep petting him. I dug my fingers in his thick fur and murmured, “You’re freaking huge, but I’ve never seen a more gorgeous animal in my life.”

It was impossible to miss the gleam of male satisfaction in his dark eyes. “Duh, I guess I should’ve realized you’d understand what I’m saying. But I refuse to be embarrassed.

I’m sure you already know how amazing your wolf is. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. It makes sense that a superhot guy wouldn’t turn into just any wolf.”

He shifted on my lap, his tongue stroking against my cheek. I rubbed my hand against the trail of wetness the lick left behind. My vision was partially blocked, and I shrieked when my hand dropped back down to my lap, and I saw that Kace’s naked body was sprawled next to me. “You think I’m hot, huh?”

I jerked my gaze away from his impressive hard on and used all of my willpower to stop myself from looking back down at it. “Like you don’t already know how attractive you are. I’m sure you have women hitting on you all of the time.”

“I don’t think so.” He shrugged his broad shoulders. “It’s possible, but I never really noticed because nobody else is you.”

It felt as though butterflies swirled in my belly. My hands twisted together, and I started to look down at them when I remembered he was still naked. My cheeks filled with heat, and I blurted, “Could you put your jeans back on? I have

some questions, and it’s really di cult to talk to you while that thing is pointing straight at me.”

I couldn’t tear my gaze away when he fisted his hard on and stroked down the length. “If you’re sure that’s what you want.”

I’d never seen a dick up close and personal like this, but I wasn’t about to admit to how badly I wanted to touch it— and maybe take a lick or two. Instead, I forced myself to say, “I wouldn’t have asked if that’s not what I wanted.”

His thumb circled the tip, and I bit back a groan when he bent over to grab his jeans o the floor. I pressed my head against the back of the couch and stared at the ceiling until he sat next to me and slid his arm around my shoulders. A quick glance confirmed that he hadn’t bothered with his shirt, and a shiver raced down my spine at being this close to his bare chest. “What did you want to ask me?”

A million questions barreled into my brain. “What’s an alpha? And a beta? Can everyone in Timber Ridge shift? Are they all wolves, or are there other animals? Wolves are super cool, but what about stu like bunnies or honey badgers?

What’s the deal with fated mates? Does Allegra know about Zeke? Is he a wolf, too? Is that why she’s all loved up so quickly?”

I finally trailed o when I felt his shoulders shake and a deep chuckle rumbled up his chest. “Keep going if you have more questions.”

“There are plenty more I can come up with, but let’s start there.” Having him so close was wreaking havoc on my ability to concentrate. I pulled out of his embrace, shifted on the couch so my back was against the arm, and bent my knees to sit cross-legged.

Kace turned toward me and leaned his shoulder against the back of the couch. “You know how you asked if there was illegal crap going on in Timber Ridge?” I nodded and flashed

him an apologetic smile. “I’m happy to answer any questions you have, but you need to be ready to keep what you learn to yourself. Being a shifter isn’t against the law, and I’d like to keep it that way, which is why we don’t go around advertising the fact we exist.”

4

LARISSA

P

eople tended to be judgmental of things they didn’t understand, so I totally got where Kace was coming from. But that didn’t mean I was going to blindly agree to keeping everything he told me a secret from the people I loved. I crossed my arms over my chest and blushed when his gaze dropped to my boobs. My nipples pebbled at the spark of desire in his eyes, and a knowing gleam filled his dark orbs even though he couldn’t see them. “That could be a problem. I tell my best friends everything.”

“You can talk to Allegra,” he conceded with a smile.

“Zeke already told her since she’s his fated mate.”

It was a relief to know I wouldn’t have to keep secrets from one of my closest friends, but it only half-solved my problem. “What about Calliope? She, Allegra, and I have been a trio since kindergarten, and it would totally suck for her to feel left out. I spend a lot of time with her since we’re roommates, and we’re already going to have to adjust to the fact that Allegra has apparently decided to move in with Zeke even though they’ve only known each other for one night.

Calliope is way more sensitive than Allegra or me, so it’s going to be tougher on her. The last thing I want to do is

make her feel worse because she thinks I’m hiding something.”

He ran his hand through his thick hair. “If it’s that important to you, then we’ll figure it out.”

“Really?” I was surprised he was agreeing so quickly. It made me consider the possibility that he’d truly meant it when he’d said I was going to be the most important person in his life.

“As the alpha, I have the final say when it comes to sharing information about our existence with anyone other than human mates and their families,” he explained as he reached out to lace his fingers through mine. “Allegra already wanted permission to share with both of you, and I promised to consider her request after she got settled into the pack. Finding out you’re my fated mate makes the decision a fuck of a lot easier. If you say Calliope can be trusted, then I believe you.”

“She’s the softest of the three of us, but she’d never do anything to hurt Allegra or me,” I promised, giving his hand a little squeeze. “Calliope hates confrontation, but she took on this soccer mom who wanted me o the team my senior year of high school after I accidentally sprained her daughter’s ankle during practice. She was drawing in her notebook up in the stands, waiting for my dad to pick us up after practice. Usually when she’s in one of her creative moods, the rest of the world kind of fades away. But as soon as my teammate’s mom started to rip into me, Calliope came storming down the steps like an avenging angel. I can’t remember another time when she yelled like she did then. It was so out of character, but she was scary as heck. By the time she was done, my teammate was pulling her mom o the field to get away from Calliope even though she only had one good leg.”

Kace’s thumb brushed across my palm, sending goose bumps up my arm. “She sounds like a great friend. I’m sure we’ll get along great.”

“Oh, crap!” I reached into my coat pocket and pulled my cell phone out. Glancing down at the screen, I groaned, “I was supposed to call Calliope as soon as I found Allegra, and now she’s freaking out. She called three times and sent half a dozen texts.” I stabbed my finger against the screen to pull up her number. She picked up a split second after the ringtone began. “Allegra’s fine. I’m sorry it took so long for me to call back.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” she sighed. “I was going to skip class and order a rideshare to go hunt you down. What’s going on in this Timber Ridge place? I was almost afraid to go there since it’s like the Bermuda Triangle for my friends.

You both went in but never came back out.”

Kace chuckled, and I realized he could hear everything my friend was saying. I shook my head and pressed a finger against my lips before turning my attention back to my best friend. “Don’t skip class. There’s nothing to worry about.

Allegra got distracted because she’s all loved up on her sexy sheri .”

A deep growl rumbled up Kace’s chest, and he yanked on my hand until I fell forward and sprawled on his lap. I let out a startled yelp, barely holding onto my phone. “Larissa?

What happened? Please tell me you didn’t get into a fender bender, too. That would be bad...unless you also get rescued by a hot cop. Then it would be awesome. Especially if he has a partner for me.”

Out of the three of us, Calliope had always been the one who’d dreamed of finding the perfect boyfriend. Plenty of boys had asked her out in high school, but she’d turned them all down because no one lived up to her expectations. If she’d been the one who’d stumbled on a guy who could shift into a

wolf and swore they were fated mates, she'd probably jump right in without any questions if she thought he was the one for her. Meanwhile, I still had plenty, but I couldn’t ask them while she was on the phone. “I wasn’t in an accident and didn’t get rescued by a hot cop. But I did kinda sorta meet Zeke’s”—I paused, scrambling to come up with a better term than alpha to describe Kace—“best friend, and we’re hanging out. So I won’t be back until later.”

“Dude. Seriously?” she shrieked. “Ugh, I really wish I didn’t have my drawing and digital imaging class right now.

It’s my favorite, and I hate to miss it except for an emergency. Coming to rescue you and Allegra counts.

Running o to Timber Ridge in the hopes that I’ll meet a hot guy too, not so much. But I want all the deets when I see you tonight. Or tomorrow morning if things go really well, if you know what I mean.”

I didn’t get the chance to respond before she hung up, probably in a rush to get across campus. Kace’s shoulders shook with his laughter as he took the phone out of my hand and set it on the co ee table. “She can meet every unmated male in my pack if it’ll make you happy.”

“I’m sure she’ll take you up on that o er.” I laughed and shook my head. “And you’ll probably come to regret it at some point.”

He wrapped his arms around my back and settled me more comfortably on his lap. “Now that your friend isn’t worried about you, how about I answer the rest of your questions?”

“That’s probably a good idea,” I agreed, though I still hadn’t fully wrapped my head around the fact he could change into a wolf.

“As the alpha, I’m the highest-ranking member of our pack and its leader. I have a telepathic link with all of the shifters in my pack,” he explained. “Zeke is my second in

command, or my beta. He’s also a wolf, but we have other kinds of shifters in Timber Ridge. Tane, my third, is a tiger.”

I hadn’t been scared when Kace shifted into a wolf, but I couldn’t imagine how I would’ve reacted if I’d found a freaking tiger standing in front of me when I’d opened my eyes. “There are tigers?”

“Bears, lions, and dragons, too.” He flashed me a sexy grin, his dark eyes twinkling with humor. “But no bunnies or honey badgers.”

“Forget bunnies and honey badgers! There are people who can shift into dragons?” I cried, jumping o his lap.

“Are they teeny-tiny ones about the size of your wolf? Or actually dragon-sized?”

A low growl rumbled up Kace’s chest as he stood. “There isn’t anything remotely small about my wolf. He’s a fucking beast of an animal.”

“I worded that badly. I’m sorry.” I patted his chest. “Your wolf is freaking awesome.”

“Damn straight he is,” Kace grumbled. “Even if the only dragon I know is about twice his size.”

My eyes widened as I tried to picture someone turning into something two times bigger than Kace’s wolf. “Are they rare?”

He nodded and explained, “There aren’t many dragon shifters, and he can’t just bite someone to make more. We’re born this way, and everyone in Timber Ridge is a shifter except for you, Allegra, and one other fated mate. It helps that we don’t need to hide who we are in town since shifters age more slowly than humans, heal more quickly, and are physically stronger.”

“Wait.” I held up my palm. “You’re talking as though I live here, too.”

He gently wrapped his fingers around my wrist and tugged my hand to his lips. Then he pressed a kiss to my

knuckles. “Of course, I am. Your place is with me.”

He acted like my staying was a foregone conclusion.

Considering how quickly Zeke was talking about Allegra moving in with him, it was probably the way relationships went for shifters. But I wasn’t sure how I felt about the whole fated mate thing yet. I needed a little bit of time to think about it all. “That’s all fine and dandy except I need to go back to my dorm. Like right now.”

5

KACE

I

’d found Larissa less than an hour ago, and she already wanted to leave. This wasn’t how I expected my mating to go, and my wolf was demanding to be let out to mark her as ours before she got away. I ground my teeth together and clenched my jaw. Fur rippled against my skin, and I took a few deep breaths to get myself under control. I got where he was coming from, but I wasn’t about to let him do something she wasn’t ready for. He only backed down when I promised I wouldn't let her out of our sight. “Do you have a class or something?”

“No, I had my last one for the day before I tracked Allegra down. I just”—she paused and twisted her hands together —“need to be in my own space.”

My compulsion to be with Larissa warred with my desire to give her whatever she needed. I understood her wanting to be surrounded by the familiar while she came to terms with how meeting me was going to change her world, but that didn’t mean she had to be alone while doing it. “No problem.” I shoved my feet into my boots. “I'll take you back.”

I felt a burst of satisfaction at her reaction to my quick agreement as her plump lips curved down at the edges and

she mumbled, “Okay.”

Stalking toward her, I pressed a finger under her chin and tilted her head back until my gaze met hers. “Give me a minute while I grab some stu so I can spend the night with you.”

“What? No way.” Her blue eyes went wide, and she shook her head. “I live in an all-girls dorm. Any male visitors have to check in at the front desk, and there are rules about how long they can be there. It's the only dorm on campus that's super strict, but Allegra's parents insisted we pick that one because it meant her mom wouldn’t worry quite as much.”

I was relieved to hear no males were allowed in her building—not that I planned on her being there without me —but I wasn’t about to let the rules apply to me. I wasn’t accustomed to taking orders from anyone else since I was the one who gave them in Timber Ridge. And I wasn’t just some guy. I was Larissa’s mate, even if she didn’t fully grasp what that meant yet. “You might not be feeling the pull at the same level as me because you're human, but the early days in a mating are the most intense. Having you near without claiming you is already pushing my wolf to his limits, and leaving you alone on campus will send him over the edge.”

“Oh.” Her plump lips formed a perfect circle, making my dick push against the zipper of my jeans as I pictured them wrapped around me. “Look, I’m no good at this relationship stu . I don't really know how it works with regular couples, let alone shifters with fated mates. I've never had a boyfriend, and the only happy marriage I saw growing up was between Allegra's parents. My mom walked out right after I was born. She didn’t want kids, and I haven’t had contact with her since she left.”

I was happy as fuck to know there hadn’t been any men in her life before me, but I hated seeing the faint sheen of tears

in her eyes. Knowing the woman who’d given birth to her—I refused to call her Larissa’s mom because she sure as hell hadn’t earned the privilege—had hurt her so badly had my wolf ready to hunt her down. “I’m sorry you went through all that.”

“It’s okay.” She shrugged and sni ed. “My dad is beyond awesome, so I didn’t really feel like I was missing out on anything while growing up. And Hannah, Allegra’s mom, was always there if I had questions about girl stu .”

“My mom will be happy as fuck to help you with women shit.” I had no doubt she was going to be on my dad’s ass to come back earlier than planned. “She and my dad left for a two-month long road trip a few weeks ago, but it was mostly an excuse to visit my brother at college. My dad is going to razz her so hard for not being here when I met you. She’s been dying for one of us to finally find our mates and give her grandbabies.”

“Grandbabies?” she echoed, eyes going wide. “I feel like I should remind you—again—that we met maybe an hour ago.”

“I know down to the minute when I first laid eyes on you, baby.” I grinned at the dreamy sigh that nickname pu ed from her lips. “I wish like fuck that there were a lot more of them, but I can’t change that. All I can do is make the most of the time we have now, while keeping in mind that this is all new to you. We’ll move at whatever pace works for you”—even if it fucking killed me—“and I’ll warn my mom to lay o on talking about babies until you’re ready for it.”

“I—What—Ugh!” She let out a growl that was worthy of any she-wolf and whirled away from me. “Are matings always like this?”

I wasn’t sure what about my promise had set her o when I’d thought it was going to help. “Like what?”

She threw her hands up in the air. “I was freaking out about you mentioning babies so soon. Then you o ered to let our relationship go at my speed and have your mom back o , and I felt the strangest sense of disappointment. As though going slow was somehow...wrong.”

I prowled over to her and slid a palm down her back, pressing her chest against mine. “What you’re feeling is the power of fated mates. There’s bound to be some inner conflict when your soul knows you were born to be mine, and your mind is trying to catch up because it's outside your realm of experience.”

“I guess that makes sense.” She wrapped her arms around my body and dropped her head against my chest.

“Maybe it’ll help if I knew more about what usually happens with fated mates.”

“Sure, baby. Whatever you need.” I led her back over to the couch and got us comfortable again with her on my lap.

“Shifters can recognize their mate at first sight or smell.”

She turned her head to sni her shoulder. “Is that your subtle way of trying to tell me I smell?”

“Only like the best thing I’ve ever smelled.” I buried my nose in her neck and inhaled deeply, her delicious scent filling my lungs and giving my wolf the first sense of peace he’d had since she talked about going back to her campus.

“It’s the biggest fucking turn-on for me.”

Larissa wiggled on my lap, gasping when my cock pressed against her ass. A pretty pink blush filled her cheeks. “Yeah, I kind of noticed.”

“Only kind of?” I growled, shifting my hips up.

“Definitely more than kind of,” she confirmed with a giggle. “Since that would be di cult to miss.”

I maneuvered her to the left when she started to wiggle again. When my cock nestled between her thighs, she went still, and her scent deepened and turned sweeter. “Fated

mates feel a fierce desire for each other. The need is more intense when they first meet, but it never wavers over the years. I’ll always want you. That will never change.”

She tilted her head to the side and smiled shyly at me. “I like the sound of that.”

“I’m glad, baby.” I brushed my lips across her cheek.

“Because there are other aspects of mating that are probably going to be more di cult for you to accept.”

Her eyes went wide again. “Like what?”

“A part of the process involves me marking you.” I brushed my fingers down her neck to her shoulder. “While we’re still connected after sex, I’ll bite you here, and it will solidify our connection, making you mine forever.”

“It won’t turn me into a shifter, right?” she asked.

“No, you’ll still be human,” I assured her, “but you’ll age slower and heal faster.”

Her eyes narrowed, but they gleamed with humor. “No super strength, huh?”

“Nope.” I grinned. “But you’ll have me around to kick ass if you ever need it.”

“That works for me.” She winked, and she was so fucking adorable, I almost spread her out on the couch so I could taste every inch of her body. But then she turned serious again. “Will it hurt?”

I shook my head. “I’ve been told it enhances the sexual experience, taking our pleasure to another level.”

“Wow,” she breathed, the scent of her desire filling the room again.

I lowered my head, intending to claim her sweet lips in our first kiss, and wanted to howl in frustration when there was a knock on my door. I wanted nothing more than to ignore the world outside of this room, but my responsibilities as alpha made that impossible. “Sorry, baby,” I whispered before stalking over to the door to flip the

lock. I waited until I returned to Larissa before I called out, “Come in!”

The door opened, and two members of my pack walked in.

Luke had been working his way up the ranks of the pack ever since he turned eighteen, but his sister was a di erent story.

Her parents had given her pretty much anything she wanted, and she’d grown to expect everyone else to treat her the same. Neither my wolf nor I respected her much, but it wasn’t her presence that bothered me at the moment.

It was a damn good thing my wolf had rubbed up against Larissa and I’d held her on my lap while we talked. Having my scent all over my mate was the only thing stopping me from attacking the unattached male who was too damn close to her even though he’d quickly taken in the situation and remained by the door.

6

LARISSA

T

wisting on Kace’s lap, I glared at the two people who had interrupted what I had no doubt would’ve been my first kiss if they hadn’t knocked on the darn door. The guy flashed me a welcoming grin, but the girl returned my dirty look with a scowl of her own. A deep growl rumbled up Kace’s chest, and her gaze softened when she focused her attention on him. He stood, taking me with him and setting me on my feet. The quick change in position left me unsteady, and I gripped his arm to regain my balance. When my hand grazed his chest along the way, I realized he was still shirtless, and the girl’s reaction to him took on a whole new meaning. One that had an unexpected surge of jealousy racing through my system.

“Put your shirt on,” I muttered, earning me a chuckle from the guy and another glare from the girl.

Her gaze stayed on Kace as he bent over to grab his shirt o the floor. I stepped in front of him and earned myself another dirty look from her.

“Cut it out,” the guy grunted, elbowing her in the side.

“Shut up, Luke.” She widened her eyes, and she pasted an innocent expression on her face that I didn’t buy. Not even a

little bit. “As usual, you don’t know what you’re talking about because I wasn’t doing anything.”

Kace moved to my side after tugging his shirt in place, his arm going around my back. “Don’t try to pull any shit, Heather. I didn’t put up with it before, and I’m not going to start now.”

“And he sure as fuck isn’t going to let you do anything to upset his mate,” Luke added.

“Mate!” Heather shrieked, her gaze raking me up and down before her lips curled up in a snarl. “Wow, the strongest alpha in the region ended up with a human. Fate really fucked you over.”

Kace was across the room with his hand around her neck before I could blink. “I get that you’re still young and trying to figure out your place in my pack, but don’t think for even a second that I’ll hesitate to punish you for the slightest infraction against my mate.”

“I apologize for my sister’s o ense.” Luke lowered his chin to his left shoulder, baring his neck to Kace as he stared at the floor. “Too often, Heather speaks before she thinks.”

“It’s a habit she needs to break before it gets her into the kind of trouble she can’t handle,” Kace warned as he released her.

Heather’s hands went to her throat, and she mumbled, “Sorry.”

Kace prowled across the room and wrapped his arm around me again. “Get out of my sight and don’t return to my home until I’ve given you permission.”

Luke yanked on Heather’s arm and pulled open the door to shove her outside. After he slammed it shut, he turned to face us again. “I’m sorry as well, Alpha. I should’ve known better than to bring her with me when I needed to speak with you about pack business.”

Kace nodded to acknowledge the apology. “What did you need?”

“Tane got a call from his mom. There was a family emergency, and he had to head to New York,” Luke explained. “Before he left, he asked me to complete a task you assigned to him.”

I felt some of the tension leave Kace’s body, and his hold on me eased a little. “He sent you to Stewart?”

“Stewart?” I tilted my head back to look up at Kace’s face.

“Yeah, we’re having some issues with the liquor distributor there. I was pissed as hell at how badly they fucked up our last order, so I sent Zeke over to fix it last night.” He grinned and winked at me. “If it didn’t set the wrong precedent, I’d let them get away with it since the whole mess ended up with Zeke and I finding our mates.”

Luke’s eyes widened. “Damn, it’s too bad your good luck didn’t rub o on me. My trip to Stewart this afternoon was a pain in the ass because Heather wanted to come with me.

Finding my mate would’ve made it worth all the trouble.”

