by Anna Lowe
He gulped and tipped his head back. The mighty bear, welcoming her bite. His hands squeezed her hips tightly, and he thrust up.
She arched back, groaning, and her canines extended from her gums.
My turn, her wolf demanded. My turn.
She bucked over him, about to lose control. Drew came inside her, and she shuddered with pleasure, unable to hold back any more. Everything was the heat, the ache, the burning need to complete the ritual. The room was blurry, the air crackled with energy. Instinct guided her to his neck, telling her exactly where it was safe to bite and how. So she did, vaguely aware of how her teeth pushed flesh and veins aside, not damaging anything but the outer layer of skin.
“Summer…”
He held her so tight to his body, her ribs ached. But that only added to the high. His thoughts echoed in her head, and a thousand images swirled through her mind. Childhood memories and beautiful sunsets and songs and delicious tastes — some from his past, some from hers. Her heart pounded in her chest, and blood rushed through her veins. Wait — his veins. She could feel the push near her teeth, but it seemed like part of her body, not his. Every part of him became part of her.
Mine! her wolf crowed. My mate! Forever!
Heat surrounded her like a thick blanket, and the whole room seemed fuzzy and vague.
She found herself panting and realized she’d let go. Panicked, she checked his neck, but the puncture marks from her teeth were already healing. He was all right. She was all right.
“More than all right,” he whispered hoarsely, gathering her in his arms.
Her bones turned to jelly as she melted over him, settling into the curve of his body as if she’d done it all her life. Holding his shoulders, telling fate it would never force them apart.
“I don’t think we have to worry about that.” He smiled.
His chest was her pillow, his belly her mattress, and the ear she had pressed to his body echoed with the heavy beats of his heart. She lay there quietly, never wanting the moment to end. Then she realized it didn’t really have to end. Drew was right. This was just a beginning, not an end.
She inhaled deeply, then sighed, wishing she could put it all into words.
But once again, she didn’t have to.
“I know what you mean,” Drew whispered, kissing her gently. “I know what you mean.”
* * *
Now that you’ve witnessed all the Blue Moon Saloon couples find true love, how about celebrating a truly happy end? Turn the page for CELEBRATION, the series finale.
Celebration
A Blue Moon Saloon holiday story
by Anna Lowe
Celebration
It’s been a long, hard couple of months, but the bear and wolf shifters of the Blue Moon Saloon are ready to celebrate their hard-won peace with a few days off. While some couples use the time to relax with breakfast in bed, others head out for small, intimate adventures in the desert Southwest. A few are still busy stuffing stockings and wrapping presents for little Teddy, the youngest member of the growing new clan. But Teddy won’t be the only Blue Moon baby for long, because Santa has a very special surprise in store – not just for the extended Blue Moon family, but for the wolves of Twin Moon Ranch, too!
Chapter One
10:19 a.m. Christmas Day
“Best morning ever,” Jessica sighed, stretching under the sheets.
“See?” Simon rumbled, nuzzling her shoulder.
They were spooned together, her back to his chest, and Simon’s arm was looped comfortably over her waist. A nice change to her usual morning routine of waking at dawn to start baking for the café she ran.
She threaded her fingers through his and wiggled closer. “See, what?”
“I told you how good it would feel to sleep in,” he said in a deep, gritty voice. Her mate was all bear shifter, which meant he had a low voice that made her toes curl and a penchant for rising late, unlike wolves such as herself.
She laughed. Simon had made sure her morning was good, all right. So good, her girl parts were still tingling.
“The sleeping wasn’t the good part,” she joked.
“Merry Christmas, my love,” he murmured, hugging her close.
“Merry Christmas, my mate.”
“Aren’t you glad you don’t have to get up early to bake?”
She nodded. “Four days off in a row. For both of us.”
“I still can’t believe Soren suggested it.” Simon laughed.
“Oh, he needs this as much as we do,” she said.
The bear and wolf shifters had been working hard for months, and finally, they were reaping the rewards. Business was booming in both the Blue Moon Saloon and the Quarter Moon Café, so they’d all agreed to a little time-out. They needed it, too, especially after repelling several rogue attacks.
She squeezed Simon’s hand. The Blue Blood rogues had been defeated, once and for all. Finally, she, Simon, and their packmates could go on with their lives.
“Four whole days. I’m not sure I know what to do with myself.”
“Believe me, I have a few ideas,” he said, tracing the curve of her waist. “And none of them has to do with work.”
“That, my dear bear, sounds like a plan.”