“What kind of trouble?” Kace asked.

“The guy at the liquor place wanted to stare at her tits instead of listening to what I had to say, and I couldn’t let him insult my sister like that. So I had to get a little physical with him.”

Kace barely reacted to Luke’s announcement. He just asked, “Will Zeke need to intercede with the Stewart PD on your behalf?”

“Nope, it didn’t go that far,” Luke assured with a shake of his head. “The guy backed down the second I yanked on the collar of his shirt. He sputtered an apology and promised to fix things for the bar.”

Kace chuckled. “You didn’t let him o that easily though, right?”

“Hell no!” Luke pulled a sheet of paper out of his back pocket and held it out with an outstretched arm. Kace moved forward to grab it and quickly returned to my side. “He’s knocking ten percent o cost for all our deliveries over the next year, and he replaced the missing bottles at no charge. I took them over to the bar already.”

Kace glanced down at the paper and grinned after skimming the details printed on it. “You did good, kid.”

“Thanks.” Luke grinned and jerked his chin in my direction. “You did even better.”

“Don’t look at her,” Kace growled, tugging me behind his back.

“Sorry, Alpha. I know better.” Luke did that thing where he looked at the floor and bared his neck at Kace as he reached behind him for the doorknob. “I’ll be on my way.

I’m sure you want some alone time with your mate.”

When the door shut behind him, Kace stalked over to flip the lock. “Luke will get the word out that we don’t want to be disturbed.”

One minute, Kace was talking about our babies, and the next, I was stuck dealing with crap from some other girl in his life. Then he had the gall to act jealous over a small compliment from a guy I’d never met before. I wasn’t sure what to think of it all, but everything that had happened in the past five minutes made me even more confused than I already had been.

“Was Heather an ex of yours?” I heaved a deep sigh, feeling as though I’d been put through a mental wringer.

“You know what? Never mind. It doesn’t matter. I’m going to run across the street and let Allegra know I’m heading back to the dorm.”

“What? No!” His head jerked back, and his brow wrinkled in confusion. “She’s not an ex, and anything you want to talk about absolutely does matter.”

“There’s no ‘of course’ about it.” I jerked my thumb toward the door. “That girl wants you. Badly.”

“She doesn’t want me,” he insisted with a shake of his head.

“You’re blind if you truly believe that,” I sco ed, crossing my arms over my chest. “She eye-bo ed you the entire time she was here.”

He tugged my arms down and hugged me close. “Shifters don’t feel physical desire for anyone other than their fated mate, and I’m not hers. The only thing that particular shewolf likes about me is that I’m the alpha, and she’s all about getting whatever she wants. She’s jealous of your position within the pack as my mate. That’s it.”

“Whoa. Hold up.” I hadn’t thought he’d be able to surprise me any more than he had when he’d changed into a wolf, but if I was understanding him correctly, he’d just proved me wrong. “Are you trying to tell me that the perpetual hard on you’ve been sporting since you hauled me into your house is a new thing for you?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you, baby.” He pressed his hard length against my belly. “This is all for you and only you.”

This hot man with the dominant personality was a virgin?

He’d never look at another woman? “When you were explaining how mating worked, you probably should’ve led with that piece of information since it definitely goes in the plus column.”

His fingers dug into my hips. “Is it a big enough plus that you’d consider mating with me?”

I’d always known it would take a special man to capture my attention. Measuring up to my dad wasn’t an easy task since he was beyond awesome. But Kace seemed to be amazing in his own right...and not just because he could shift into a gorgeous wolf. He was sexy, bold, and confident. He

was also the only man I’d ever felt an ounce of desire for—a fact I wasn’t willing to overlook. I’d always been someone who knew their own mind and was willing to take risks when I felt as though they were worth it. Throwing myself into a relationship with Kace—one he said would last forever— might be considered foolhardy by others, but it seemed like a no-brainer to me.

7

KACE

I

t felt as though the entire world hung in the balance while I waited for her answer. But the uncertainty—as unaccustomed as I was to the feeling—was more than worth it when she rose on her toes and tilted her face toward mine as she murmured, “Yes.” Triumph and relief surged through my system. Cupping her face in my palms, I nipped at her bottom lip before claiming her mouth in a kiss. I groaned at her taste and deepened the kiss, needing more. One of my hands slid to the back of her head, tangling in her hair to hold her in place while I devoured her mouth. By the time I pulled away, we were both panting. “I’ll never give you reason to regret taking a chance on me, baby.”

“You better not, or else you’ll be the one regretting it,” she warned.

I loved how fierce she was. “It’s never gonna happen. Fate couldn’t possibly have found anyone more perfect for me than you. I’m not going to mess this up.”

“Good.” She jumped up and wrapped her legs around my waist. “Then take me to your bedroom and make this o cial.

I’ve waited my whole life for this moment, and I don’t want to waste another second.”

“Neither do I.” I gripped her ass and carried her upstairs.

After kicking my bedroom door open, I stalked over to the bed and dropped her on the mattress. I craved seeing her sprawled naked on my bed with her blond hair spread across my pillows and those pretty blue eyes hazy with desire, so I didn’t hesitate to get to work at removing her clothes as quickly as possible.

First to go were her sneakers and socks. I wasn’t a guy with a foot fetish, but my cock screamed for relief at the sight of her bright pink painted toenails. Then I tugged her leggings—which had been driving me crazy because of how they showcased her fantastic ass—down and tossed them over my shoulder. The scent of her desire grew stronger, and I groaned when I saw the wet spot on the silky material covering her pussy. My wolf howled in my head, and my canines ached with the need to mark her as mine. I kicked my boots o and yanked my shirt over my head before pressing a knee to the bed. “Sit up, baby.”

Larissa’s hands went to the bottom of her shirt as she levered up, and I yanked it over her head. While I dropped it on the floor, she unclasped her bra and threw it to the side.

Her tits sprung free, and I wanted to slide my cock between the creamy mounds before I came all over them. But that would have to wait until I’d come deep inside her pussy and claimed her neck with my mark. “There are so many things I want to do to you,” I rasped, my gaze sweeping down her body.

After sliding her panties down her long legs, I unsnapped my jeans and shoved them down to kick them o . Placing my hands on either side of her body, I hovered over her and dipped my head. I kissed my way down her neck, my lips curving up when she threw her head back against the pillows and whimpered. Her nails dug into my shoulders hard enough to leave a mark I’d be proud to wear.

My fingers trailed down past her collarbone until I was cupping her breast in my palm. My thumb stroked over her nipple, circling around the pebbled peak. “Fuck, you smell good. I want to taste every single inch of your skin, starting here and working my way down.”

“Yes, please,” she whimpered in agreement, and the scent of her desire strengthened.

I darted my tongue out to lick at her skin, nipping at her collarbone before I trailed kisses down her chest. She panted, her nails digging into my scalp, when I flicked my tongue over her nipple. Moving to the other side, I latched on and drew the pebbled tip into my mouth. She arched her back, pressing it deeper inside as I sucked. My balls drew up tight against my body, and come leaked from the tip of my dick. I needed to get inside her soon, but first I had to make sure she was ready to take me.

I abandoned her breasts to work my way farther down, and she cried out in protest. “Don’t worry, baby. I’m going to make you feel so good,” I murmured against her belly.

“I need—” she mewled, her head thrashing against the pillows.

The mating urge was riding us hard, amping up our passion. Each touch sent her closer to the edge, and I was determined to have my mouth on her pussy when she plunged over it. Wedging my shoulders between her bent knees, I forced them farther apart. My breath caught in my lungs at the sight of her pu y, pink pussy lips glistening with the proof of her need. I slid one of my hands under her ass, and my claws almost burst from my fingertips when I lifted her up and stroked my tongue through her wetness.

“Fuck, I’ll never get enough of your taste.”

Her hips jerked up, and she moaned, “Feels so good.”

Flattening my tongue, I licked at her damp flesh. Up and down. Side to side. Circling over her clit. I devoured every

inch of her pussy until she was writhing beneath me, her hands fisted in the sheets so hard her knuckles turned white.

Reveling in her taste, I feasted on her cream that filled my mouth as her cries echoed in my ears. I ate her through her first orgasm but didn’t let up until she was close to the edge again.

I drew her clit between my lips and sucked as I worked one of my fingers into her tight hole. Her walls clenched around the digit, and more come leaked from my cock. Once she was slippery enough for me to thrust my finger in and out, I added another and scissored them to stretch her pussy so she would be ready for my cock. I twisted my wrist, pulling my hand back until only the tips of my fingers were inside. Then I bit down on her clit as I plunged my fingers back in again. Her pussy clamped down, and she screamed, “Oh, yes! Kace!”

I drank down her juices, waiting until her orgasm was done to give her a final, lingering lick before lifting my head.

“Ready for more?”

Her eyes were hazy when her gaze met mine. “I’m ready to feel you moving inside me.”

“You better be, because I’m going to be inside you as often as possible for the rest of our lives.” I kneeled between her legs, wrapping my hand around my cock and stroking up and down as I stared down at my beautiful mate. Lining myself up with her entrance, I rubbed the tip through her wetness and groaned at how fucking amazing her heat felt against my sensitive skin. I kept my gaze on her face, watching her lips part on a gasp as I worked the first two inches inside. The grip of her pussy on the tip of my cock was unlike anything I’d ever imagined. “Holy fuck, baby. You feel incredible.”

“I need more,” she gasped, wiggling her hips.

I knew it was going to hurt no matter how I did this, but I hoped with how wet she was from the two orgasms I’d given her that I’d been able to lessen the pain. Not wanting her to brace herself and risk her feeling my intrusion more than she needed, I bucked my hips forward and tore through her innocence with one powerful thrust. With her eyes squeezed shut and her teeth biting her lip, I held perfectly still until her body relaxed again. “Give me your eyes, baby. I want to see everything you feel while I make you mine.”

Her lids lifted, and there wasn’t a hint of pain in her blue orbs. I slid out of her tight clench and then slowly pushed back in inch by inch. Her legs wrapped around my waist, and her ankles locked together at the base of my spine. She clung to me while I hammered in and out of her. I wanted to take my time with her, but it wasn’t going to be possible this first time. Not with my wolf riding me hard and my dick already close to blowing. “Come for me again, baby. Give me what I need so I can fill you with my come and give you my mark.

Let me fully claim you.”

I sunk deep and ground my pelvis against her clit, and she flew apart beneath me. Her pussy spasmed, sending me over the edge right along with her. I pressed her into the mattress, jets of my come filling her pussy to overflowing.

The scent of our combined fluids filled my nostrils, and my canines pushed against my gums. “Are you ready for my mark?”

“Yes,” she agreed, turning her cheek into the pillow and baring her neck for me.

I licked over the spot I was going to bite, circling my tongue over her soft skin. Fur brushed against my skin, my wolf close to the surface. “Mine,” I growled before sinking my teeth into her flesh. A surge of power roared through my system, leaving a sense of complete peace in its wake. With my mate’s shoulder baring my mark, my soul was finally

complete. Dropping down on the mattress next to Larissa, I pulled her close and crashed my mouth over hers. Her hands gripped the back of my head, and my dick went hard again.

A message from my beta crashed into my head, and I ripped my mouth from hers and groaned “Fuck, baby. The last thing I want to do is leave this bed, but Zeke just let me know there’s trouble.”

She rubbed her cheek against my chest as she tilted her head to look into my eyes. “Huh?” “Telepathy, remember?” I tapped my temple.

She grinned up at me. “I might’ve jumped right into being your fated mate, but the telepathic message thing is going to take some getting used to.”

That was understandable since it had taken me a bit to get used to hearing my pack members’ voices inside my head when I became alpha.

8

KACE

Z

eke and Allegra were waiting for us on the front porch of the pack house. Larissa rushed over to her friend and threw her arms around her while I held my hand out to my beta. “How bad is it?”

“It could be worse.” Zeke shrugged his shoulders as he shook my hand. “But it could also be better since this grumbling shouldn’t have started in the first place.”

“How many of them listened to Heather’s bullshit?” I asked as Larissa sidled up next to me.

She tilted her head back to look up at me. “Can’t you just use telepathy to find out?”

“Telepathy?” Allegra gasped, her eyes going wide with shock before she turned to glare at Zeke. “I think you skipped a part of my shifter education. Have you been able to read my mind this whole time?”

“Whole time?” Larissa giggled, leaning into my side.

“You’ve only known him for like twenty-four hours.”

“Like you can talk,” Allegra snorted, jerking her thumb in my direction. “You’ve known him for way less than that.”

Larissa nodded. “Yeah, that’s fair.”

Acutely aware of the fact that my pack was waiting inside for us, I interjected, “To answer the original question before

you two completely lose track of this conversation...I never use my telepathic skill against pack members unless someone’s life hangs in the balance. It would be a violation of their privacy, and I wouldn’t do that to people who trust me.”

“You’re such a good man.” Larissa went up on her toes to press a kiss to my cheek.

Zeke nodded. “That’s a big part of why he’s the alpha.”

“I’m not too good to crack some heads together when needed, something certain pack members apparently need a reminder of,” I growled, and my wolf raked his claws at the thought of anyone talking shit about our mate—let alone someone who should’ve had her back since she was mine.

“Thanks for getting everyone here for the meeting. I won’t let this shit fester and destroy us from the inside out.”

“Whatever you need, I’ve got your back,” Zeke promised.

“No, we’ve got your back,” Allegra corrected with a grin.

“My ride or die status with Larissa goes for you too now.”

“Although it goes without saying, I have your back, too,” Larissa added, lacing her fingers through mine. “So let’s get in there and face whatever’s waiting for us like the team that we are.”

From the day I’d taken over the role as alpha—hell, even before then—I’d been confident in my ability to lead. But I’d never felt more invincible than I did while walking into the pack house with my mate at my side. Heads turned our way as we strode through the room. I led her to the big, stone fireplace and turned to face my pack. Holding our hands in the air, I announced, “This is Larissa, my fated mate. Every one of you should already be well aware of this, but I expect you to treat her with the same respect you would me.”

There were a lot of confused expressions and nods, with the exception of six people who looked less than thrilled to be here. Heather—the instigator of this drama—was sitting

with Luke and their parents to my left, but I decided to focus on the two unhappy pack members on the other side of the room first since the reason behind their animosity was at least semi-understandable. “Damon, Cason...I get why you’d have concerns about Larissa after what happened with your brother’s mate. Fate dealt Aaron a shit hand.”

“From where I’m sitting, I’m not sure she did you any favors either,” Damon grumbled. “You’re the strongest shifter in the pack, but who knows what your kids will be like with a human for a mom. And that’s if she even sticks around that long.”

“I’m cutting you a very small amount of slack because I know you’re hurting over your brother going lone wolf after the woman who should’ve been his mate turned out to be more interested in money than happiness,” I growled, my hands fisting at my sides. “It fucking sucks that she decided she’d rather marry a rich guy she had zero feelings for instead of mating the only man she’d ever desire. But I won’t stand for you punishing Larissa for that bitch’s mistakes.”

“Dude, that’s all kinds of fucked up,” Allegra muttered, shaking her head. “Larissa would never do something like that. She’s ridiculously loyal to the people in her life. Like to the point I could call her in the middle of the night to ask for help after murdering someone, and she’d show up with plastic sheeting and a shovel to bury the body and a carton of ice cream and wine to help me feel better.”

“Nah, I’d bring nitric acid to dissolve the body,” Larissa corrected with a grin. “I wouldn’t want to run the risk of getting caught while we moved the body.”

Cason elbowed his younger brother in the side. “We may have overreacted. She seems very di erent from Karen.”

“Of course, she’s fucking di erent,” Zeke barked, moving to stand in front of Larissa and me. Going down to one knee, he added, “Without knowing anything about shifters, she

accepted our alpha’s mark within an hour of meeting him.

She’s honored our ways and deserves our respect.”

Luke crossed the room to kneel beside Zeke. “I know I’m not your third, but Tane isn’t here to speak for himself. If he were, I have no doubt he’d be pissed as fuck. Anyone who wants to judge our alpha’s mate for being human also condemns his mom.”

“Fuck, he’s right,” Damon sighed, scrubbing his hands down his face before sliding o his chair to kneel on the floor. “I’m sorry, alpha. I should’ve kept my mouth shut about your mate and waited to form an opinion about her after we’d met. What happened with Aaron fucked with my head more than I realized.”

The rest of the room followed suit, kneeling and welcoming Larissa to our pack. There was one glaring exception—the girl who’d started the trouble in the first place. Heather pouted and mumbled, “I can’t believe they’re just giving in like this.”

“Who the fuck are you to question fate? To question me?”

I roared, waiting until all eyes were on me to continue.

“Heather is young and spoiled. It could be argued she doesn’t know any better than to run her mouth o about my mating.” I met her father’s gaze, wanting him to see the depth of my fury so he didn’t do something stupid like try to save his daughter from a well-deserved punishment.

“Except there would be a glaring fault in that claim—we learn as cubs that fated mates are sacred. Even the youngest among us should know better than to try to cause trouble between any fated mate pairing, let alone their alpha and his mate.”

“I-I…” Heather sputtered, her eyes going wide.

“On your knees!” I yelled, stalking across the room. As I drew close, her mom reached back and pulled her o the couch. My wolf was close to the surface, demanding I

annihilate the girl who’d caused trouble for our mate. “The day you were born, I vowed to protect you as a member of our pack. When I became alpha, I promised to defend all of the shifters who accepted me as their leader, including you.

But neither of those oaths supersede the one I made to my fated mate today. Anyone who cannot accept her has no place in my pack.”

“No, you can’t mean it,” Heather gasped, shaking her head as tears started to stream down her cheeks.

“It’s no excuse, but she always had a bit of a schoolgirl crush on Aaron,” her mom explained. “After he saved her from drowning in the river when she was ten, she thought he hung the moon. She was devastated when he left the pack to roam on his own.”

“That’s no excuse for causing trouble for my mate.

Larissa has done nothing to deserve this bullshit,” I bit out.

“You’re right,” Heather’s dad agreed. “Regardless of the reason, my daughter fucked up. Her actions have cast a shadow on a day that should’ve been filled with nothing but happiness for you and your mate. I’m sorry.”

Larissa came up behind me, and the press of her hand against my back soothed my inner beast in a way nothing else could. “You’re not the one who owes the apology, and it’s not me who it should be directed at.”

When he turned to his daughter, the disappointment was clear in her daddy’s eyes as he said, “Our alpha is right again.”

“But Daddy, I was only—” He held his hand up to stem the flow of words. “I don’t want to hear it. You’ll apologize to the alpha’s mate and accept whatever punishment he deems fair. No matter how bad it is.”

“Even if he kicks me out of the pack?” Heather whispered, dropping her head to stare at her hands as they

twisted together.

Her mom sni ed and patted her back. “If that’s what the alpha wants, then yes. But your dad and I will go with you.”

“What about Luke?” she wailed. “Would I never see him again if he stays?”

“Your brother is a man now. He’s worked for his place in this pack. We can’t ask him to give that up because of your mistake,” her dad answered.

Larissa moved to my side and tugged on my sleeve. When my gaze met hers, she o ered me a gentle smile. “I’m not familiar with how pack life works yet, but surely there’s a fair punishment that wouldn’t tear their family apart?”

I considered her question for a moment before nodding.

Not pleased that I wasn’t going to allow him to rip someone’s throat out, my wolf slunked o to brood inside my head as I announced, “Since my mate is willing to be gracious even though Heather has done nothing to deserve it, her punishment is to take a short-term transfer to another pack where she’ll do community service directed by the alpha until he feels she’s matured enough to come back to us without causing any more trouble. If Heather behaves and gets serious about growing up, she won’t have to be gone long. But if she fucks around and wastes this opportunity, it’s going to be a hell of a long time before she can come back to Timber Ridge.”

Her father’s shoulders straightened as he lifted his head to look me in the eyes as he said, “Thank you so much, alpha.” His gaze slid to where Larissa stood at my side, and he added, “And for your mercy. I’ll never forget what you’ve done for my daughter.”

My beautiful mate’s cheeks blushed pink. “I didn’t really do anything.”

“You did more than you realize.” He jerked his chin at me. “No matter how much I love my daughter, I know how

hard his wolf must’ve been riding him to avenge his mate.”

Larissa’s forehead wrinkled. “But she didn’t actually do anything except cause a little trouble by talking trash.”

“It doesn’t matter how small the infraction was, you don’t mess with an alpha’s mate without risking death,” he explained before dragging his daughter away with his mate following behind, Luke’s arm wrapped around her waist.

The rest of the pack came up to o er their congratulations before leaving. After everyone filed out of the building, Zeke clapped me on the back. “At least you won’t be so damn grouchy anymore.”

“I wasn’t grouchy,” I disagreed with a scowl. “I was fucking pissed, and rightfully so.”

“Not about that, man.” He wrapped his arm around Allegra and grinned. “The girls moved into the dorm in August, so it had to have been the faintest trace of Larissa that was making your wolf edgy these past couple of months.”

“Damn, I wish I’d realized what was going on with him sooner,” I muttered.