Simon stroked her skin, and she studied the lines on his palms. She figured they’d be back to wildly gratifying sex before long, but this was nice, too. This quiet. This unrushed peace.
“You remember our first Christmas together?” she whispered.
He nodded and started stroking upward along her belly, edging toward her breasts.
“Like I’d ever forget.”
She smiled, thinking of how fresh their love was back then. How intense. Well, they still loved each other as intensely — maybe even more than ever before — but their love had matured over time, too. How could it not, what with all the trials they’d overcome?
Her mood darkened as she considered how close they’d come to losing each other since those early, innocent days.
“Innocent?” Simon chuckled. Apparently, he’d been reading her mind again. “I’m not sure what we got up to back then counts as innocent. Especially not that first Christmas.”
His fingers brushed the underside of her breasts, and she giggled. It had taken her ages to sneak away from her family’s celebrations to meet Simon at their rendezvous point in the woods, and she’d been worried he would give up on her. But there he was, her massive grizzly, pacing along the creek, sending impatient puffs of condensation into the frigid Montana air.
Her mighty bear who had gulped and grinned sheepishly when he laid eyes on her.
Jessica , he’d whispered.
Simon , she’d hummed breathlessly.
They’d spent a good five minutes turning in slow circles, rubbing against one another in slow, sensual slides. Claiming each other and rejoicing in the contact, even as they kept a watchful eye out. Back in those days, a wolf and a bear shifter falling in love was downright scandalous, and they had been careful to guard their secret.
His bear fur was thicker and coarser than her sleek wolf pelt, but the contact was better than the best massage. Her whole body had yearned for his, and her soul had yearned for a mating bite. They’d both known it was too soon for that, though, so they had to settle for clandestine meetings. That Christmas, they’d run off into the mountains for a private weekend in his den, and boy, had they heated that place up, even in human form. Especially in human form, when all their pent-up animal desires could finally be unleashed. He was a man, and she was a woman, and damn, were they the perfect fit.
“Still a perfect fit,” Simon murmured, sliding a hand over her thigh.
“Perfect,” she agreed, but she stopped him when his hand started sliding between her legs. “But don’t get me started again.”
He grumbled in his best grouchy-bear voice, and she patted his arm. “I mean, not yet.”
“Not yet?” he protested.
“Nope. Not yet.” She tried to sound st
ern. She had the morning all planned out, and it was important to stick to that plan — otherwise, she’d never work up the nerve to share her news with him. Or, the news she hoped she had to share, even if she wasn’t one hundred percent certain yet.
She pulled his hand to her belly and kept it there, wondering if he’d get the hint. Wondering what it would feel like to have him touch her there a few months down the line.
He sighed and went back to hugging her. “You have something else in mind?”
“As a matter of fact, I do.”
“Yeah?” He nuzzled her shoulder. “Something like spending all morning in bed with me?”
Well, they did have a Christmas dinner to throw, but she wasn’t ready to think about that just yet. Not with something much more pressing on her mind.
Just tell him already, her wolf said.
She took a deep breath, turned to face him, and immediately got distracted.
“What?” he laughed.
She shook her head. “I had a flashback to the first time we met.”
His eyes were just as bright and blue as they were then, his smile as eager, his body as welcoming. The same old Simon, yet an entirely new one. A man who’d battled inner demons and mortal foes and won — for her. For love. For them.
He grinned. “Don’t go reminding me of that if you’re not ready for more than just a kiss or two.”
Her body heated just at the suggestion, and she nearly gave in to the urge.
“Actually, I have a present for you,” she said, ordering her wolf to refrain from stroking his chest or wrapping a leg around his.
He lifted his head off the pillow with a look of pure little-boy delight. “A present? Wait.” His brow furrowed. “We said we were doing gifts tonight.”
They had, indeed. Everyone had agreed to finish decorating the tree together, followed by their first-ever holiday dinner as a pack, and finally, to exchange gifts, family-style.
“It’s kind of a pre-gift,” she explained. “I need it to see if I can share something with everyone tonight.”
He cocked his head, confusion in his eyes.
She rolled out of bed. “Just a second. You’ll see.”
She hurried to the closet then back to the bed, where Simon was propped up on one elbow, looking good enough to lick from head to toe.
Maybe we don’t have to do the gift right now, after all, her inner wolf squeaked.
A damn good thing she had forever to love her man. Otherwise, she just might have been convinced to veer off course.
“A present,” she said, showing him the box she’d wrapped earlier in pink paper tied with a blue bow. Another hint. Would Simon get it this time?