“Instead of waiting for her to show up across the street at my house after I found my mate all on my own?” Zeke teased.

“Only because I sent you to Stewart,” I reminded him.

“Okay, boys. That’s enough.” Larissa tugged on my arm.

“We should get back to your place. Now that I’ve gained acceptance from your pack, it’s time for you to try to do the same with my dad.”

9

LARISSA

M

y big, bad alpha wolf looked uncharacteristically nervous about meeting my dad. “You do realize my dad’s bite is way less scary than yours since he can’t shift into anything, right? All human teeth, nothing for you to worry about,” I teased, cuddling into his side as he opened the laptop on the co ee table in front of us. I pointed at the screen and added, “It’s not as though he can reach through the computer to get to you, anyway.”

“Let’s get this over with so I can get you back where you belong...in our bed,” Kace grumbled.

Getting turned on before talking to my dad sounded like a really bad idea, so I did my best to ignore the sexy beast sitting next to me and leaned over to start the video chat with my dad. He accepted on the first ring. “Hey, sweetie. I didn’t expect to hear from you so soon after dropping you o at school. Everything okay?”

“Yup.” I grinned and blew him a kiss. “My classes were super easy this morning.”

“You need me to put extra money on your account for books?” he asked.

Thinking about the wad of cash he’d handed to me before he headed back home on Sunday, I laughed and shook my

head. “Nope, I’m all set on that front. I was calling because I wanted to introduce you to someone.”

“To who?” His eyes narrowed. “Has one of the girls at the dorm worked her way into your good graces and turned your threesome into a foursome?”

“Dad, seriously. You can’t call Allegra, Calliope, and me that.” I wrinkled my nose as though I smelled something bad. “It’s gross.”

“You damn well know I’d never say something crude about my baby girl and her friends.” He shook his head and sighed. “Now quit trying to stall and introduce me to whatever little friend you have waiting in the wings. Mac needs me over at the clubhouse soon, so I don’t have all day.”

Recognizing the serious tone in my dad’s voice and not wanting to irritate him, I leaned back so he could see who was sitting next to me. “I wouldn’t call Kace little since he’s taller than you.”

“And who exactly is Kace?” my dad grunted with a scowl.

“He’s my…” I struggled for the right word. It wasn’t as though I could call him my mate. Dad would freak out and drive up here to drag me back home.

“I’m her man,” Kace answered for me.

A muscle in my dad’s jaw clenched. “What the fuck, Larissa? You’ve been dating someone and didn’t tell me about it at Thanksgiving?”

“Watch how you talk to her,” Kace growled, flinging his arm over my shoulder to pull me close.

My dad tilted his head to the side, a speculative gleam in his eyes as he looked at Kace. “My girl knows I don’t mean anything by swearing. She grew up around that shit.”

“Maybe,” Kace conceded. “But my woman doesn’t need to hear shit like that directed at her.”

“That’s fair.” My dad nodded, his lips twitching in a way I knew meant he was fighting a grin. “You got a job?”

Kace gave me a little squeeze as he answered, “Yeah, I’m the mayor of Timber Ridge. It’s two towns over from Larissa’s school.”

“My baby girl hooked up with a politician?” My dad let out a bark of laughter, shaking his head. “Fucking priceless.”

“I also own a bar, if that helps,” Kace added with a cocky grin.

“We’ve got one down here, so I can relate. But that won’t stop me from hunting you down and killing you if you don't treat my daughter right,” my dad warned.

“That’ll never happen, but you’re welcome to try.” Kace grinned. “Although it’d be good to at least know the name of the man who’s threatening my life.”

“Oh, crap. Sorry,” I apologize. “I forgot that part. Kace, this is my father, Lincoln Nash.”

“Nobody uses my full name. Call me Link,” my dad corrected.

“It’s nice to meet you, Link.” Kace picked up my hand and pressed a kiss to my knuckles. “I promise to take good care of your daughter.”

“You’d better.” An alarm went o on his phone, and he grimaced. “I’ve got to run, but I expect regular check-ins from you, Larissa. Now that I know you’ve got a man in your life, none of this a couple of times a week bullshit. Until I get the chance to meet him in person, I want to see your pretty face every day.”

Kace nodded, seeming to easily understand where my dad was coming from. “You’ve got it.”

“Love you, sweetie.”

“I love you, too, Daddy,” I replied a split second before he disconnected. Heaving a deep sigh, I collapsed against the couch. “Phew! That went better than I expected.”

“If that was good, I’m not sure I want to know how you thought that was going to go,” he chuckled. “You might not see it because you love him, but your dad is scary for a human.”

“I didn’t say he wasn’t scary, just that you didn’t need to worry about him since you have the shifter advantage. You know how Allegra said I’d help her bury a body if she murdered someone?” Kace nodded. “If my dad thought I was in danger, I wouldn’t need to kill the person because they’d already be dead. And I’d probably never find out I was at risk in the first place.”

Kace brushed his thumb over my knuckles. “Now you have me to keep you safe, too.”

“I like being safe, but I could’ve sworn there was some talk about getting that call over with so you could take me to bed?” I reminded him.

“Forget that plan,” he growled, standing and pulling me up with him. “The couch will work fine for what I have in mind. Strip, baby. I can’t wait to get inside you again.”

I didn’t need convincing and started to toss my clothes o my body. Kace got naked faster than me and helped drag my panties down my legs. “You’re so fucking beautiful.” He ghosted his fingers down my chest to the tip of one of my breasts. His thumb flicked over my nipple, making me tremble. “I love how sensitive your tits are.”

His fingers drifted lower, finally coming to rest at my hip.

With a gentle touch, he guided me around the couch. “Turn around and put your hands on the back of the couch.”

I followed his instructions, feeling vulnerable as I could practically feel his gaze travel down my body. He pressed his body against mine and murmured, “Easy, baby. You’re always safe with me.”

“I know.” My breath hitched in my throat when he licked the shell of my ear. “It’s just that I feel exposed like this.”

“You don’t need to be nervous. All I want to do is show you how gorgeous and sexy you are.” He kissed his way down my spine and nipped at my butt cheek to punctuate his statement. “By making you come and then fucking my cock into you until you fly apart around me and take me with you.”

It sounded like an excellent plan to me, so I tilted my butt up to give him better access to my body. Rising to his full height, he piled my hair up in a fist and traced his lips down my neck. His other hand glided down my back, over my butt, and moved between my legs. My clit throbbed, aching for his touch, but his fingers circled my entrance instead. “Please,” I whimpered.

He started kissing down my body. His tongue flicked over my back, trailed over my butt cheeks, then aimed for my pussy. “So fucking delicious,” he murmured against my damp flesh before sti ening his tongue and thrusting it inside me. My cries of pleasure turned to pleas when he stopped, but they quickly changed to moans when his fingers replaced his tongue, and he sucked my clit into his mouth. I flew apart, my hands clutching the back of the couch.

He finger fucked me through my orgasm, driving me back up for another one. With his digits still deep inside, he cupped my clit with his palm. “This is all mine.”

“Yes,” I gasped, my hips wiggling as I neared the edge again.

“This time, I want to feel what’s mine clench around me as you come.” His fingers left my body, to be replaced by his cock. With one powerful thrust, he filled me as one hand slid around my body to strum at my clit.

The pleasure was so intense, my eyes rolled in my head.

“Kace!”

He gripped my hips, and he powered into me. Over and over again until a scream burst from my lungs. He anchored

himself deep, and a guttural yell broke from his chest as his cock jerked with the force of his orgasm. “Mine!”

I collapsed against the back of the couch, my legs barely able to hold me. Kace scooped me up and carried me around to stretch out on the couch with me sprawled on top of him.

He ran his fingers through my hair while we both caught our breath. “Move in with me, and I’ll give you as many orgasms as you want every single day for the rest of your life.”

“I’m pretty sure you’d do that anyway.” I pressed a kiss to his chest.

“True,” he admitted. “Then move in because you hate the idea of being away from me as much as I do.”

“I really do want to be with you, but I’m worried about Calliope.” I stroked my fingers down his abs while thinking about her. “When we left for Thanksgiving break, she was living with her two best friends. One day after we get back, she's going to be stuck in our dorm room all by herself.”

“She can visit as often as she wants.” Kace’s arms tightened around me. “Hell, I’ll move her into a house on this street if that’s what it takes to make you worry less.”

I tilted my head to stare at him with wide eyes. “Really?”

“If she wants to live closer to you and Allegra, we’ll have to tell her about shifters. She’ll have to keep our secret,” he warned. “But from everything you’ve told me about her, I don’t think that’ll be a problem.”

“It won’t. Calliope will keep it in the vault along with everything else Allegra and I have confided in her,” I promised. “The hardest part for her will be getting to and from campus for her classes because she’s way more serious about school than we are. She’s studying to be a fashion designer, which has been her dream forever.”

He flashed me a sexy grin. “We’re two for two so far, so maybe we’ll luck out and Calliope will turn out to be the fated mate of one of my pack members, too. That’d solved

everything because he’d move heaven and earth to make sure she has whatever she needs.”

EPILOGUE LARISSA

K

ace growled in frustration when there was a knock on the door. He stopped nibbling on my neck at the spot where he’d marked me as his, causing a small mewl to escape my mouth. His eyes had already been smoldering with desire, but when he heard the sound, they flared into burning embers. “Don’t tempt me, baby. I’m a heartbeat away from ignoring my responsibilities, ripping o your clothes, and fucking you right here on the couch.”

I held my tongue since the only thing I wanted to say was, “Yes, please.”

He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s Tane, baby. He’s back from his trip, and he’s here to meet you and show his support over our mating. If we don’t talk to him now, we’ll have to do it later. And I have plans for you that require days of uninterrupted time.”

I felt my cheeks heat, even as a wide smile spread across my face. He held out his hand, and I immediately placed mine in his waiting palm. When he pulled me to my feet, he gently tucked me into his side and kissed my temple. He was so sweet. A word I was sure no one else in his pack would use to describe him. Over the past few weeks, I’d seen the beast inside him nearly unleashed to protect me, watched him deal

with disputes among his pack, and had my world constantly rocked by his insatiable appetite for my body. Kace was a freaking badass. But with me, he was nothing but gentle and loving. And it was all for me. Only me. Which made me feel cherished and...loved. He hadn’t said it yet, but he constantly showed me.

Not that I’d worked up the courage to say it either. I mean, jeez, we’d only known each other for a few weeks. It was a flimsy excuse, though, because I knew I was madly and hopelessly in love with Kace.

Kace called out for Tane to enter, and the door opened, revealing a tall, blond man with brown eyes. He stepped in and smiled warmly at me until my man growled. The smile disappeared—mostly—from Tane’s face, and he immediately dropped his eyes and bent his head to expose his neck.

“Welcome home, Tane,” Kace finally grunted. “Glad you’re back.”

When Tane lifted his head again, the smile had become a slight smirk, and I noticed that he avoided looking in my direction. “I guess what they say about the power of the mating in the beginning is true.” He chuckled and though his eyes sparkled with humor, I caught a flash of longing.

Hmmm...I’d been bummed when Calliope came to visit and none of the males in the pack had been her fated mate.

But there was one shifter she hadn’t met.

Kace glanced down at me, and I wiggled my eyebrows with a conspiratorial smile. He chuckled and shrugged, before turning back to his packmate.

“Tane, this is my mate, Larissa,” Kace introduced us.

“Larissa, Tane, my third.”

“I’m happy for you both,” he replied. “I’ll leave you to...whatever I interrupted.” He smirked again, and Kace rolled his eyes.

“Everything good in New York?”

Tane nodded. “Yeah, my dad fell and broke his hip. He shattered it so badly that they needed to do surgery to reset it immediately. Which was probably for the best anyway, if his shifter healing had already kicked in, the bone might have healed wrong. Even though my sisters were there, I wanted to be at the hospital. He came through it like a champ.”

“Happy to hear it. Now get the fuck out of here so I can be alone with my mate.” Tane laughed and spun around, quickly exiting and shutting the door behind him.

Kace maneuvered me around until I was cradled in his arms with my hands on his very impressive chest and his even more impressive hard on digging into my belly. “Now,” he murmured as his head lowered, “where were we?”

I raised my lips to accept his kiss, but my mind was a little distracted. I pulled back and grinned up at Kace.

“Calliope is still staying with Allegra for a couple of more days. We should get her and Tane together. Maybe she’ll be his fated mate!”

Kace kept right on kissing, his lips sliding down my neck, but he mumbled what sounded like an agreement. Then he grabbed my butt and lifted me, wrapping my legs around his waist. As he headed toward our bedroom, I asked, “You really don’t mind that I’ve been trotting out your pack like a meat market to see if they are fated with my friend?”

Kace snickered, and I shivered when I felt his canines scrape gently along my throat. We reached our room, and he walked to the bed and took a seat, keeping me straddled over his lap. His hands came up to cup my cheeks, and his eyes roamed my face hungrily, making me feel sexy. When our eyes met, though, there was a serious note to them. “I’ve told you, baby. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you.

Besides that, why would I take away an opportunity for

someone in my family to find the love of their life? Now that I’ve found mine, I understand their acute desire to have what we have.”

I sucked in a harsh breath and froze. A couple of heartbeats later, I blew out the air that had been stuck in my lungs and gasped, “Love of your life?”

Kace’s expression softened, and I felt warm and fuzzy all over. “Yeah, baby. How could you possibly think anything else? You’re the center of my world, and I love you more than my own life.”

The smile that stretched across my face was almost painful, and my heart was bursting with joy and love. “I love you, too,” I breathed.

“Damn straight,” he growled before kissing the heck out of me. To my surprise, he released my lips after a few minutes and didn’t make a move to remove my clothing.

Instead, when his hands slid under my shirt, they rested on my belly. “And I already love our little cub.”

My jaw practically dropped into my lap. “What?” I shrieked. “I’m not—um—how could I possibly be?”

Kace raised an eyebrow and looked at me knowingly. I hu ed in annoyance because he had a point. Okay, so we hadn’t exactly been careful, but it had only been a few weeks! Besides… “How could you know before me?” I asked indignantly.

He laughed and put his hand on my hips to urge me up onto my knees. Then he raised my shirt and pressed his lips against my belly, setting o a storm of butterflies. He inhaled deeply, and a grin split his face when he dropped his head back to look up at me. “I can smell it. You have a di erent, but no less delicious, smell now that you’re pregnant.”

I was still getting used to the heightened senses thing, so his explanation threw me for a bit of a loop. Still, I had

trusted Kace from the moment I met him, and that hadn’t changed. If he said I was preggers, I had no reason to doubt him. Other than freaking out because my dad was going to kill him for knocking me up before he married me.

“Don’t worry, baby. You’ll have my last name before our cub arrives.”

I eyed him suspiciously. “I thought you couldn't read my mind.”

He smirked and drawled, “I don’t need telepathy to read your mind, baby. You wear your thoughts on your face.”

Then he nuzzled my stomach before adding, “I love that you're only that way with me.”

Sighing, I melted into him. He really did say the sweetest things.

“That’s how I know you’re also excited about our little one.”

I smiled happily and hugged him close. “I can’t deny that.

I love you, and I’m ecstatic to be starting our own little family.”

“Love you too, baby.” In a split second, I found myself flat on my back on the center of the bed with Kace looming over me. “Now,” he growled playfully, “let's practice making the next one.”

EPILOGUE KACE

“B

aby, we need to have a talk with our daughter.”

My wife stopped dropping cookie dough onto a tray and turned to face me. “A talk?”

I growled as I prowled over to my gorgeous mate, struck by the beauty she’d passed down to our five-year-old, Brea.

“She’s decided that she doesn’t want to wait until she grows up to find her mate.”

Larissa snorted with laughter and buried her face in my chest.

“This isn’t funny, mate,” I grumbled. “Zeke just called to tell me that Jake caught Kyla walking Brea and Alena all over the neighborhood, knocking on everyone’s door to see if their fated mate lives there.” Alena was Calliope and Tane’s oldest. She was two years older than Brea and Kyla, but they were thick as thieves.

Now, Larissa doubled over with laughter, and I scowled.

“She’s five, Larissa. She shouldn’t be thinking about mating until I’m dead.”

Just then, our seven-year-old, Talon, came strutting into the kitchen with his little chest pu ed up. “Don’t worry, Dad. Jake and I threatened all the boys at school. They won’t go near our sisters,” he stated proudly.

Larissa hu ed and glared at our firstborn. “Seriously?”

I grinned shamelessly and gave Talon a high five. Larissa smacked my arm. “You guys didn’t need to scare o the boys. It’s not like any of them can be physically interested in the girls anyway.”

“There are human boys in their school,” I growled.

Timber Ridge was a small town and was almost completely shifters or human mates. But there were a few human families in the area who were aware of shifters, and their kids attended our schools.

Larissa rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted when our two-year-old, Izac, came toddling into the room.

“Dwink, Mommy?”

“Of course, baby,” she said, then threw me a warning glare as she walked over to get a sippy cup from a cabinet.

She pulled it down and started to fill it when Izac piped up. “No, Mommy. Bowl.”

“What?” she asked as we both watched him curiously.

“Bowl. Izac be doggy. Bowl.” Then he got down on his hands and knees and imitated lapping up water from a bowl on the floor. “Be doggy, dwink bowl.”

Talon giggled, and I narrowed my eyes at him. Izac hadn’t shifted yet, so I had no doubt this turn of events had something to with the older boys.

“Why does your brother want to drink from a bowl on the floor?” Larissa asked Talon suspiciously.

He shrugged and tried to look innocent, but he ruined it when he giggled again.

“Talon,” I growled.

He giggled again. “We might have told him if he wanted to shift, he had to eat and drink like a dog.” I pressed my lips together and frowned...to keep from laughing. It was exactly

the type of things my brother and I had done to each other, but I didn’t want to encourage this type of behavior.

“Good grief,” Larissa muttered. She put the sippy cup together and leaned down to pick up Izac, propping him on her hip. “Izac, baby. You can drink from your cup. You’ll be a wolf someday.”

“No,” he pouted, pointing at the ground. “Dwink bowl.”

Larissa raised her brow and gave me a “it’s yours turn” look.

I scooped him up and looked him in the eye with a serious expression. “You’ll be a wolf soon, buddy. I promise.” Izac watched me with a dubious frown for a minute, then nodded his head solemnly.

“Okay, Daddy.” He held out his hand, and I put the cup in it. He popped the straw in his mouth and started sucking happily and wiggling to get down. I set him on his feet, and he wobbled out of the kitchen.

I noticed Talon began to edge that way, and I raised an eyebrow, staring him down. After a couple of beats, he dropped his head and muttered, “Sorry, Dad.” “Stop messing with your siblings, cub.”

He nodded reluctantly. “Kay.” “Love you, bud.”

Talon perked up and gave me a bright smile. “Love you too, Dad!” Then he walked proudly out of the room, just as he’d entered.

“Brea and I are barely outnumbered in this house, yet the level of testosterone makes it feel like there are a hundred more of you than us,” Larissa grumbled as she turned back to her cookies. She sounded put out, but the corners of her lips were tipped up, and she threw an a ectionate glance toward the door.

I came up behind her and slipped my arms around to rest my hands on her flat belly. I fucking loved seeing her round

and swollen with our cubs. “Maybe the next one will be a girl,” I murmured into her hair before sweeping it to the slide so I could kiss her exposed neck. When a shiver skittered down her spine, I grinned and did it again.

“Next one,” she gasped. “Am I pregnant again?” Her voice was filled with indignation. It irritated her to no end that I knew she was pregnant before she did. I could have pretended and let her “surprise” me, but what was the point?

“No.” I pressed my hands against her belly and brought her back flush with my front so she could feel my big cock begging to get inside her. “But you will be when I’m done with you tonight,” I growled.

“O H , FUCK , BABY ,” I groaned, my eyes sliding closed as my body pulsed with pleasure. Fur rippled along my skin as my wolf shuddered with need. He wanted to be dominating our mate, but it was my turn. “Suck it hard, Larissa. Oh, yeah.

Fuck!” I forced my eyelids up so I could watch my mate take my cock to the back of her throat. Holding her hair in one fist, I helped guide her head up and down, fucking her mouth like I was gonna be doing to her pussy real soon. She raised her eyes to mine, and I almost lost it right then. She looked so damn gorgeous on her knees with her pretty lips wrapped around me, and her eyes filled with desire.

My orgasm was fast approaching, but I wasn’t about to come in her mouth. I hadn’t been joking around when I vowed to knock her up tonight. With a gentle tug, I pulled her o my dick. It took everything in me to stop her from continuing when she let out a disappointed little mewl.

“On the bed, mate,” I ordered hoarsely. Every muscle in my body was rigid as I tried to push back my orgasm. She

scrambled up from the floor and jumped onto the bed, bouncing on her knees a couple of times before flopping onto her back in the middle. Shaking my head, I chuckled as I joined her on the mattress. It amazed me that she could be so fucking sexy and completely adorable at the same time.

I crawled between her spread legs and licked my lips at the sight of her dripping, swollen pussy. She widened the gap and raised her hips in o ering. “You want my mouth on your sweet pussy, baby?”

She whimpered in response, and I slid a finger down her slit as I contemplated what to do next. My mouth watered to taste her honey, but my cock was about to explode, and I was pretty sure he wouldn’t make it through. I bent over her and braced my hands on the bed on both sides of her head. I kissed her deep and wet, leaving both of us breathless. “I promise to give your pussy my tongue, but I need to come inside you first.”

“Please, Kace,” she moaned. “I don’t care how you fuck me, just do it.”

“My pleasure,” I growled. I grabbed her ass and lifted her up to the perfect angle, then plunged deep inside her waiting womb. We both cried out at the acute pleasure, and when her walls tightened around my cock, I abandoned myself to the instinct to breed my mate. I yanked out of her and flipped her over, raising her ass into the air. My wolf growled with satisfaction, barely keeping beneath the surface of my skin as I let him take charge. I slammed into her again and she screamed, her ass thrusting back to take all of me. “That’s it, baby,” I grunted. My fingers dug into her hips, and I pounded in and out. They were going to leave a mark, and my wolf growled in frustration. He wanted to mark our mate.

Bending forward, I moved my hands to her tits and twisted and plucked her sensitive nipples while I licked a path to her neck. When I reached the place where I’d made

her mine, my canines descended. I was a heartbeat away from coming, and my wolf went fucking crazy. Quickly, I glided one hand to her pussy and pinched her clit just as I sank my teeth into her warm flesh.

“Kaaace!! Yes!!” Larissa threw her head back and screamed as she flew apart. I planted myself as deep inside her as I possibly could and finally let my orgasm barrel through me, ending at my dick, pushing out my come out in a massive explosion. “Fuck yes, baby!” I shouted. “Squeeze that pussy. Take every drop. Fuck! Fuck!”

After our orgasms receded and our breathing had returned to normal, I cuddled her close. Her body was sprawled across mine, and my dick was still snug inside her.

“Good thing the kids are at Calliope’s,” she mumbled.

I snorted. “You think that wasn’t by design?”

Larissa’s head lifted, and she looked at me with narrowed eyes. “How long have you been planning this little baby making session?”

I grinned without an ounce of shame. “Since you had Izac.”

She tried to look put out but ended up laughing and giving me a sweet kiss. “I love you.”

“Love you, too, baby.” I grabbed her hips and began to drag her up my body until she was straddling my face. “Now, I believe I promised to give this pussy some attention.”

It was rare for us to be able to be uninhibited in bed with three little ones in the house, so I took full advantage and spent the whole night listening to my mate’s loud cries of pleasure as I gave her round after round of orgasmic bliss.

Three months later, Larissa grumbled good naturedly about more testosterone when the doctor broke the news that we were having another boy.

EXTRA EPILOGUE LARISSA

“I

wonder how Zeke did with the kids?” I asked as my best friends and I walked up the steps to Allegra's house. Her mate was the one who ended up watching Talon, Jake, and Alena while we went out for a little girl time. Kyla and Brea were hanging out at my house with Kace, and Tane was one town over taking care of some pack business. We hadn’t been gone long since the oldest three tended to be a handful when they were together, but getting mani-pedis while sipping champagne had been fantastic.

Calliope pressed her index finger over her lips and made a “shh” sound. “We should be quiet so we can sneak in and see how everything is going.”

Allegra giggled and shook her head. “There's no way Zeke hasn’t heard us already.”

I shrugged and whispered, “You never know. Remember that one time we were able to sneak up on Tane when he was watching them?”

Calliope’s eyes went wide as she pressed her lips together.

I figured she was trying to hold a laugh back because walking into their backyard to find her mate spraying down three toddlers who were covered from head to toe in baby powder

had been hilarious. Nodding, she agreed, “I guess it's worth a shot.”

We tip-toed into Allegra’s house and stumbled into each other when we found Zeke and Talon sitting on the couch, almost nose to nose with each other. Neither of them moved an inch as Jake and Alena came running toward us. “Ooh, pretty,” Alena cooed as she tugged on Calliope’s hand to look at her nails. Allegra and I held our hands out so she could see the colors we’d picked, too. “I like the pink my mommy has best.”

None of us were surprised since the walls in Alena’s room were painted pale pink, her bedspread was bright pink, and at least half of her clothes were one shade of pink or another.

She didn’t leave any room for doubt about what her favorite color was. “Thank you, sweetie,” Calliope said as she pulled a bottle of polish out of her purse and shook it. “I’m glad you like it because I bought some to do your nails tonight.”

“Yippee!” Alena shrieked, jumping up and down while clapping.

Even with as loud as she was being, Zeke and Talon still didn’t move. “What in the world are they doing?” I asked.

Alena sighed and rolled her eyes. “They’re in a staring contest. It must be a boy thing because I don’t understand.”

A deep growl tumbled up Zeke’s chest, and Calliope picked up her daughter. “A man thing, sweetie. Our beta is definitely not a boy, even if it might seem like it because he’s trying to stare down a six-year-old.”

“Seriously?” Allegra murmured as she crossed the room to set her hand on her mate’s shoulder.

Without looking away from my son, Zeke pressed his hand against hers. “I’m not going to back down from a challenge, even if it comes from a pup whose balls have barely dropped.”

“Zeke,” Allegra gasped, yanking her hand out from under his to slap him upside the head.

“Aha! You blinked, so I win,” Talon boasted as he jumped o the couch to race around the living room, waving his arms around in celebration of his victory.

“Only because my mate made me blink,” Zeke grumbled.

My son didn’t seem deterred by Zeke’s reason for losing.

“It doesn’t matter because I win!”

As Talon ran past me, I snagged the back of his shirt to pull him against me. “Remember what Daddy and I said about how important it is to be gracious when you win?”

“Yeah, I’m not supposed to be a sore winner,” he muttered, rubbing the sole of his shoe against the floor.

“Sorry.”

“Ahem.” Allegra nudged Zeke. “Now would be a great time to demonstrate to all the kids how not to be a sore loser.”

“Fine,” he hu ed as he got to his feet and walked over to stand in front of Talon and me. Holding his hand out, he added, “Good job, Talon. You listened to your wolf just like your dad taught you.”

“Thanks, Uncle Zeke.” Talon grinned while they shook hands. “I thought we were just joking around at first, but my wolf said I couldn’t look away because it would be a sign of weakness.”

Zeke ru ed Talon’s hair and smiled back. “Keep paying attention to your instincts, and you’ll make a fine alpha some day.”

“Just like my daddy.” There wasn’t a hint of doubt in my son’s voice. He was a born alpha, just like Zeke. His level of dominance had caused a few problems when the kids had started kindergarten, but the school had been understanding of the situation because the teachers were used to dealing

with young shifters. Most of them were part of our pack and adored their alpha’s son.

“Speaking of your daddy, let’s head home and see how he’s doing with Kyla and Brea,” I suggested.

“Okay,” Talon agreed with a grin as he ran toward the door.

“Thanks for taking care of the kids while we got our girl time in.”

Zeke waved o my gratitude. “Watching the kids for a couple of hours was nothing compared to what I’d do to put a smile on my mate’s beautiful face.”

“So true,” I murmured, following my son outside. My best friends and I had really lucked out when we’d decided to head o to college. We’d found men who loved us beyond reason and were building the happiest of families.

HER TIGER

Calliope Taft has wanted a hunky shifter of her own ever since her best friends let her in on the secret of their existence. Just when she started to give up hope, a sexy tiger shifter claimed her as his own.

Tane Ruslan hadn’t expected to find his fated mate right across the street when he returned home to Timber Ridge.

Now that Calliope was where she belonged—with him—Tane intended to make all her dreams come true...and keep her safe from the bad guys who came looking for her.

1

CALLIOPE

“L

ife is so unfair,” I sighed, shaking my head at Allegra while she unashamedly ogled her man’s butt as he walked out of the kitchen. As happy as I was that my best friends had found happiness with incredible guys—who just happened to be able to shift into wolves—spending my holiday break from school with Allegra, Zeke, Larissa, and Kace had left me feeling lonely.

I’d always felt a little bit like the odd man out in our trio, and being the only one without a mate of my own had intensified the feeling. Not that my friends had ever been anything other than accepting and supportive. I had no doubt they both loved me like a sister. Heck, they’d even shared their families with me.

Allegra’s parents welcomed me into their home whenever I wanted a place to crash, and Larissa’s dad had done everything in his considerable power to look out for me when my parents were traveling, which was often. I knew my mom and dad loved me, but they sometimes got so wrapped up in each other and the business they owned together that they kind of forgot about me. I had spent a lot of my childhood with my nanny, and it had left a mark on me.

“Huh?” Allegra asked, her brown eyes hazy from the doozy of a kiss Zeke had given her before leaving.

“I want a hunky shifter of my own,” I grumbled.

“And I want one for you,” she agreed with a grin, tapping her finger against her chin. “We just need to figure out a way for you to meet more of them since nobody in the pack was your fated mate.”

“I think maybe it’s time for us to come to terms with the fact that I’m not going to find a wolf who’ll know I was meant to be his the moment he sees me like Zeke and Kace did with you and Larissa.” I pressed my hand against my chest as a deep-seated longing surged through my veins.

With my abandonment issues, I craved that sense of belonging more than anything. Not finding it in Timber Ridge had me wondering if I should ditch my plans to get my bachelor’s degree in design and just head to New York instead. I could try to get an entry-level job somewhere and work my way up from there. Which was all kinds of wrong since I was the only one out of the three of us who’d even wanted a college education in the first place.

“But you can’t just give up,” Allegra cried. It took me a moment to realize she wasn’t suddenly able to read my thoughts and was replying to what I’d said about not being anyone’s mate.

“It’s not as though I have much of a choice. You’ve already paraded me past every single unattached male shifter in Timber Ridge.” I shrugged and reached for a lemon-filled donut. Zeke had barely rolled out of bed this morning before he’d hopped into his truck to drive almost an hour round trip to hit up a specific bakery because it was what Allegra was craving for breakfast. He’d remembered which kind were my favorite and had brought them back for me, which had earned him an extra kiss from my best friend.

Not that she really needed an excuse since the happy couple was already lip locked most of the time.

“Then we’ll just have to look elsewhere,” she insisted after polishing o the maple bacon donut she’d devoured in no time flat.

I wrinkled my nose when she reached for a Srirachadrizzled one next. “In all the years I’ve known you, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat anything other than plain old glazed or strawberry jam filled.”

She set the spicy donut on the napkin in front of her, and her teeth bit into her bottom lip. “Yeah, the baby’s really messing with my taste buds.”

Since I had a big chunk of donut in my mouth, I nodded in response. After I chewed and swallowed, I grinned big because Allegra’s ba ed expression as she patted her belly was adorable. The past month had been a whirlwind for her, ending with Zeke telling her that she was pregnant a few days ago. It was too early for a test to confirm she was carrying his baby, but his shifter senses had picked up on the pregnancy right away. They hadn’t been able to keep it a secret from anyone in Timber Ridge since the news spread like wildfire as soon as the first shifter scented it on her.

Even though her parents had quickly gotten on board with her relationship with Zeke when we all went home for the holiday, she hadn’t gotten up the nerve to tell them yet. I’d hitched a ride back with them, and her relief at passing that hurdle had been obvious. But I knew she worried that her overprotective mom would head straight for Timber Ridge as soon as she learned of the pregnancy and never leave. Which I could totally see happen with how much she hovered over Allegra, something I was envious of since I wished my mom would give me a sliver of the attention she got from hers.

I pulled myself out of my pity party when Allegra reached for her donut. “Give that to me,” I hu ed, snatching the

donut out of her hand. “I’m not entirely convinced the baby is telling you that sriracha sounds like a great idea since you’re so early in your pregnancy, but the reason you want this doesn’t really matter. We both know you’re going to give yourself heartburn if you eat something this spicy.”

Allegra’s lips curved down in a pout. “You don’t know that it’s too spicy. Maybe the sweetness of the donut will overpower the sriracha, and I’ll barely taste it.”

I lifted the donut to my mouth and licked some of the red drizzle o the top. The heat hit my tongue, but it was quickly followed by the sweet from the sugar. Allegra might’ve been right about being able to handle the donut, but I wasn’t willing to admit it to her in case she was wrong. “There’s no way you’d miss the spiciness.”

“Jerk.” She shook her head and laughed as she grabbed a strawberry jam-filled donut to replace the one I stole. “I guess it’s better if you eat the stupid donut since you like hot things way more than I do.”

I dropped the sriracha donut on the napkin in front of me and picked up the half of the lemon-filled one I hadn’t eaten yet. “Nah, I’m not sure I want to breathe fire all day.”

“Breathe fire,” she echoed, clapping her hands together in excitement. “That’s it!”

I had zero idea what she was talking about, but I recognized that gleam in her eye enough to know I should probably be at least a little worried. “What’s it?”

“Maybe you didn’t find your hunky shifter here because you’re going to end up with a dragon!” She wagged her brows.

“I don’t know why you’re acting like it would be such a great thing for me to be paired with a dragon.” I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

“Yeah, well...I don’t understand why you’re being all pissy over the possibility,” she grumbled.

“Remember how Larissa said that Kace told her there weren’t that many dragon shifters?” Allegra nodded. “If fate matched me with one of them, the odds of me finding my guy just went way down.”

“Oh, good point.” Understanding dawned in her eyes.

“Maybe the problem is that most of the guys around here are wolves, and you were never much of a dog person.”

I glanced at the kitchen door and lowered my voice. “You probably don’t want Zeke to hear you using the D-word like that.”

“Another good point.” Laughter bubbled up her throat.

“But I bet he wouldn’t have minded if we’d told Kace and him that you wanted a big, sexy kitty for Christmas since you’re more of a cat person.”

2

TANE

I

loved my family, but after spending more than a month with them, I was beyond ready to be back in Timber Ridge.

Not that I regretted the trip since it’d been important for me to be there to help my dad. But after the risk to his recovery passed—along with our fear—my sisters got up to their old tricks. They loved nothing more than giving me a hard time, and having me home for so long gave them plenty of opportunities. If they weren’t pushing me to get out there more and up my odds of finding my mate when they knew damn well it wasn’t that simple, they were giving me shit about living with wolves and being Kace’s third.

Tiger shifters didn’t normally live in packs, but I loved the life I’d built in Timber Ridge. I knew Kace and Zeke had my back, no matter what. They were more like brothers than pack mates, which was di cult for my sisters to wrap their heads around since the only people they let inside their walls were family. They were best friends, and everyone else was an outsider in their view. Only the pull of the mating bond would be strong enough to get my sisters to truly open up to someone.

Mating was sacred among shifters, but finding the person fate intended for you didn’t happen for everyone. There were

shifters who went their whole lives never experiencing desire. Never giving their heart to someone. Never feeling as though their soul was whole. The fear that I was going to be one of those shifters lived inside me, but it eased a little when I heard that Kace and Zeke found their mates only a day apart from each other. Their luck gave me hope that I might be as blessed.

When I got back into town late last night, I’d headed over to Kace’s place to check in with my alpha. I’d been about to walk down the sidewalk leading to his house when I heard female moans and quickly realized I should wait until morning for my visit. Kace has always had an open-door policy, twenty-four-seven, but now that his mate was in his life, that rule was bound to change since they’d need some privacy.

My tiger had been agitated as I’d turned on my heel and headed to my house instead. Even though I was finally home and in my own bed, he hadn’t settled during the night. If anything, he’d been more wound up after the few hours of sleep I’d managed to get. After showering and yanking on some clothes, my plan was to drop in to update Kace— mostly because I wanted to meet his mate and give them my support—before letting my tiger out for a run. With everything that had been going on with my dad, I hadn’t had the opportunity when I’d been in New York. I figured my beast was antsy because he’d been cooped up for too long.

Anxious to give him what he needed, I jogged up Kace’s steps and knocked on his door.

I waited until he called out for me to enter, and then I pushed open the door to step into his house. Kace had a pretty blonde tucked into his side, and his possessive hold made me grin. Since I was looking at his mate, that earned me a growl from my alpha. I pressed my lips together,

dropped my gaze to the floor, and tilted my head to expose my neck in a gesture of submission.

“Welcome home, Tane,” Kace finally grunted. “Glad you’re back.”

My lips curved up in a smirk as I lifted my head again, but I didn’t aim it in Larissa’s direction. I didn’t mind doing shit to get a rise out of my alpha, but I wasn’t going to piss all over his mating bond to do it. “I guess what they say about the power of the mating in the beginning is true.”

My chuckle was a little bit forced because I wanted what he’d found. Larissa shouldn’t have caught on to what I was feeling, but when Kace glanced down at her, she wiggled her eyebrows with a conspiratorial smile. He chuckled and shrugged, before turning back to me.

“Tane, this is my mate, Larissa,” Kace introduced us.

“Larissa, Tane, my third.”

“I’m happy for you both,” I replied. The sexual tension between the two mates was so damn thick that I swore I could smell it. “I’ll leave you to...whatever I interrupted.” My smirk was more genuine this time, and Kace rolled his eyes.

“Everything good in New York?”

I nodded and filled him in on shit he already knew, just in case his mate hadn’t been looped in yet. “Yeah, my dad fell and broke his hip. He shattered it so badly, they needed to do surgery to reset it immediately, which was probably for the best anyway. If his shifter healing had already kicked in, the bone might have healed wrong. Even though my sisters were there, I wanted to be at the hospital. He came through it like a champ.”

“Happy to hear it. Now get the fuck out of here so I can be alone with my mate.” His demand was pretty much what I’d expected once I’d caught a whi of an unmistakable scent on Larissa, so I laughed and spun around. Striding out of his house, I shut the door behind me and stalked down the steps.

I was heading toward the motorcycle parked in my driveway when I spotted the door to Zeke’s house opening.

“Hey, man! Glad to see you’re back,” he called.

I changed direction and jogged across the street to greet my friend. “It’s damn good to be back.”

“C’mon, you weren’t gone that long,” Zeke chuckled.

“Long enough for everything to change around here,” I pointed out with a grin as I slapped him on the back. “When I left, all three of us were unattached, and now you and Kace have mates.” I shook my head and laughed. “Hell, not just mates either. Babies, too.”

Zeke grinned back at me, looking happier than I’d ever seen him. “You heard about that already?”

I cocked my head to the side, taking in his reaction. “Holy shit, man. Allegra’s pregnant, too?”

“Too? Who else is pregnant?” His gaze darted over my shoulder, and his grin widened. “Larissa’s pregnant?”

I tapped the side of my nose. “Smelled like it to me.”

Zeke waved toward his house. “Come inside. You can meet Allegra. She’s going to be thrilled to find out one of her best friends is pregnant the same time as she is.”

“One of her best friends?” I asked as I followed him inside, wondering how many of them she had before a luscious scent hit my nostrils and any thought beyond finding the source wiped from my brain. I barely heard Zeke reply, “Yeah, she’s got two of them. Just like Kace, you, and me. Calliope’s here too, so you’ll get to meet her. She’s staying with us until her college classes start back up next week.”

If Calliope was who I thought she was, he was wrong— she’d be staying with me. And not just until next week. She’d be with me for the rest of her life. I didn’t share that with Zeke since I wasn’t sure I could get any words past my throat. Instead, I stalked behind him as he walked through

his living room and into the kitchen. The scent grew stronger as we neared the door, sending flames of desire coursing through my blood. When he pushed it open, throaty feminine laughter wrapped around me, and I felt it all the way to my dick. I was rock-hard as we neared the two blondes sitting at the kitchen table. The one with the gray tint making her hair an ashy color carried the smell of Zeke and his baby all over her. Thank fuck, because the little firecracker with a hint of red in her hair was meant to be mine. All fucking mine.

“Hey, baby. I just heard something that you’re going to love,” Zeke said as he went behind his woman and dropped a kiss on the top of her head.

She twisted her neck to turn and look up at him with a smile. “Almost as much as I love you?”

“Nah, this is excellent news, but it doesn’t come close to the love you have for me,” Zeke chuckled.

“Not much does.” Her hand dropped to her belly as her smile widened. “But I can always use excellent news. Give it up, handsome.”

“Larissa is pregnant, too.” Zeke jerked his chin in my direction. “Tane went over to check in with Kace now that he’s back in town and smelled it on her. Since it’s still early morning, we’re probably the first to know.”

“That’s awesome! Our baby will have a built-in best friend.” Allegra’s gaze slid to Calliope. “Now we just need to find your hunky shifter so you won’t be too far behind us.”

“Um.” Calliope’s hazel eyes widened, and her teeth scraped against her plump bottom lip.

“No need to look any further,” I growled as I rounded the table and lifted her o her chair. “She’s mine.”

3

CALLIOPE

“I

was right! Not finding the guy for you was because you’re a cat person!” Allegra shrieked as Tane cradled me against his chest.

“A cat person, huh?” Tane asked, his brown eyes full of humor. His hold on me tightened before he turned and headed to the front of the house.

My cheeks filled with heat as I nodded. “Yeah, Allegra was trying to make me feel better about not being someone’s mate like her and Larissa. Right before you guys came in, she was joking around about how it must be because I’ve always been more into cats than dogs since most of the shifters in town are wolves.”

He nodded, and a lock of his blond hair fell on his forehead. “She might’ve been joking, but it makes sense to me.”

“It does?” I asked as he yanked the door open and carried me down the steps in front of Zeke and Allegra’s house.

“Yeah, baby. With you being a cat person, you’ll love my tiger,” he explained.

“Tiger?” I echoed, my eyes going wide in shock while I tried to wrap my head around him shifting into a freaking tiger. He was tall, with an athletic, lean-muscle build, but he

wasn’t much bigger than Kace or Zeke. It’d been mindblowing to see their wolves, and I couldn’t imagine Tane shifting into an animal that was at least three times larger.

“My tiger is a fucking beast at six hundred pounds, but he’ll purr like a kitten for you,” he assured me as he walked up the steps to a house across the street and carried me inside.

Six hundred pounds.

Whoa.

Tane must’ve caught the stunned shock on my face because he went over to the couch instead of heading up the stairs that I assumed led to his bedroom. After dropping onto the cushions, he settled me on his lap. “Sorry, honey. I didn’t mean to freak you out.”

“You’d think I would’ve gotten used to all the surprises by now,” I sighed, shaking my head. “I mean, Zeke and Kace shifted for me when I thought Allegra and Larissa were pulling my legs about them being able to change into wolves.

But somehow, I’m more shocked that you can shift into a huge tiger than I was by that, even though I’ve had a month to get used to the idea of shifters and fated mates.”

His biceps bulged as his entire body tensed. “Zeke and Kace shifted in front of you?”

“Of course.” A muscle jumped in his jaw. I wasn’t sure why he was so bothered by this. “How else were they supposed to prove to me that shifters are real?”

“Fuck if I know,” he rumbled. “I can’t think straight when it comes to you. All I know is that I want to go hunt down my best friends and kick their asses because you saw them naked.”

I stroked my hand down his chest, trying to soothe him.

“There’s no need to get into a fight with your friends. At most, I’ve only ever seen them without their shirts on. When

they shifted for me, I turned around while they stripped down.”

“Thank fuck for that,” he grunted.

I tilted my head to the side, and some of my hair spilled over my shoulder and covered his hand. “I thought that wasn’t a big deal for shifters?”

“Anything to do with you is going to be a big fucking deal for me,” he answered as he gave me a little squeeze.

It felt as though butterflies swarmed in my belly. “That’s so sweet.”

“I might have a ferocious beast under my skin, but I’ll always be sweet to you,” he promised, his fingers toying with the ends of my hair. “I’ll also always be brutally honest with you, which is why I need to tell you that my stance on nudity isn’t the same as most shifters. My mom is human, so we weren’t as open about it in my family growing up.”

A surge of happiness raced through me. I liked knowing I already had something in common with his mom. Kace and Zeke both came from a long line of shifters, and I hadn’t learned much about the families of the other members of the Timber Ridge pack. “She is?”

“Yeah, and she’s going to love having you in the family,” he confirmed.

My lips curved up in a big smile. “Really?”

“Definitely.” He nodded. “And not just because you’re human. My mom has been waiting not-so-patiently for one of her babies to find their mate, so she’s going to be over the moon when I tell her about you.”

Tane referring to himself as one of his mom’s babies was so adorable. He was this big, strong guy who didn’t hesitate to show how much he loved his mom, and it gave hope to the little girl deep inside me who’d always craved a ection. And as an only child who’d always wanted a brother or sister, I liked that he had at least one. My parents had never given me

a sibling, but my mate was going to give me in-laws. “How many siblings do you have?”

Tane traced his index and middle finger over my thigh.

Even through the thickness of my jeans, his touch spread goose bumps in its wake. “I have two older sisters. Tabara by two years and Trinity by one.”

“What was it like growing up as the youngest of the bunch?” I asked, leaning my head against his chest.

“My sisters can be bossy as fuck,” he chuckled. “It doesn’t matter to them that I’m bigger in both my human and tiger forms, they’ll always see me as the baby.”

I laced my fingers through his. “Maybe they’ll ease up a bit now that you’re the first one to find their mate.”

“Not a chance in hell.” He shook his head and squeezed my hand. “But you don’t need to worry about them being too much of a bother since my parents and sisters live in New York.”

I leaned my head back to look into his eyes. “The state or the city.”

“The city,” he answered with a grin. “My parents still live in the same house I grew up in on the Upper East Side, and my sisters have apartments right next door to each other only a few blocks away.”

With every detail he shared, I was getting the impression that his family was like the ones I’d always dreamed about having. “I’ve only been to New York City once when I was younger, but I loved it there. What made you leave the big city, your family, and your pack behind?”

“There wasn’t a pack to leave behind. The social structure for tigers is di erent from most shifters. We tend to stick with our families instead of larger groups,” he explained. “It was di cult for my parents and sisters to understand what I found in Timber Ridge since it’s so far outside the norm, but that didn’t stop them from supporting my decision. All they

care about is my happiness, even if my path is di erent from what they want out of life. When I met Kace and he invited me for a visit, I followed my gut because it told me I belonged here. I’ve never second-guessed my decision, and now I get why becoming a part of his pack was the right call.

It’s not because of the satisfaction I feel in being Kace’s third —being in Timber Ridge brought you to me.”

My heart melted at the sincerity shining from his eyes.

“You’re too good to be true.”

“You have it backward, baby.” He shifted me on his lap to straddle him, tangling one hand in the back of my hair and cupping my chin with the other. His thumb brushed my lower lip as he added, “With a mate as gorgeous and sweet as you, I’m the lucky one.”

I felt his hard length pressing against my core, ratcheting up my desire for him several notches. “How about we agree to disagree and focus on the getting lucky part instead?”

His hold on my hair tightened, pulling my head back about an inch. A deep growl rumbled up his chest as he lowered his lips to claim mine in a deep kiss. I gasped, and his tongue swept inside my mouth. It felt as though he was devouring me, and my nipples hardened in response. When he pulled me closer, they rubbed against his chest. I felt the contact all the way to my core, making me whimper in need.

He tore his lips from mine, and our gazes met. His dark eyes were full of lust, there was a splash of color on his cheekbones, and a muscle jumped in his jaw. I had no doubt how much he wanted me, even before he said, “I need to get you upstairs before I take you for the first time right here on the couch. You deserve better than that.”

I pressed my hands against Tane’s chest, and he stilled.

“You know that thing Allegra said, about finding me a guy so I wouldn’t be too far behind Larissa and her in having babies?”

“Fuck, yeah.” His hips jerked up, pressing his dick harder against me. “I’m all for that idea, baby. But I want your gorgeous body spread out for me on my bed first.”

“Crap,” I mumbled, my body tensing as I worried about how he’d react to what I had to tell him before we went any further. Both of my friends had gotten pregnant super fast after meeting their mates, but as thrilled as I was for them, that wasn’t what I wanted for myself.

4

CALLIOPE

T

ane released my hair and stroked his hand down my back. “What’s wrong, baby?”

“Um...I’m not really sure how to say this other than to just spit it out.” I squeezed my eyes shut so I didn’t have to see the disappointment in his. “I don’t want to get pregnant right away.”

“Okay.” He slid an arm under my knees and the other around my back, lifting me as he stood. I thought he was going to set me in the chair or something, and my heart dropped. Then he started moving, and my eyes popped open.

Gripping his shoulders, I peered up at him as he headed toward the stairs. “Wait. Don’t you want to hear why?”

“Of course, I do.” He smiled down at me. “I want to hear everything about you, but whatever you have to say isn’t going to make a di erence to us as a couple.”

My eyes widened in surprise. “It’s not?”

“Nope.” He shook his head as we reached the top of the stairs and continued down the hallway. “You can tell me anything. You’re mine, and nothing is going to change that.”

His declaration overwhelmed me. That steadfastness was a huge part of why I’d wanted a hunky shifter of my own. As close as I was to my best friends, I’d never had anyone in my

life who was all about me. A solitary tear slid down my cheek, but I wiped it against his shirt as he carried me into the bedroom. He kicked his shoes o —I hadn’t been wearing any—and climbed onto the bed. After he got us settled with his back against the headboard and me sprawled on his chest, he asked, “Why do you want to wait to have babies? Is it because this is going too fast for you? I don’t want to rush you into a mating if you aren’t ready for it.”

“No, it isn’t that at all,” I rushed to reassure him, stroking my hand up his chest to cup his cheek as I stared into his eyes. “I’m one hundred percent on board with being your mate. After meeting every eligible male in Timber Ridge, I was ready to give up hope on the possibility that fate had someone in store for me. Then you walked into Zeke and Allegra’s kitchen and made my dream come true.”

“Damn,” he sighed, shaking his head.

I started to pull my hand away, but he wrapped his fingers around my wrist and held it in place. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No, it’s just a shame that I’m going to have to kick the ass of every unmated member of the pack.” His lips curved up in a smirk that said he had no concerns about being able to back up his claim.

“You can’t possibly be jealous.” I rubbed my palm against the scru on his cheek. “None of the guys felt even the tiniest bit of desire for me since I’m not their fated mate.”

“I get that it might not be the most logical thing in the world, but fuck being reasonable when it comes to you,” he growled, his eyes filled with a possessive gleam. “They had time with you that should’ve been mine.”

I loved his reason since I’d always wanted someone who would look forward to spending time with me. “You just added more points onto your perfectness scale.”

“I have no problem with you thinking I’m perfect as long as you realize I feel the same about you.” He brushed his lips over mine. “Now tell me why you want to wait for babies.”

“I have another dream I’ve wanted to fulfill ever since I was a little girl, but I never want my children to feel as though they come second to anything else in my life.” I knew far too well the impact that had on a kid.

“What’s your dream, baby? I’ll do everything I can to make it happen,” he promised as he ran his fingers through my hair.

I flashed him a grateful smile. “Unless you have connections in the fashion world, this one’s all on me.”

“Tell me everything,” he urged with an answering grin.

“You might be surprised by the strings I can pull when it comes to your happiness.”

“Ever since I was ten years old and my mom took me to New York City for Fashion Week, all I’ve wanted was to have a show of my own. I doubt I’ll ever get to Fashion Week, but a show in New York City would be a dream come true.” I closed my eyes, picturing the models strutting down the runway in spectacular outfits I’d designed. “I think I fixated on it because that trip was the only time she took me somewhere just the two of us. I felt so special, getting dressed up and having her all to myself.”

He brushed a kiss against my forehead. “You aren’t close with your mom?”

“I wish,” I sighed, blinking a few times to try to stop the tears filling them as I thought about my relationship with my parents. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s not as though they neglected me. I grew up in a huge house with all the things any girl could wish for. Heck, we even had another house up at the nearest lake and another in Colorado for ski season.

But it was my nanny who took me to and from school, made sure I had new shoes and clothes when I needed them, took

me to doctor’s appointments, and spent most of my vacations with me. I know my parents love me even though it tends to be from a distance because they’re so busy with each other and building the family business.”

“No parent should ever be too busy for their children.” He gave me a gentle squeeze. “And their business couldn’t need that much attention if they have three fucking houses.”

I shrugged. “What can I say? For my parents, there’s no such thing as being too successful. Appearances are very important to them.”

“Now you have my family and me.” He traced his fingertip down my arm. “They’ll either show up on our doorstep shortly after I tell them about you, or they’ll have all the travel arrangements set for us to go to New York. My mom and sisters will want to spend so much time with you that it’ll drive me up the wall because I want you to myself, but maybe I can distract them with your dream of having a fashion show. They’re an unstoppable trio once they’ve set their minds to something. I bet they’ll be thrilled to help.”

Tane was handing me everything I’d ever wanted—a man who would always want to be by my side, a family who’d welcome me with open arms, and support for my dreams in fashion design. Even though he’d be thrilled to knock me up our first time, he hadn’t thought twice about waiting since that was what I wanted. I hadn’t been overexaggerating when I’d said he was perfect for me. We might’ve only met less than an hour ago, but I didn’t want to waste another second in moving forward with our life together. Luckily, my friends had already filled me in on most of the shifter mating details. Knowing what to expect—and seeing how happy they were with their mates—gave me the courage I needed to jump into this relationship when I normally would’ve been too scared to take the risk.

Throwing caution to the wind and acting completely out of character, I wiggled out of Tane’s embrace. He jerked upright and reached out for me, but then my hands went to the bottom of my shirt, and he realized why I’d moved away from him. His dark eyes filled with heat as he watched me lift my shirt over my head. My breasts felt swollen, and my pebbled nipples pressed against the delicate, white lace of my bra. His gaze dropped to my chest, and his tongue swiped out to lick his bottom lip. “Fuck, you’re gorgeous.”

“It’s a good thing you think so because you’re stuck with me forever,” I whispered as some of my boldness left me, and a blush swept across my cheeks and trailed down my neck.

Tane’s hand snaked out to wrap around the back of my neck. Holding me in place with a firm grasp as he pressed his forehead against mine and stared into my eyes, he growled, “You still have it all wrong, baby. If anything, you’re going to be stuck with me. I’m going to be territorial as hell when it comes to you, with my tiger urging me to mark your delicate skin over and over again to warn o any dumb fuck who even thinks of trying to get close.”

I knew he meant it as a warning, but I had no problem with what he was telling me. “That doesn’t sound bad to me.”

5

TANE

T

he scent of Calliope’s desire grew stronger, leaving me with no doubt that she was more than okay with being paired with a possessive mate. Considering what she’d told me about her childhood, it made sense that she’d find comfort in being with someone who wanted her so much that they were greedy for her attention. I was determined to shower her with so much love that she never doubted her importance to me. Starting right now.

I loosened my hold on her neck and glided my hand lower.

Sliding my finger under her bra strap, I gave it a tug before moving down to her jeans to unbutton them. “Take this o . I want to see all your gorgeous body while I kiss every inch of your soft skin before I sink my cock into your tight pussy.”

“Oh, wow,” she breathed as she twisted her arms behind her back to undo the clasp on her bra.

Her breasts sprang free, and my need for her punched up another level. I yanked her jeans down her legs, panties and all, and tossed them over my shoulder. My mate was naked in my bed, and I wanted nothing more than to fuck my come into her tight pussy before marking the fuck out of her neck.

But I needed to get her ready before I tried to shove my cock inside her.

“There’s something you should know about tiger shifters.” I trailed the tip of my tongue along her collarbone.

Her delicate shudder had my lips curving up in a smirk as she asked, “What?”

“We tend to have a bit of an oral fixation.” I nibbled down her chest until my face was in the valley between her breasts.

“One that means you’re going to need to get used to having my mouth all over you each and every day.”

I moved to the right and swirled my tongue around her pebbled nipple. She let out a breathy sigh and grasped the back of my head to press me closer. “If it feels as good as this does, I don’t think that will be a problem for me.”

“Good.” I sucked her nipple into my mouth and teased the tip with my teeth before letting it go with a pop.

“Because I’m already addicted to your taste, and I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”

She leaned back and murmured, “Yes, please.”

With the scent of her need thick in the room, I was desperate for my first taste of her pussy. But I wasn’t going to skip over an inch of her tempting curves as I made my way there. Licking and sucking across her chest, I sucked the other delicious peak into my mouth. Calliope moaned and arched her back in response. I gently bit down on her nipple and flicked it with my tongue, and she started to wiggle beneath me. She pressed the bottoms of her feet on the mattress and cradled my waist with her knees. My dick felt as though it was going to bust through my zipper to get to her sweet pussy any second.

After kissing the tip of each breast one last time, I started to move lower once again. I trailed my tongue along her ribs, swirled around her belly button before dipping inside, and teased her pubic bone. I ended on my knees between her sprawled legs with her pussy lips bared to me and glistening with her need.

My tiger pressed against my skin as I wedged my shoulders between her thighs. Inhaling her scent into my lungs, I experienced a strange mixture of relief and disappointment over the fact that I didn’t pick up a trace of ovulation. The limited risk of getting her pregnant made tonight easier since she wanted to wait, but my tiger didn’t have the same understanding of her desire to achieve her childhood dream. He wanted to fill her womb with his cubs, but that would have to wait until she was ready. For now, he’d have to be satisfied by drowning in her taste. Spreading her wide, I licked her from clit to hole.

“Tane. Oh my God,” she whimpered.

“Look how wet you are for me, baby.” I gave the glistening lips of her pussy another swipe with my tongue, savoring her flavor. She mewled, and her legs instinctively widened, letting me dive right in. I started with another long, slow lick before lapping at her juices. Urging her legs even wider with my palms, I moved in closer and ate her pussy with deep licks and nibbles from her clit to her tight hole. When she was dripping wet, I thrust my tongue inside, over and over again until she was crying out. I kept at her, driving her closer to the edge until my dick couldn’t stand it anymore. I needed her to come.

I eased a finger inside her, groaning as her walls clamped down on the digit. Working it deeper, a growl ripped from me when I felt the proof of her innocence. “I need you to come for me before I can pop this sweet cherry, baby.”

“I’m so close,” she panted.

I twisted my wrist, and Calliope threw her head back against the mattress. Her hips jerked up as I worked another finger into her tight, wet heat. Lowering my head, I flicked my tongue over her clit, and she flew apart. I licked her through her orgasm, her fluids coating my throat.

“Mine,” I growled, flicking my tongue against her clit one last time before I went up on my knees.

“Yours,” she agreed, staring up at me with heavy-lidded eyes. A pink blush had spread from her cheeks down her chest, and her nipples had darkened to a deep red. She kept her gaze on me as I stripped out of my shirt. Since I’d gone commando, I was careful with the zipper of my jeans. When my dick sprang free, Calliope leveled up onto an elbow and reached out with her other hand to catch a drop of pre-come with her fingertip. Then she licked the fluid away, and my small amount of remaining control snapped.

I grabbed her hips in my hands and lifted her body toward me as I guided my rock-hard cock to her entrance. Notching the tip inside her tight heat, I held still when she breathed, “You’re so big.”

“Don’t worry, baby.” I gentled my hold and stroked my thumbs over her soft skin. “You were made to be filled by me.”

“I know,” she whispered, her plump lips curving up in a smile of pure feminine satisfaction as the hint of fear drained from her eyes.

“I’m on board with waiting until you’re ready to have babies, but I want to take you bare. I don’t want anything between us,” I rasped as her wetness bathed the crown of my cock.

“Won’t that be super risky?” she asked.

“I’m not sure how much you know about shifter senses, but my ability to scent is unrivaled by anyone else in the pack.” My nostrils flared as I pulled her scent deep into my lungs. “And I can tell you with complete confidence that you aren’t ovulating yet.”

“Oh. Wow. Um…” she trailed o as she wiggled her hips.

“Then my vote is that we go bare because just the little bit of your dick that’s inside me already feels incredible.”

I didn’t want to prolong the pain that would come from taking her innocence, so I slammed my cock into her tight sheath, burying myself deep before I stopped. Calliope tensed beneath me, and I bent low to kiss the tears o her cheeks. “I’m sorry, baby. It’ll be better soon. I swear.”

She gave me a jerky nod, and I held still until her muscles started to ease, and she wiggled her hips. “It’s starting to feel good already.”

“Yeah?” I asked, trailing my mouth down her neck to nibble at her pulse point.

Her walls loosened their tight grip on my hard length.

When I angled my hips back and slowly sank inside again, she gasped, “Uh-huh.”

“I want this every single day for the rest of our lives, Calliope,” I grunted as I thrust back into her.

“Yes, me too.” Her nails dug into my shoulders, her hips lifting o the mattress to meet mine. “Tane, please…”

“So fucking tight. Perfect,” I groaned as I buried my face in her shoulder while I pounded in and out of her pussy.

Her inner walls fluttered around me. “So perfect that I’m already so close.”

I lifted one of her legs and brought it over my shoulder so I could get even deeper. Then I slid my hand between our bodies to circle her clit with my thumb. “Are you going to come for me, baby?”

“Oh, yes,” she breathed.

I pumped in, hard and fast, my gaze locked on her face as I watched her orgasm build. Her eyes were hazy, and the pink in her cheeks had deepened. “Do it now,” I urged.

I dropped her leg from my shoulder and wrapped it around my waist as I continued to power into her body. Her heels dug into my ass cheeks, and she lifted her hips to meet me thrust for thrust. Her body finally shook in ecstasy, her pussy clenching around my cock and taking me with her.

I shot so much come into her pussy that our combined fluids dripped down her leg. Our scents mixed, shredding my control past the point of no return. My tiger pushed for control, and my canines burst through my gums. I grazed the sharp edges over her soft skin, being careful not to draw blood. Although she’d given her body to me, I needed to hear her tell me that she was ready to join our souls together too.

“I want to leave my mark right here while your pussy is full of my come. You’re already mine, and I’m never going to let you go. But this will complete the mating process so every other shifter will know.”

A glint of fear filled her eyes, darkening them to a golden brown. “I can be a big scaredy-cat sometimes when it comes to pain, but I want to be yours. Please do it quickly so I don’t have the chance to freeze up too much and make it worse.”

“Trust me, baby. When I sink my teeth into your soft skin, the last thing you’ll want is for me to go fast,” I purred while my lips curved up in a smirk. “From everything I’ve been told about fated mates, the only thing you need to brace for is an orgasm that will blow your fucking mind.”

“Then heck yeah”—she lifted her shoulder closer to me —“hurry up and get to it because I’d love to see how this orgasm will top the two you just gave me.”

My tiger surged close to the surface, his fur brushing against my skin. As both sides of my soul reached for hers, I sank my canines into her flesh. It felt as though an explosion went o inside me, but it was quickly followed by a sense of peace I’d never experienced before. My tiger and I were in sync. Happy. And it was all because of my gorgeous mate whose pussy milked another orgasm out of me as she flew over the edge again.

6

CALLIOPE

W

aking up in Tane’s arms was beyond anything I’d ever imagined. After spending most of yesterday in bed together—with a few breaks to eat, pick my stu up from Allegra’s house, and shower—we’d finally passed out late into the night. No matter what we were doing, Tane kept me close. I quickly got used to how he always liked to touch me.

He kept a hand on my nape when we talked to Zeke, his thigh flush against mine as we sat side by side whenever we ate in his kitchen, and spooned his body around mine while we slept. He didn’t shy away from public displays of a ection, which he proved when he French kissed the heck out of me on his front porch, and several members of his pack jogged past, shouting out encouragement while they were still within earshot. And he loved to leave marks of his possession all over my body, as though the mating mark on my neck wasn’t enough to warn o other shifters.

My body ached in places I’d never felt before, but I had zero regrets. I wouldn’t give up a minute of the past twentyfour hours with Tane for anything.

“C’mere, baby.” Tane tugged me closer, nestling his face into my neck and licking over my mating mark. “How are you feeling?”

I tilted my head to give him better access. “I’m a little sore but in a good way. It’s like I can still feel you inside me.”

His hips surged forward, pressing his morning hard on against my butt. “Get used to the feeling. I’m going to spend a lot of time in your tight pussy.”

His breath was hot against my neck, and I let out a shuddering sigh. “If that’s your plan for the day, you have my stamp of approval.”

“Only after you take a nice, long bath to ease those aches so you won’t hurt when I take you again.” He brushed a kiss against my cheek and gave me a squeeze. “And at some point, I’d like to call my parents to give them the good news.

Be warned, I’m sure my mom will want to video chat so she can meet her new daughter-in-law.”

“Then I definitely need a bath.” I wiggled out of his hold and scrambled o the mattress. I was completely naked, but I’d lost most of my shyness throughout the night. Waving my hand down the front of my body, I still blushed as I muttered, “She can’t see me like this. I’m covered in hickeys and come!”

His dark eyes filled with humor as a low chuckle rumbled up his chest. He crawled across the mattress, hooked an arm around my waist, and pulled me down next to him. “You’re fucking gorgeous and smell delicious.”

I laughed and pushed against his chest. “And you’re delusional.”

“Not even close.” After rolling on top of me, he flared his nostrils as he inhaled my scent. “My tiger would love nothing more than to roll around in your scent until it seeped in my bones.”

“Then maybe he should,” I suggested.

My sexy mate lifted his head and grinned. “You want to meet my tiger?”

He was o ering to show me the six-hundred-pound tiger that lived inside his skin. I was normally a fairly timid person, but I already trusted Tane enough to know that I had nothing to fear from him. So my answer was a no-brainer.

“Yes, please.”

“Do you want to take a moment to think about your answer?” I shook my head, and he chuckled. “Okay then.”

He claimed my mouth in a deep kiss before sliding o the mattress. My gaze dropped to his cock, but my head jerked up when I heard cracking and popping sounds. I blinked in shock, and when my eyes reopened, a giant tiger was standing in front of me. “Whoa! That’s so cool.”

Tane padded across the floor to sit in front of me and butted my hand with the top of his head. “Hey, there. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything more stunning than you, buddy.”

I scratched under his chin, in awe of the gentleness of the huge beast who let me stroke him as though he was a flu y kitten. When my fingers dug into the fur at his side, he started purring and my heart melted. “I must’ve done something awesome for fate to have given you to me.”

He made a chu ng sound and dragged his rough tongue over the mark on my neck. Even though he wasn’t in human form, I knew exactly what he meant. “Yeah, yeah. I get it.

You’re the lucky one.”

His cell rang from the table on the other side of the bed.

He backed up and leaped over the mattress, making me gasp in surprise. After he landed on the floor, he shifted back to his human form and winked at me. “You’re going to want to grab some clothes, baby. It’s my mom.”

“Oh, crap!” I jumped up and raced over to the closet.

“Get some shorts for me, too,” he requested as the phone rang for the third time.

I tossed him a pair of athletic shorts as he answered.

“Hey, Mom.” As I listened to the low murmur of his voice, I yanked on a bra, panties, jeans, and long-sleeved top. Then I started to run my fingers through my hair about five seconds before he called my name. Taking a deep breath to settle my nerves, I walked out of the closet and cringed when he turned the phone screen toward me so I could see the couple squeezed into the frame. The man was an older version of Tane, but the woman’s eyes were an exact match for his. I forced a smile onto my face and tried not to freak out over the fact that my hair looked like I’d spent the past twenty-four hours rolling around in bed...which was fair since that was a pretty accurate description.

“Oh, my gosh! She’s gorgeous, Tane!” his mom cried.

Tane’s dad chuckled and shook his head. “The girl can hear you, honey.”

“Oops, right.” She grinned. “I’m just so excited. I forgot for a second.”

When I got closer to Tane, he wrapped his arm around my back and pulled me close. I gave his parents an awkward wave. “Don’t be embarrassed. I totally get it since I was a little nervous about meeting you.”

“Pretty and sweet.” His mom clapped her hands together.

“Fate was generous with my baby boy.”

I tilted my head back to smile up at Tane. “Yeah, fate did awesome for me, too.”

He brushed his lips against mine, and my cheeks heated when I heard his mom sigh. When I turned my head to look at the phone’s screen again, both of his parents were grinning in approval. I leaned my head on his shoulder as he said, “Mom, Dad, this is Calliope. My mate.”

“It’s lovely to meet you, dear,” his mom replied.

Tane jerked his chin toward the screen. “Calliope, these are my parents—Tobias and Cora Ruslan.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Ruslan.”

“There’s no need to be so formal. Tobias and Cora will do,” his dad corrected.

“Or Mom and Dad if you’d prefer,” Cora suggested with a wink. “Since you’ll be with our son for the rest of your lives and will give us grandbabies and all.”

“Don’t scare the poor girl o ,” Tobias chided. “I’m sure our daughters will be enough for her to think twice about what fate was thinking getting her mixed up with our family.”

“Hush, now.” Cora rolled her eyes. “Our girls will welcome Calliope with open arms. They’ve always wanted another sister.”

Tobias chuckled again. “That doesn’t mean they won’t be a lot for her to handle.”

“That’s fair,” Cora agreed with a nod.

“Okay, guys,” Tane sighed, squeezing the bridge of his nose with his forefinger and thumb. “Now that you’ve freaked my mate out, I’m going to let you go so I can make sure she doesn’t want to go running in the opposite direction.”

“If she does get away, at least your tiger has always been very good at hunting down his prey,” Cora teased as she and Tobias waved goodbye.

After Tane disconnected the call, he nudged me back a few steps until my legs hit the edge of the mattress. “Sorry about that. I know you wanted to get cleaned up before you talked to them.”

“That’s okay. It’s not as though you could ignore her call,” I reassured him. “At least your mom was cool about my freshly rolled out of bed look—”

“Otherwise known as freshly fucked,” he corrected as he wagged his brows.

I laughed and shook my head. “I’m not sure you can say freshly when it’s been like five hours since the last time we had sex.”

“Good point.” He tossed his phone on the mattress. “It’s been too long. I should do something about that.”

“Ah, ah, ah.” I wagged my finger from side to side before heading toward the bathroom. Glancing over my shoulder, I added, “Not until after I’ve had my soothing bath...and we get the call to my parents over with. When we fall back into bed together, I don’t want to have anything else hanging over our heads.”

“Then hurry up, baby,” he urged. “I’m hungry for you more than breakfast.”

7

CALLIOPE

I

didn’t hurry up. Instead, I spent much longer in the tub than I’d needed. In my defense, I had a few great reasons to linger in the bathroom. When I slipped into the water, the heat was more soothing than I’d expected it to be, and I wanted to take full advantage of it so my body was ready for another round or two with my hunky shifter. Plus, Tane o ered to make wa es and bacon for breakfast. But mostly, it was because I was worried about how the call with my parents was going to go. After the warm welcome I’d received from Cora and Tobias, I was worried my parents would ruin everything by being rude to Tane—either because they wouldn’t approve of him or they just wouldn’t react well to the news of me having a man in my life.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t hide in the bath forever. Once breakfast was ready, I dragged myself out of the tub, got dressed, and headed downstairs. I took my sweet time eating the delicious food Tane made for me, forking the last bite o my plate while he was finishing up cleaning the dishes he’d dirtied while he was cooking.

After drying his hands o on a towel, Tane came over and grabbed my plate. Pressing a kiss to the top of my head, he murmured, “Relax, baby. I know you’re freaked out about

how your parents will react, but it doesn’t really matter.

You’re mine, and I’m yours. They can either get on board with that or be left behind as we move forward with our lives. Either way, you’ll be good because I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure of it.”

His promise gave me the courage I needed to grab my phone and dial my mom’s number. When it rang four times before rolling over to voicemail, I sighed in frustration. Then I tried my dad, but I didn’t have any better luck. As Tane dropped down onto the chair next to me and flung his arm around my shoulders, I pulled up the contact for my dad’s administrative assistant. Unlike my parents, she picked up on the first ring. “Good morning, Calliope. How can I help you today?”

“Hey, Stephanie. I was hoping to speak with my parents, but neither of them picked up,” I explained. “Are they in a meeting?”

“Oh, um...I’m sorry you’re having a hard time reaching your parents. I don’t see anything on your dad’s calendar, but let me pull up your mom’s to check there, too.” There was a pause before she added, “Nope, nothing there to explain it either.”

“Okay, well just let them know I’m trying to get a hold of them please,” I requested since I hadn’t left a voicemail.

“Will do,” she agreed before hurrying o without saying goodbye.

I stared down at my phone and muttered, “That was super weird.”

“Is it usually easier for you to get ahold of your parents?”

Tane asked.

I shook my head as I set my cell on the table in front of me. “No, it isn’t rare for me to need to have Stephanie connect me with one or the other. She always knows what’s going on with them, but she seemed o . It was almost as

though she was trying to get me o the phone or something.

Usually, she’d ask me all sorts of questions about what’s going on in my life. She likes to be in the loop on everything because it helps her do her job better.”

“Everyone has a bad day now and then,” Tane suggested, giving me a comforting squeeze.

“Yeah, I guess that could be it.” I leaned into his side.

“But with classes starting up again on Monday, she normally would’ve at least asked me if I needed anything for school.

She’s the one who makes sure tuition is paid and my account has enough money to cover all my expenses.”

Tane’s arm tightened on me as his body tensed. “How many classes are you taking?”

“I’m registered for five, but I’m only excited about two of them—Form and Space and Connections Through Color and Design.” I shrugged my shoulders and sighed. “Allegra and Larissa decided to bail on the next semester since getting their degree isn’t important to either of them, and I was seriously considering dropping out and heading to New York to try to get a jump-start on my design career before you showed up since college won’t be as much fun without them.”

“Whatever you want to do is fine by me.” He gently turned my shoulders so I was facing him. “Take all five classes or just the two you like, as long as you move out of the dorm and into our house. Or skip college and get to work on your collection, which is probably the best plan because my mom and sisters will shock you with how quickly they can get shit done when it’s for family.”

There wasn’t an ounce of doubt in his dark eyes that my dream was going to happen. His confidence in me—and support—made me want to do a happy dance while I also had the urge to break down in tears. Of joy, though. My emotions were kind of overwhelming, and I wasn’t sure what

to say. “I-I-I’m not sure what I want to do. Can I take a day or two to decide?”

“Take as much time as you need, baby. Just do it with me.” I gave him a jerky nod, and he lifted me o my chair and spread me out on the table. Pressing his palm against my chest, he nudged me down until my back was against the hard surface before undoing my jeans and pulling them down my legs with my panties. “Let’s take advantage of my oral fixation and help you to forget all your worries. Now that I’ve satisfied the hunger in my belly, I think it’s time for me to get another taste of what I’m really craving.”

The bottom half of my body was completely bare while he was fully clothed in the pair of shorts I’d tossed to him earlier and a shirt he’d pulled on while I’d been in the tub.

But I couldn’t feel vulnerable with the way his gaze practically worshipped my body. Anticipation of the pleasure he was about to give me spread through my veins, and a rush of damp liquid spilled from my core. His nostrils flared, and I knew the scent of my arousal was turning him on even more than he already was.

His finger inched inside me, but he only kept the digit there long enough to get it wet. My whimpered protest at the loss was replaced by a moan when he began a slow, torturous circle around my clit. “And I’m not going to wait another moment to get it.”

That was all the warning I got before he yanked my legs over his shoulders and dipped his head low. His mouth clamped down on me, and my hips jerked o the table. His hands slid under my butt to hold me in place while he began to devour me. His tongue plunged, and his teeth nipped. He quickly drove me close to the edge, making me whimper. I tried to grind against him, but the position of my legs left me with little leverage. Not that I needed it since he took full advantage of the way I was wide open to him. Using his

mouth and fingers, he pushed me up fast until my entire body clenched as my orgasm crashed over me.

He ate me through it but didn’t give me much of a chance to recover before he shoved his shorts down, wrapped his palm around his hard length, and nudged at my entrance.

With his eyes locked with mine and a flash of his tiger visible in his dark orbs, he thrust deep and buried himself inside me until his balls slapped against my butt. Only his hands and cock were touching me, but I still felt surrounded by him. It was almost as though now that we were mated, I could feel his pleasure as much as my own. Our combined need burned through my veins as he moved in and out, over and over again.

His cock swelled inside me, and I knew he was close to the edge. Keeping my gaze on his face, I watched the pleasure build as I surrendered my body to his touch and refused to look away as the tidal wave ripped through us at the same time. When it was over, Tane collapsed on top of me, pressing his lips to the mark on my neck. Our coupling had been fast, intense, and quiet. And I felt as though it had somehow cemented our bond even further.

8

TANE

A

nother day passed without a return call from Calliope’s parents. Each time they didn’t return a message—she’d left three so far—she grew more disappointed and I got more pissed o . My parents would’ve walked halfway across the country to get to me if that was what it took, but hers couldn’t be bothered to pick up the phone and speak with their daughter. It killed me that she had to put up with shit like this from the people who should’ve always been there for her.

I’d decided to give it one more day before I hunted them down, but that plan was shot to shit when Kace got a call from his father-in-law. He used his alpha gift and sent me a telepathic message to get to his house stat. Calliope was busy drawing some dress designs, so I gave her a quick kiss before running down the street.

“What’s going on?” I asked after flinging open the door and swiftly crossing the living room to stand beside Kace.

He switched the call to speaker and barked, “I’m going to need you to repeat that for Tane.”

“Why? Aren’t you in charge down there?” Link asked.

Kace got along with Larissa’s dad, but from the stories I’d heard while I was out of town, it sounded as though he

wasn’t the kind of man who was going to cut his son-in-law much slack, even if he had the ability to shift into a fiercely dominant wolf. I enjoyed listening to him give my friend a hard time...until I heard the reason Kace has asked Link to repeat himself. “Tane isn’t just my third in command, he’s also Calliope’s mate. Her safety is his priority the same way Larissa’s is for me.”

“This is about Calliope?” I growled, my muscles bunching with tension.

“Yeah, word on the street up here is that some bad shit is going down with her parents,” Link explained. “They got mixed up in a deal with an importer whose business isn’t always on the up and up. One of his clients is pissed o they’ve lost container space to Calliope’s parents, and he’s been pressuring them to drop their contract with the importer.”

“Maybe that’s why they’ve been avoiding Calliope,” I muttered.

“If so, it’s the only smart decision they’ve made with this situation,” Link grumbled. “This guy doesn’t fuck around when it comes to getting what he wants, and he has a reputation for playing dirty and going after family members if that’s what it takes to get the job done.”

“Do you think trouble is headed our way?” Kace asked.

“If I had to guess? Yeah, that’s what my gut’s saying,” Link sighed. “We’ve got a handle on things up here, and I’m making sure Calliope’s parents are covered.”

“Calliope is safe in Timber Ridge,” Kace replied.

“Anyone who dares to try to hurt my mate will be dead before they have the chance to lay a finger on her,” I guaranteed.

“Just make sure nobody ever finds the bodies,” Link warned. “I don’t think the authorities will look very hard if he and his underlings turn up missing, and he’s not the kind

of guy who shares shit up the hierarchy if it's going to make him look bad. So if he up and disappears, that’ll probably take care of the problem.”

“No worries there,” Kace assured him. “Tane’s tiger has a hell of an appetite.”

“Tane, the tiger?” Link chuckled. “His parents must have a hell of a sense of humor since it sounds an awful lot like the cereal cartoon mascot.”

I didn’t bother reacting to his joke. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard it, and odds were good it wouldn’t be the last. And I had more important things to worry about at the moment.

“Is there anything else I need to know to help keep Calliope safe?”

“I’ll send everything we’ve got on the guy,” Link promised. “Our tech guy is good, so the email will have his picture along with photos of known associates.”

Kace was my alpha, but I didn’t hesitate to bark out a command to him since my mate’s safety was at stake.

“Forward whatever Link sends to you right away and give him my email address so I can get that shit direct until this is resolved. Unless there’s anything else urgent that I need to hear now, I’m heading back to my place. I left Calliope there by herself, and I don’t want her alone.”

“Will do,” Kace agreed.

“I don’t have anything else yet,” Link confirmed. “Get back to our girl.”

“My girl,” I corrected as I headed for the door. It didn’t matter that the man had known Calliope since she was five years old and had been the one to alert me to the possible danger; I wasn’t willing to let another man lay even the smallest claim to my mate. Especially not when my protective instincts were at an all-time high.

Rushing back to our house, I called out for her as soon I was through the door. “Calliope!”

“I’m still up here,” she answered with a yell.

I pounded up the stairs and shook my head when I heard her grumble, “You were only gone for like ten minutes tops.

Where did you think I would’ve run o to in that little bit of time?”

I heaved a deep sigh of relief when I found her in our room, still curled up on the bed with her tablet in her lap.

Logically, I knew nothing could’ve happened to her while I was at Kace’s house, but reason had been tossed out the window when I found out my gorgeous mate might be in danger. Some of the terror and rage I was feeling must have shown on my face because she dropped her tablet on the mattress and sat up. “What’s wrong? Is it Larissa or Allegra?

Your parents? Sisters?”

“No, baby. They’re all okay.” I hurried over to her, crawled on the mattress, and pulled her into my arms. “It’s your parents.”

“My parents?” she echoed, her head going back so she could look at me with hazel eyes wide with shock. “What?

Did they get wind of us being together and call you after ignoring me all this time? I swear, if they think they can interfere in our relationship because of some stupid reason they haven’t bothered to share with me, they’re going to regret it.”

She was so damn cute as she worked herself into a frenzy in my defense. If it had been any other day, I would have helped her work through her mad with a nice, hard fuck. But that wasn’t possible until I’d put protections in place to keep her safe—after I filled her in on the shit they’d actually pulled, which was unfortunately worse than whatever she was dreaming up in her head. “I wish that was what I had to tell you.”

Her already fair skin paled. “Are they…? Have they—”

As soon as I realized how she’d taken what I said, I interrupted her stammer. “Your parents are physically okay, and Larissa’s dad is going to do his best to make sure they stay that way.”

“Crap. Link’s involved?” She cringed at my nod. “Then I guess the reason they aren’t returning my calls is more serious than I expected.”

After I filled her in on the details Link had shared with me, she jumped o the bed to pace back and forth. “I can’t believe them. Even knowing I’m in danger, they still won’t risk their precious business over some stupid deal?”

I didn’t really want to cut her parents any slack, considering the situation they’d put Calliope in, but I hated seeing her so upset. “From what you’ve told me about your parents, they probably don’t realize how far this guy will go to get what he wants. The risks they usually take are purely financial. They aren’t used to dealing with people who are willing to cross any boundary to get what they want.”

“My parents aren’t dumb,” she hu ed, coming to a stop in front of me and crossing her arms over her chest. “They aren’t returning my calls for a reason, and I’m willing to bet it’s because they realized they’re in a situation they aren’t used to dealing with and don’t want me anywhere near it.”

“It wasn’t the best decision to make. They should’ve let you know what was going on so you could protect yourself, though. But in the end, their mistake doesn’t really matter,” I reassured her, tugging on her hand to pull her close. “Even if this guy comes looking for you to use as leverage against them, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“What? No.” Calliope shook her head. “I don’t want you to get hurt protecting me.”

I pointed at my chest. “I shift into a six-hundred-pound tiger, remember?”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you’re invincible,” she argued with a frown.

“When I’m going up against humans who have no idea what they’re facing, it’s pretty damn close.” My added strength and ability to heal went a long way, and if shit got serious, I could always shift into my tiger.

“You better be because I couldn’t bear it if something happened to you,” she grumbled, burying her face in my chest as she fisted her hands in my shirt.

She didn’t have to worry about me; I wasn’t going to let anything ruin the happiness I’d found with my mate. It was her parents’ adversary who was in for a world of hurt if he tried to pull Calliope into this mess.

9

CALLIOPE

T

he one upside to the trouble my parents landed me in was that it helped clarify things in my head. Getting a college degree didn’t really matter to me—the life I wanted to build with Tane did. I dropped all my classes without any problems because it was before the deadline and moved my stu out of the dorm even though it was paid for through the end of the semester.

All the drama also seemed to feed my muse because I’d made great progress on a couple of designs that I could totally picture on the runway in New York. That was a good thing because Tane had told his mom all about my dream to have a show during Fashion Week, and she called me every day to ask for an update on my designs. She and my sistersin-law were on a mission to make it happen at an insanely fast pace. If I didn’t know better, I would’ve suspected that Tane had let her know we were holding o on getting pregnant until after I fulfilled my dream so I could focus on my family without any work responsibilities pulling me away from them. But that was something we’d agreed to keep between ourselves for now, and I knew my hunky mate would never do anything to betray my trust. Plus, he hadn’t left my side since he found out what was going on.

“I can’t believe I still haven’t heard a peep from my parents. I mean, their priorities have always been a little messed up, but I’ve never doubted their love for me. And they’ve always been protective of me.” I shook my head, feeling dumbfounded by their silence, considering the circumstances.

Tane came out of the en suite bathroom and padded across the room toward me. Taking the sweatshirt I’d grabbed from the closet out of my hand, he tugged it over my head and guided my arms through the holes. “Link probably took their phones away so they couldn’t be tracked.”

“Maybe,” I conceded with a sigh. “It just sucks that they’ve let that stop them from getting ahold of me when you wouldn’t. I’m sure Link would’ve let them call using his phone or something.”

“Damn straight. Nothing would stop me from talking to you,” he agreed, wrapping his arms around me to pull me against his chest. “His entire club could try to lock me down, and that still wouldn’t keep me away from you.”

I grinned a little at the thought of Tane going up against Larissa’s dad and his crew. As tough as they were, I had no doubt my man would find his way around them to get to me.

I swore that I’d never take his devotion to me for granted.

“Mac, their president, would do anything for his wife, Bridget, too. So I don’t think you’d get much resistance from them.”

I didn’t hear anything unusual, but I stilled when Tane tensed up and cocked his head to the side to look out the window. His dark orbs filled with the ferality of his tiger, and his voice was rough as he commanded, “Get on the floor and slide under the bed, baby.”

Without hesitating, I dropped down to my hands and knees and crawled over to the bed. It was a tight fit, but I managed to squeeze underneath the frame. I couldn’t see

much from my position, but I watched Tane’s feet as he crossed the room to flip the switch on the wall. With the lights o and only the moon shining through the window, I could see even less. “Is someone out there?”

“Shh, baby. I don’t want them to realize you’re under there if they make it up here,” he whispered.

That answered my question—yes, someone was out there.

And it wasn’t a member of the Timber Ridge pack if Tane was worried about them coming into the house. With Tane’s heightened hearing, I knew he’d still be able to hear me when nobody else would as I barely mouthed, “Please be careful.”

“As long as you stay hidden, I’ll be fine,” he reassured me. “There are only three of them, and they’ll be surrounded soon. Kace is coming in from the east and Zeke from the west.”

I’d adjusted to the shifter world without many issues— taking in stride that Tane could change into a tiger that was about three times bigger than his human form without much thought—but I still hadn’t gotten used to the idea of Kace having telepathic capabilities. But I was going to be super accepting of them after this because being able to communicate with his alpha gave my mate an advantage against the bad guys. I was a big fan of anything that kept him safe, especially since I brought this trouble to his door.

I heard a sound at the window, and my head jerked in that direction as Tane circled the bed to stand flat against the wall out of sight through the glass. I scooted over a little so I could see up to his knees, and slapped my hand over my mouth when I saw a leg descend from the window, a dark boot silently pressing against the floor. The guy didn’t even get all the way into the room before Tane raced forward and slammed him to the ground. Startled eyes widened further when he spotted me under the bed, but then Tane’s hands

fisted the front of his coat, and he lifted the guy up as though he weighed almost nothing. “You fucked up big time, coming after my woman.”

“Shit, man. Relax. I haven’t even laid eyes on the girl yet.

I haven’t so much as touched a hair on her head. We can work something out here,” an unfamiliar male voice muttered.

“Oh, we’ll work something out alright,” Tane agreed on a low growl. The man’s relieved sigh was quickly followed up by several thuds and a grunt. His feet were dangling in the air directly in front of Tane’s shins. “The only thing that’ll make me happy is knowing any possible threat to Calliope has been eliminated. You’re not going to like my solution to the problem, but that’s okay. The second you entered Timber Ridge, the outcome was already decided. We’re going to work this out to my satisfaction, not yours. But that won’t be a problem since you won’t be around to complain after we’re done.”

“You don’t know who you’re messing with,” the guy warned.

“I think you’re operating under a mistaken belief, Stan Michaels. I know exactly who you are. I have a full report on you from the Silver Saints MC. I just don’t give a damn because to me you’re the guy who thought he could fuck with my woman.” Tane stomped closer to the window.

I heard a sliding sound that made me think he opened it farther, followed by a loud but distant thump. My eyes widened when I realized what those noises meant; Tane just threw that dude out the second-floor window. “Is it safe for me to come out now?”

“Yeah, baby.” He came close and bent low to reach a hand under the bed and help me. “He isn’t going to try to hurt anyone ever again, and Kace and Zeke took care of the other two guys.”

I gripped his hand and slid across the floor with ease as he tugged. “Thanks, I was worried you might have to pick up the entire bed in order to get me out of there.”

Sliding his hands under my armpits, he lifted me and set me on the mattress. “Are you okay?”

“Me? I’m fine.” I got on my knees and looked out the window, but I couldn’t see anything at this angle. “I was perfectly safe under the bed while you did all the heavy lifting.”

“As it should be, baby.” He leaned down and claimed my mouth in a deep kiss. “Wait here. I’m going to go down and help Kace and Zeke with cleaning up.”

“Holy crap!” I pressed my hand against my chest, my heart beating so hard it felt as though it would burst through my rib cage after he walked out of the room. I was pretty sure the clean up the guys would be doing involved some dead bodies. A month ago—heck, even a few days ago—I would’ve been horrified. But when you were surrounded by men who shifted into ferocious beasts and bad guys came to town to hurt you—or worse—a little bit of mayhem and death didn’t bother you so much. At least one of them was the sheri and the other was the mayor. Nobody would come after Tane for the events of tonight.

10

CALLIOPE

E

ven though I was on an adrenaline high unlike any I’d ever felt before, I didn’t move until Tane came back.

Considering odds were darn close to one hundred percent that he’d just killed someone to keep me safe—and made sure I couldn’t see anything before, during, or after—I figured it was the least I could do. He wasn’t gone long, maybe fifteen minutes, but he headed straight for the bathroom to wash his face and hands—probably because cleaning up dead bodies was messy—before joining me on the bed. “I’m glad that’s over with.”

“There’s still one last thing to take care of,” Tane corrected, handing me his cell phone with a number I didn’t recognize pulled up. “When we called Link to let him know things were handled, he let me know that your parents want to talk to you. I was right about their phones, but Link was going to give them a burner so you could call.”

“Okay.” I climbed on his lap, wrapping his arms around me because I wanted him close for this, and hit the button to place the call.

It rang twice before my dad answered, “Calliope? Hold on a second so I can put this on speaker. Your mom wants to talk to you, too.”

There was a brief pause, and then my mom asked, “Are you okay?”

My eyes filled with tears at hearing their voices. I had to clear my throat before I could answer. “Yes, there was a little bit of an issue tonight, but Tane kept me safe.”

“And he’s the young man Larissa’s father told us about?

The one you’re dating?” my mom asked.

I pressed my lips together to stifle my snort at her description of my mate. “Yes, Mom. I tried calling to tell you guys about Tane, but you didn’t answer any of my calls.”

“Yes, well, all things considered, we thought it was best not to draw any unnecessary attention to you since we thought you’d be safe at college,” my dad explained.

Since I’d put them on speaker right away, Tane was the one who replied, “Hello, Mr. Taft. This is Tane. Going forward, if anything comes up that might impact Calliope, I’m going to need you to call me. Link will make sure you have my number and email when you get your phones back.”

“Look, Tane. We appreciate what you’ve done for our daughter, but your relationship is new and—” Tane cut my dad o . “This isn’t up for debate. She’s my responsibility now, and I can’t keep her safe—emotionally and physically—unless I know what’s going on.”

“I get that things have been intense this week, and you were a huge help in resolving our issue, but that doesn’t mean you get to take over our daughter’s life,” my mom argued.

“Very soon, your daughter is going to be my wife”—my eyes widened since he hadn’t proposed, although we were fated mates so it shouldn’t be a surprise—“so you need to get used to me being around because I’m not going anywhere.”

“Not without a prenup,” my dad muttered.

“And that’s the end of this call. I love you guys, but Tane is right. He’s going to be my husband, and nothing you say is going to change that. After everything that just happened, you should be thanking him instead of giving him a hard time. So after you’ve gotten your phones back from Link and you’re ready to do that, give me a call.” I stabbed my finger against the screen and tossed the phone to the side.

Tane brushed his lips over mine. “I’m sorry that didn’t go how you hoped.”

At some point, we’d explain shifters and fated mates to my parents, and they’d understand why things moved so quickly for Tane and me. Until then, they’d just have to deal.

“Meh, today could’ve gone a whole lot worse, so I’m not going to complain too much. They’ll pull their heads out of their butts and get over it eventually. And if not, it’s not as though they’ve ever been super involved in my life anyway.”

“I hate seeing you sad. Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?” he asked as his hand stroked up my belly to cup my breast, leaving me with a really good guess at what he was suggesting. But I had an idea of my own.

“There’s something you should know about the mates of tigers,” I teased as I tugged his shirt over his head and kissed my way down his chest.

“What’s that, baby?” he asked, returning the favor with my sweatshirt.

I slid my hand inside his shorts and wrapped my hand around his hard length. After blowing on the tip, I murmured, “We tend to pick up on the whole oral fixation thing.”

“Fuck, yeah.” He shoved his shorts all the way down and pulled o my bra, pants, and panties before wrapping my hair around his fist. “I’m dying to know how it feels to have those pretty lips of yours wrapped around my dick.”

I wanted to have him in my mouth. To make him lose control. Leaning forward, I darted my tongue out to lick away the drop of pre-come beaded on the tip. Savoring his taste, I moaned, “Mmm.” “Keep it up, baby. There’ll be a hell of a lot more where that came from,” he urged.

I opened my mouth wide, and he slowly sank inside, giving me time to adjust as he went deeper. I sucked him back as far as I could manage and then licked the ridges of his hard length as I pulled back. As my mouth glided down again, he let out a low moan of pleasure. My gaze jerked up to his face, and if I’d had panties on, they would’ve combusted at the look of satisfaction on his face. His eyes were riveted on his cock with my lips stretched around it, and a muscle jumped in his jaw. “Fuck, baby. I don’t think I can take much more, and I want to blow in your pussy while it’s still safe.”

I wanted that too, so I gave his dick one last lick and smiled when he flipped me onto my back. His hand stroked down my chest and belly to my pussy, and he groaned when he sank two fingers inside me. “Did sucking me o turn you on?”

“Uh-huh,” I panted as he lined his cock at my opening and filled me in one powerful thrust.

“That’s a damn good thing because this is going to be hard and fast,” he warned.

He hadn’t been kidding, but I didn’t mind. I met him thrust for thrust with my knees clenched at his sides and my heels digging into his butt cheeks. My nails dug into his shoulders, and the sting just seemed to egg him on, making him move harder and faster. “So close,” he grunted.

His dick felt bigger as it dragged against my walls, making me shudder. “Me, too.”

“Good, ’cause no way in hell am I going without you.” He slid his hand between us and flicked my clit with his thumb.

That was all it took to throw me over the edge. My orgasm crashed over me with so much force I lost my breath, and it was all I could do to cling to him as he pumped into me a few more times before his groans of satisfaction rang in my ears.

My body felt as though it melted into the mattress when he finally pulled out and rolled to the side, pulling me against his chest. “Damn, that was perfect.”

“Mm-hmm,” I purred in agreement.

“Today was a hell of a day, baby. What do you want to do tomorrow?” Tane asked as he glided his palm down my back.

“Let’s go to New York,” I suggested, tilting my head to smile at him. “I think it would be good to be close to your family for a little bit, and maybe I can talk to your mom and sisters about the small fashion show they want to help me do.”

His brow wrinkled. “I thought you had your heart set on doing something during Fashion Week?”

“That was before I fell in love with you and dreamed about having babies with blond hair and dark eyes just like their daddy.” I pressed my lips against his and added, “I still want to see my designs on the runway in New York, but it doesn’t have to be a big thing anymore.”

He cupped my cheeks with my palms and stared into my eyes. “Are you trying to tell me that you love me, baby?”

“Yeah,” I answered with a shy smile.

“I love you, too.”

It was great to hear the words, but I already knew because everything Tane had done since the moment we met had shown me how he felt. And I had no doubt that he’d do the same for the rest of our lives.

EPILOGUE TANE

2 months later

“C

alliope, my love! You were spectacular!”

A growl rumbled in my throat, and I yanked my mate into my side just as Salazar Humphries reached for her.

I didn’t give a flying fuck that the man didn’t go for women; I was territorial over mine.

My mate threw me a glare, but it lacked any real anger since she loved it when I got territorial over her. I grinned in response, making her roll her eyes before she turned back to Salazar with a beaming smile. “I hope I made you proud.”

Salazar was Calliope’s investor and besides me and my family, her biggest cheerleader. He was a legend in the fashion world. Tabara was a costume designer for Broadway, and she’d known him for years. When my mother and sisters found out about Calliope’s dream, they made it their mission in life to make it happen. The goal had been to find an investor to sponsor a show at a small-scale fashion house.

However, when Trinity saw Calliope’s designs, she’d demanded that Tabara take them straight to Salazar. He’d

been blown away, and the next thing we knew, he’d managed to snag her a coveted spot in New York Fashion Week. With the tight timeline, he’d hired an army to help her get ready, and her night had finally arrived.

It had gone o without a hitch, and the smile on her face made all the time I’d had to give up in the past couple of months completely worth it. She was incredible, and I couldn’t have been prouder to be her man.

“You more than delivered, little one! My o ce phone is already ringing o the hook with potential buyers!” Salazar bounced on his feet and clapped his hands. His boyish excitement made a stark contrast with the older man’s distinguished looks and five-thousand-dollar tailored suit. I turned my head into Calliope’s sunshine hair to mu e my chuckle and earned myself a pinch in the ribs. “We should get started planning for September. You’re going to have to move here of course. I’ll get my assistant to start looking for a house—” “Salazar,” Calliope cut him o with a tinkling laugh.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Besides, this was a dream come true. For a long time, it was my only dream. Well, the only dream I thought I had any chance of making come true.”

Salazar’s expression fell, clearly sensing by Calliope’s tone that he wouldn’t be happy with what she had to say next.

“But now I want so many other things, and while I intend to keep designing, I think we’ll table another fashion show for long into the future.”

“How long?” Salazar asked with a suspicious gleam in his ice-blue eyes.

Calliope giggled and shook her head, wagging her finger at him. “Stop whatever shenanigans you’re planning right now. I’ll let you know when, or if, I’m ever ready again,

okay? Right now, I want to focus on”—she paused and looked up at me through her lashes, pink spots blooming on her cheeks—“having a family.”

I was immediately in pain...from the grin stretching impossibly wide across my face and the steel pipe that instantly formed in my pants. Fuck yeah! Slazar glared at me, to which I gave him a wink before kissing my mate on her temple.

“This isn’t over, my brilliant girl,” he sighed. “I’ll win eventually.” I suppressed a snort, reminding myself that he didn’t understand my Calliope like I did, or how important family was to us.

He gave her an air-kiss on each cheek from a foot away since I wouldn’t let him get any closer. Then he promised to call and spun on his heel to stroll across the room to another one of his pet projects.

I curled my arm around Calliope and steered her into the nearest dark corner before bringing her front flush against mine. I smirked as I stared down into her beautiful, happy face. “You want to get knocked up, huh?”

She blushed and dropped her eyes to my chest. “I could probably be convinced to let you put a little cub in my belly,” she quipped lightly, followed by an adorable giggle.

I let her go so that I could grab her hand and drag her toward the exit to the back lot. But I only got as far as a few steps before she was tugging on my arm to halt me. “We can’t go yet,” she laughed. “For one thing, your family is waiting for us out in the audience!”

Sighing, I altered our direction and headed for the door that led out to the seating area around the runway. “Let’s get this over with,” I muttered. Calliope laughed again, and I felt the sound reverberate through me, sending a tingle straight to my dick. I loved nothing more than seeing my mate happy, especially when that happiness was due to an earth-

shattering orgasm. Fuck. I really needed to focus on something besides getting inside my woman. Otherwise, it would only take one look at the bulge in my pants for everyone to know exactly where my mind was at.

“Oh, my sweet girl!” my mother cried joyfully as she pulled Calliope into her arms. “Congratulations! I’m so proud of you!”

My sisters stepped in next, gushing over my mate’s designs and the success of the show. “I knew it would be spectacular!” Trinity claimed, beaming with pride.

After the girls calmed down, my father stepped up and gathered Calliope into a giant bear hug, making her glow with happiness. Knowing what her childhood had been like, I was so grateful for how my family had embraced her. When he let her go, she practically floated back into my arms.

“So! Which after-party should we hit first?” Tabara asked, practically jumping up and down with eagerness.

I inwardly groaned. Son of a bitch. I’d forgotten about all that shit. My first instinct was to throw Calliope over my shoulder and run back to our hotel room, but I wasn’t going to take away any of this experience from her.

“Umm…” Calliope glanced up at me hesitantly, and I smiled gently in return.

“Whatever you want to do, baby. Tonight is about making your dreams come true.”

“All of them?” she whispered with a smirk.

I nodded. “I'll do anything for you, you know that. Even if it means a bunch of loud, crowded, sweaty parties full of pretentious artsy types, like those two.” I pointed at my sisters and grinned when I heard them gasp in overly dramatic outrage.

“Low blow, little brother,” Trinity murmured. “How did someone so awesome end up with your boring, grumpy ass?”

Calliope giggled and went up on her tiptoes to place a sweet kiss on my jaw. “He’s perfect,” she said softly. Then she looked at my sisters apologetically. “But you’ll have to party without us. Tane and I have—um—other plans. Other dreams to work on.” She blushed and buried her face in my chest. I might have laughed if I hadn’t been so fucking turned on.

I didn’t bother to say another word as I grabbed my woman by her hips and threw her over my shoulder to make a beeline for the nearest exit. Only the sound of my dad’s booming laughter managed to penetrate my focus, making me grin.

“Y OU ARE SO FUCKING GORGEOUS ,” I whispered as I stared at my naked mate, sprawled out on the bed. I licked my lips in anticipation of devouring the feast in front of me. However, my cock was swollen to epic proportions, and my tiger growling and gnashing his teeth, threatening violence if I didn’t get inside Calliope so we could put our cub in her womb.

“This first time is going to be hard and fast, baby,” I rasped as I climbed onto the bed and kneeled between her wide-spread legs. “I can’t wait to get my cock inside this tight little pussy and fill you with my come.”

Calliope smiled seductively and arched her back, pushing up her spectacular breasts and making my mouth water. “No argument here.”

I bent over and pressed my fists into the mattress as I took one succulent nipple in my mouth and gently grazed my teeth over the sensitive tip. Calliope moaned and wiggled her hips restlessly. I gave the other diamond hard peak some attention before gliding up her body to take her mouth in a

deep, hungry kiss. “I love you, Calliope,” I murmured against her lips right before my hips surged forward, and I bottomed out in one thrust. Calliope ripped her mouth from mine and let out a cry of passion. Her hands flew to my biceps, holding on so hard that I wouldn’t have been surprised if her nails drew blood. Burying my face in her neck, I groaned at the feel of her hot pussy tightly squeezing my shaft. I almost released my load right that second, but I refused to climax until my mate did. I slowly inhaled and grabbed the remaining shreds of my control.

“I need you,” Calliope whimpered.

“Fuck,” I grunted as everything slipped through my fingers, and I lost myself to the need pulsing through my body. I began to pump my hips as slow as I could manage, but my tiger was pushing hard against my skin. My animalistic instincts took over, and after withdrawing almost to the very tip of my cock, I slammed back inside her, roaring at the streaks of ecstasy that shot to every nerve ending. Calliope screamed my name, and her legs clamped around my waist, nearly squeezing the breath out of me.

There was no rhythm or finesse this time. I fucked her hard, rutting between her silky thighs, my entire being focused on breeding my mate. I wasn’t surprised that Calliope took everything I had to give and begged for more.

She was made for me in every way.

When her muscles tensed and her breathing became heavy, I knew she was close. Thank fuck because I couldn’t hold back anymore. I slipped a hand between us and rubbed her clit until she detonated. Her orgasm milked me to an immediate climax, and I shouted as my come exploded from my cock, burst after burst, filling her so full, there was no way in hell we hadn’t just made a baby.

That thought had my desire—and my hard on—returning quicker than I’d anticipated. Calliope had barely finished

coming when I started to move again. At least this time, I was able to take it slower. I savored every touch, every taste, and made sweet love to my mate until we both passed out.

I scented her pregnancy a couple of weeks later, but unlike Kace and Zeke, I was patient and let Calliope figure it out on her own. I had to threaten every shifter in town to keep their mouths shut, but it was completely worth it when I saw the happiness on my mate’s face as she shyly informed me that I was going to be a daddy.

I gave her a sweet kiss, then I swept her up into my arms and headed to our bedroom.

“Where are we going?” she asked with a laugh.

“To practice for the next one.”

EPILOGUE CALLIOPE

I

smoothed down the fabric of my red ball gown and shu ed nervously from foot to foot. How did I let them talk me into this? Tabara and Trinity fussed over me, flu ng my hair and adjusting the dress over and over until I finally put a stop to it. “I’m pretty sure anything else we do from here will go downhill, so can we get started and get this over with, please?” They harrumphed good-naturedly before giving me a peck on the cheek and scampering back to wait behind the cameraman.

It was hot in the desert, but there were so many butterflies fluttering around in my stomach that I barely noticed. Still, I had to remind myself not to touch “their masterpiece” as my sisters-in-law put it and swipe at the sweat trickling down the valley between my breasts. I suddenly had a new appreciation for my models.

My best friends and I had planned a trip to Vegas with my sisters-in-law and all our mates. Once Salazar found out, he decided to shift the shoot for the cover of Vogue to the desert an hour outside the city. He wanted me on set to oversee the dress, and since I had said no to Fashion Week in New York, Milan, and Paris for the past ten years straight, I gave in.

Besides, I couldn’t argue with his brilliance. The setting was

perfect for the deep red dress with a plunging neckline that went all the way to the waist where the skirt poofed just a little and fell to the ground.

We showed up at the site and waited around for over an hour until we finally received word from the model that she couldn’t make it. Everything was set up, and the cover needed to be shot today, so it was a disaster. Then things took a turn for the worse when Trinity suggested I step in for the model. I promptly told her she’d lost her freaking mind and threw a donut at her.

Unfortunately, everyone else thought it was a brilliant idea. Even Tane...which shocked me at first, but I should have known better. He was so proud of me, and no one thought I was more beautiful than my sexy tiger. According to him, he had no problem letting the world see what belonged to him. The next thing I knew, I was all dolled up and wearing my creation in front of a camera.

Speaking of my husband...I glanced around, looking for him, and my anxiety ratcheted up another couple of degrees without his presence to soothe me.

“It’s missing something,” Brian, the campaign director grumbled.

“Like a professional model?” I muttered.

“No, you’ll do,” he replied absently, causing Tabara and Trinity to roll their eyes. “If only we had some kind of animal or—” he broke o and let out a girlish scream, scrambling backward until he knocked into the snack table.

Everyone was suddenly staring behind me, though Brian was the only one who looked completely terrified as he tried to scramble under the table. Confused, I glanced to the side, and that’s when I noticed the huge shadow falling over the ground. My lips grew into a smile as my beast of a mate ambled up next to me. My tiger bumped his head into my thigh and purred, making me laugh as I stroked his soft

head. I immediately felt one hundred percent calm and at peace. Like always, he’d known exactly what I needed, and he’d found a way to make it happen. Adding a tiger to the photo would be amazing, but it was the comfort of having him next to me that gave me the confidence to go through with the whole thing.

After a moment, I realized why Brian was the only one who was terrified of the situation. He was the only other human on set. Even Cree, the cameraman, was from a local pack. I’d met him in the industry a few times and was ecstatic when Salazar was able to book him for this shoot.

“Fucking perfect!” Cree shouted with a pump of his fist.

“Brilliant!”

“What’s wrong with you people?” Brian screeched as he peeked out from under the table. “There’s a murderous monster about to kill us all, and you want to take pictures with it?”

“Hey!” I snapped as rage infused my blood. “He’s not a monster, and he wouldn’t hurt—” I broke o when I heard the threatening growl coming from the six-hundred-pound cat beside me. “I mean not unprovoked or anything.”

Tane took a step forward, and Brian let out another bloodcurdling scream before he disappeared under the table again. Then he popped up on the other side and took o toward his limo. Once his car had burned rubber—so to speak—and disappeared over the horizon, Cree burst out laughing. Trinity, Tabara and I began to giggle, and I even heard Tane’s amusement rumbling in his chest.

After a few minutes, we calmed ourselves and got down to business. The photoshoot was bound to be unbelievable with my stunning tiger by my side, and I couldn’t wait to see the proofs.

“M OMMY ! M OMMY !!” Kyla, our nine-year-old, came running into the kitchen waving something around wildly in her hand. “It’s here!” She skidded to a halt in front of me and held up a copy of the Vogue that showcased my dress and my magnificent mate. “You look so beautiful, Mommy,” she gushed with a dreamy smile.

“How is that di erent from any other day?” Tane piped up as he strolled into the kitchen with our two-year-old son, Rush, on his hip. Azlyn, who was a year older, trailed after them, her thumb lodged in her mouth and her ever inquisitive eyes taking in everything around her. “’Cause she’s on a magazine, Daddy,” Kyla informed him indignantly. With one hand propped on her small hip, she looked every bit the diva that she was.

“I think she’s even more beautiful right now,” he replied with a wink in my direction.

I snorted as I brushed some of my unruly hair away from my face. I’d been lost in my studio all day, and I looked a complete mess from the pencil holding up my hair, to the chalk residue on my fingers, to the ratty sweats I’d thrown on after hopping out of the shower this morning.

Kyla cocked her head to the side, squinted, and looked me up and down. Then she nodded matter-of-factly. “Yeah, you’re right, Daddy. Mommy is always beautiful.”

I laughed and pulled my baby girl in for a hug. “Thanks, sweetie. Right back atcha.”

“All my girls are gorgeous”—Tane sighed as he slid his free arm around me—“which is just one more reason to be grateful that we’re shifters. I don’t have to worry about any pups sni ng after my mate or my daughters.”

I laughed and turned my head to kiss his cheek. “Famous last words,” I teased.

“W HAT THE FUCK did you just say?” Tane shouted at Kace. His hands clenched into fists, and a growl that warned how close he was to shifting emitted from his throat.

“Calm down, Tane,” Kace commanded. In just about any other circumstance, Kace’s tone would have Tane lowering his eyes and baring his neck in submission to his alpha. Tane was as loyal as they come, and normally, his allegiance to his alpha was unwavering. The only exception was when it concerned his mate and cubs. Something Kace understood, which was likely why he didn’t force Tane into submission...yet.

“You want me to calm the fuck down? When you just told me that your son is mated to my daughter? My sixteen-yearold daughter?” He roared the last words, and his canines elongated as his skin rippled. If I didn’t defuse the situation fast, Tane was going to shift and try to tear his alpha apart.

“Tane, honey,” I called softly, laying a hand on his arm.

His whole body lost some of its rigidness as my voice and touch penetrated the cloud of anger surrounding him. “I’m sure Kace is as concerned about this as you are.” Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to think about the whole thing. Finding a fated mate wasn’t exactly common in the first place, but to have it happen so young was unheard of as far as I knew.

Kace nodded and folded his arms across his chest as he watched Tane with wary eyes. “Talon and I had a talk. He knows nothing can happen until she’s eighteen.”

“I don’t want him anywhere near my Kyla,” Tane snarled.

I sighed and gently patted Tane’s arm. “You can’t keep them completely apart, honey,” I murmured. Allegra's oldest, Jake, and Talon had always been close with Kyla. But as they’d gotten older, I’d started to notice the way Talon and Kyla had seemed to gravitate more to each other with each passing year. They were best friends. That alone would make tearing them apart impossible. But now, knowing how

strong the bond was between fated mates, I was actually afraid of what it would do to them if they were kept apart.

Tane glared at me and shook his head stubbornly. “She can go stay with Mom and Dad in New York.”

“And what would you do if I decided to up and move away?” I raised an eyebrow and waited for him to stop looking for a way to answer without lying.

Finally, he grunted in frustration and muttered. “Follow your ass and drag you back home.”

I nodded. “Is it really such a bad thing? Not only do you know your daughter won’t spend her life searching for her fated mate, but it’s Talon. Deep down, you know he would never hurt her. He’ll put her first in everything he does, and he’ll love her like you love me.”

“Over my dead-fucking-body will he love her like I love you,” Tane growled.

Kace snickered, and I threw him a glare that made it very clear he was not helping. Honestly, I was flying a little blind here because I had no idea if Talon and Kyla were experiencing the same desperate physical need for each other that Tane and I had when we were first mated. I sent up a fervent prayer that it wasn’t that strong, or my next words would end up being a lie. “I’m sure nothing will happen until they’re adults. Talon respects you, and more importantly, he respects Kyla.”

Tane vibrated with energy, and for a minute, I wondered if I’d failed to calm him and he was about to shift and race o to rip Talon’s throat out. I breathed a sigh of relief when he took several deep breaths and seemed to become a little more in control.

Tane must have been having similar thoughts to mine because Kace spoke up, answering my unasked question.

“Talon loves her. He loved her before they knew they were fated mates. But he swears that the sexual”—Tane growled,

and Kace threw him a warning look before continuing —“pull isn’t overwhelming like it was for us. Clearly, we are guessing here, but I think that just as our bodies and beasts are aware that we have an eternal mate, they also know when the time is right to seal that connection.”

Kace’s words confirmed one thing, though; Talon was obviously feeling desire for Kyla, even if it was manageable at the moment. Tane picked up on that too because his eyes narrowed, and he pointed at Kace, growling, “If my baby girl ends up pregnant before she’s married, I’ll make it impossible for Talon to have any more kids. He won’t even have the ability to try.”

“Fair enough,” Kace agreed. He watched my mate in silence for another minute, then spoke again. “Talon wanted to be the one to tell you, but I didn’t want you to kill my son before he could explain. He was trying to be a man, to respect you as his mate’s father and his alpha’s third. I convinced him to let me take the brunt of your reaction, but he still wants to talk to you. Can I trust if I send my son over here that you will be reasonable?”

“Of course,” I replied immediately. Tane didn’t respond verbally, but he gave Kace a sharp nod, and I saw one corner of his mouth tick up. We both knew what courage it was taking Talon to come over and face Tane himself. He was an amazing kid and was quickly growing into an amazing man.

When it came down to it, I wasn’t upset over the mating, though I would have preferred it happen when they were a little older. And I wasn’t sure how Kace had managed to keep Larissa from rushing over to start planning a wedding and baby showers.

EXTRA EPILOGUE TANE

I

grinned as I hung up the phone, and my mate sent me a questioning glance as she shut the door to the refrigerator and set out the ingredients for dinner. Tossing my cell on the kitchen counter, I grabbed Calliope’s hand and twirled her around before bringing her into the circle of my arms. Then I kissed her soundly.

“What’s going on?” she asked breathlessly when I finally released her lips.

“Trinity is going to come and stay with the kids while I take you on an anniversary trip!”

Calliope raised a brow and tipped her head back to stare into my face. “Trinity is coming to wolf territory?”

I understood her skepticism. Trinity had always been a little bitter that I’d chosen to stay in Timber Ridge and become the third to an alpha in a wolf pack rather than come back to New York. She didn’t blame me, though. She blamed the pack. To make matters worse, another person she loved had been “taken away” when her best friend from childhood, Corinna, had mated with a wolf upstate in the Silver Lake Pack.

I shrugged, not sure why Trinity had relented. But I wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. “Mom and

Dad have plans, and Tabara is in the middle of production for a new show. So I begged.”

“Begged?” Calliope stared at me, waiting for the rest.

I sighed. “Okay, so I may have guilted her into it by telling her you and the pups would be devastated if she didn’t come to visit.”

Calliope continued to watch me in silence, and I scowled because she knew me well enough to know there was more.

“And I may have bribed her by telling her she could name our next child.”

My mate rolled her eyes and hu ed. “Seriously, Tane?”

“What?” I adopted my most innocent expression.

“You know what,” she scolded, using her “mom” look that made anyone in its sights feel like a kid in trouble. “We have four kids. We aren’t having any more.”

I cleared my throat and looked anywhere except at my wife. “Yeah, about that…”

Calliope made a cute little growling sound and smacked me on the chest. “Tane!”

It was impossible to keep the grin o of my face. “You’re the one who dragged me into that closet…”

Trinity “A UNT T RINITY !!”

Four little people came running full-speed ahead and crashed into my legs, knocking me onto my ass. I burst out laughing as I had the stu ng squeezed out of me by my nieces and nephews.

“Okay, cubs. Let your aunt up before you crush her.” Tane gently pulled each kid o of me, then held out his hand to help me up. “Thanks for coming, Trin.”

“You own me, little brother,” I warned with narrowed eyes, giving him the same look that used to send him running when he was little. It hadn’t worked in years, and it didn’t work this time. But it was worth a shot.

Tane grinned and pulled me in for a hug, then a squeeze from my fabulous sister-in-law quickly followed. “Seriously, Trinity,” she said sweetly. “Thank you.”

I shrugged carelessly, but as they led me inside, I had to resist the urge to spin around and stick my tongue out at the stupid people of Timber Ridge.

What did Tane see in that place, anyway? He was a New Yorker, and his wife could be a superstar in the fashion industry. Yet, they chose to stay in this sleepy little town. It ba ed me...even though it was kind of cute.

Stupid wolf town.

I stomped inside after them and pasted a smile on my face for the kiddos. I was ecstatic to see them and didn’t want them to think they had caused my foul mood. We all had dinner together, and once the kids were in bed, Tane, Calliope, and I sat at the table drinking and catching up.

“We won’t be far,” Calliope informed me when the subject of their trip came up. “So call if you need us.”

“But don’t need us,” Tane growled and threw me a warning glare that I responded to with a smirk.

A pounding on the front door drew our attention, and Tane shot out of his seat, muttering about motherfuckers waking up his babies.

“Where is she?” a low, menacing voice demanded.

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Where. Is. She?” Calliope’s eyebrows shot to her hairline, and we both hurried out to find out what was going on.

When we stepped into the foyer, my breath caught in my throat as I stared at the most beautiful man I’d ever seen in

my entire life. And that was saying a lot since I lived in New York City.

The tall, muscular man went rigid, and his eyes flew to my face. I wasn’t sure what to make of him, but his intense stare caused heat to spread throughout my body. Oh, shit.

“I know you aren’t talking about my sister, Damon,” Tane snarled. “She’s just here watching the kids while Calliope and I take a brief trip. Then she’s leaving.”

“Like hell,” the Damon-guy snarled right back—not once taking his eye o of me.

“Who do you think you are?” I snapped. Despite my irritation, there was a breathlessness in my tone that really pissed me o . I wanted to be una ected by him. This guy was clearly part of Tane’s pack. One of the traitors that convinced my brother to live far away, so I barely saw my sweet sister-in-law and adorable nieces and nephews.

He took a step forward, and I felt the burning in his gaze down to my soul. “Your mate.”

SPECIAL SCENE LUKE

“H

ere, take Alena for a minute.” The request came a split-second before the newborn was thrust at me.

As a wolf shifter who was moving up the hierarchy of our pack, there wasn’t much that scared me. But I wasn’t too proud to admit that being responsible for the tiny baby in my arms was daunting.

Our pack had gone eight years without any cubs being born, but once Zeke had gotten Allegra pregnant, it was as though a seal had been broken. Kace and Larissa had only been a few weeks behind them. Then Tane had knocked Calliope up as soon as she’d achieved her dream of a New York fashion show—a feat his mom and sisters had pulled o in almost no time at all once they’d learned Calliope’s dream was the only thing holding them back from having a child, too. Since our alpha, beta, and third in charge mated with three best friends in quick succession, it wasn’t too much of a surprise when their women ended up pregnant together.

Even with the baby boom around here over the past few months, I still didn’t have any experience with them other than ooh-ing and aah-ing over the tiny infants shortly after they were born. My sister was four years younger than me,

so the only times I’d held her as a baby had been with my parents’ help. “Are you sure there isn’t some other way I can help you?”

Calliope stopped digging in her diaper bag for whatever she’d been searching for and looked up at me. She must have found my panic hilarious because she burst into a fit of giggles that drew the attention of everyone in the store. Our fellow pack members smiled when they saw how happy Tane’s mate was, and my lips eventually curved up in a small smile because her laughter was infectious—even though my reaction was what had caused it.

“Aww, don’t tell me the big, bad wolf is afraid of a little baby,” she teased as she reached for Alena.

“I’m not scared,” I denied, twisting my torso to move her daughter away from her. No way in hell was I going to admit to how worried I was about dropping Alena or holding her too tightly. I was a smart guy. I’d figure it out. “Finish whatever you need to do. I have her.”

“Oh, you’re so going to regret wording your o er that way.” She pulled a pacifier out of the diaper bag and handed it to me. “When I spotted you walking past, I only planned on having you hold her for just a moment while I found her binky.”

Alena wiggled her little body, her eyes blinking open as she let out a soft whimper. Tucking the pacifier between her lips before she started crying, I asked, “Binky?”

“Otherwise known as the thing you just popped into her mouth,” Calliope explained as she flung the diaper bag over her shoulder before walking past me to head toward the store entrance.

“What the fu—” I caught myself before swearing since I figured that wasn’t a great idea while holding a baby. Then I followed after Calliope to figure out where the hell she was going. When she snagged a shopping cart instead of heading

out the door, I heaved a sigh of relief. Even though it was highly unlikely, I had wondered for a minute there if she was going to leave the baby with me while she went to run errands or something.

Before reaching us, she paused at the end of the aisle to toss a couple packages of cookies into the cart. “Those biceps of yours better not just be for show. After holding her for a while, you’ll realize that Alena is heavier than you thought.”

“I’ll be fine,” I promised, barely stopping myself from rolling my eyes. There was no way my arms would get tired from holding the tiny bundle I was carrying. Or at least that was what I’d thought before I followed Calliope around the store while she piled items so high in the cart that she had to start putting stu underneath it, too. By the time we made it through the checkout lane, I’d shifted Alena’s position at least a dozen times.

“I’m so glad we ran into you.” Calliope clapped her hands together before gripping the handle of the cart to push it toward the exit. “This will be the first time since we had Alena that the house will be fully stocked. I’ve been sending Tane to grab stu when we need it. The poor guy has been here every day this week, and I didn’t have the heart to bother him when I realized we were out of wipes.”

I eyed all the crap she’d just bought and chuckled, shaking my head. “I’m pretty sure you won’t need to send him back to the store for quite a while.”

“Oh, no,” she cried as we walked through the door.

I scanned the parking lot but didn’t see anything out of place. “What’s wrong?”

“I just realized that you must’ve been at the store to grab something for yourself, and I totally hijacked you for a whole hour without letting you get whatever it was that you were there for in the first place.” She flashed me an apologetic smile. “Sorry I got a little carried away.”

“No worries. I just needed some deodorant,” I assured her, pointing my thumb over my shoulder. “Once I help you get all of this into your car, I’ll run inside and grab it.”

Calliope patted my shoulder, her smile widening. “You’re such a good guy.”

“Luke?”

It took me a moment to realize that Calliope hadn’t tagged my name onto the end of what she’d been saying.

Then I saw my mom approaching us from the parking lot and figured out that she was the one who’d called out to me.

“Hey, mom.”

“Hi, honey.” Her gaze dropped to the baby in my arms, and it just about killed me when her eyes filled with pain.

She wanted nothing more than for me to find my mate and give her grandbabies, but seeing me holding Alena must have made her miss her daughter even more. Heather needed to pull her head out of her ass and quickly—before I headed to the Badlands Territory to forcibly remove it for her, whether my alpha wanted me to or not.

Luke will get his HEA in Her Mate!

Join us over on Shifter Central for all things paranormal romance!

If you want some more PNR from us, we also have vampires in Dusk Before Dawn!

Curious about Larissa’s dad? He first appears in My Father’s Rival and has his own story in LINK!

If you’re in the mood for more shifters while you’re waiting, Rochelle Paige (the Davenport half of our writing duo) has the first book in her shifter series FREE! And Elle Christensen (aka: Fiona) has some great Fae romances, starting with Protecting Shaylee which is also FREE! *Prices current as of November 23, 2020

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The writing duo of Elle Christensen and Rochelle Paige team up under the Fiona Davenport pen name to bring you sexy, insta-love stories filled with alpha males.

If you want a quick & dirty read with a guaranteed happily ever after, then give Fiona Davenport a try!

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