“A present for me?” he asked.
Her wolf chuckled inside. Nope. He doesn’t get it. Typical bear.
“It’s for both of us.” I think. I hope. She sat down and handed the gift to him. “Go ahead.”
She’d taken her sweet time wrapping and re-wrapping the package, trying to get it perfect. Why, she wasn’t sure — it was just a drugstore purchase, not a gold watch.
Simon yanked the bow off without so much as admiring it first — except, of course, to sniff the package.
“Such a bear,” she murmured, grinning at her mate.
He ripped the wrapping open at one end and peeked. Jessica sat very, very still, waiting for the realization to register on his face.
His lips moved. His eyes narrowed. He tilted his head.
“Some kind of test. You’re giving me a test?” he asked.
It was adorable, seeing her bear so confused. Then he unwrapped a little more of the paper, and his eyes went wide.
“No, I’m giving us a home pregnancy test.”
The breath caught in his throat. She could tell because his chest went up on the inhale and stayed there a long, long time.
“You mean…” he said, an octave above his usual tone.
“Well, I’m not sure, but I think so.”
He looked at her, still showing the signs of shock. Slowly, a grin spread from the corners of his mouth. “You think so?”
“I hope so,” she managed, squeezing his hand.
Sure, they’d talked about having a baby. And yes, she’d been dreaming of it for months. But shifters had a notoriously hard time conceiving — especially two different species. Destined mates tended to be the luckiest, but Jessica had never really dared to think too much about that. Throughout the past months, they’d faced the constant threat of Blue Blood attacks — hardly the time to dream about bringing a child into the world.
So they’d talked about it in a someday kind of way and trusted the details to fate. Had fate seen fit to bless them now?
She’d started feeling funny two weeks earlier, and at first, she thought it was overwork. But stress didn’t make a woman’s breasts swell or her nipples ridiculously sensitive. Her stomach had gone from clenching in nausea to bursts of savage hunger, and finally, she’d put it together.
“You really think…?” Simon asked, still looking dazed.
“Well, I’m not sure.”
He blinked twice then ripped the rest of the paper off the package to study the instructions. “One line means no, two lines means yes…” Then he looked up and pulled her close. “Two lines. I want two lines.”
She bent her head to his as relief flooded her. Of course, Simon adored his nephew, Teddy, and she knew her mate would make a great dad. But a little doubt remained — until the grin broke out over his face.
“Two lines. Two lines would be great,” he whispered, reassuring her.
They sat there, hanging on to each other for a long minute before she leaned away and wiped the tears from her cheeks.
“Well, then,” she managed, trying to play it cool. Failing miserably. Not caring much, really. “Let’s see.”
They unwrapped the stick and studied the instructions another ten times before Jess finally ducked into the toilet. She ran right into Simon’s chest when she came out, too. He’d been standing that close, waiting impatiently.
“Well?”
He knew as well as she did that it took a minute or two, and yet his eyes jumped to the test stick immediately.
She led him back to the bedroom and patted the mattress beside her. Simon swung around behind her instead, curling his body around hers. Her back to his chest, his legs boxing the sides of hers, his breath featherlight on her shoulder as they sat and waited and hoped.
“Hey,” he said suddenly, pulling her attention away from the stick.
She craned her neck to look into his eyes.
“I love you. Even if we don’t get two lines this time, it’ll be okay. Right?”
His voice shook a little, though, and she knew he had all his hopes on the line, like her.
She laced her fingers through his and glanced at the test stick again. “I love you, too. And you’re right. Either way, it will be okay.”
She repeated the words to herself another dozen times while hoping to hell they wouldn’t be disappointed. Hoping this was really it.
“Love you,” he whispered, nuzzling her with his chin.
“Love you, too,” she said, holding tight to his hands as they both stared at the stick and waited breathlessly.
Chapter Two
1:32 p.m. Christmas Day
“Cole, it’s Christmas,” Janna sighed impatiently. “Our first Christmas together.”
It was a holiday with a lot of firsts: Cole’s first as a wolf shifter. Janna’s first with the man she loved. The first Christmas for their Blue Moon pack — or clan, as the bears liked to call it.
Cole arched an eyebrow, and the look it gave him — smoking hot cowboy mixed with aw-shucks country charm — made it impossible to be frustrated with him.
“Great, isn’t it?” He grinned ear-to-ear, melting her heart yet again. Every look, every touch sent little tingles of joy through her.
She looked around and gestured at the arid, scrubby landscape. “It is great, but seriously? Y
our big Christmas surprise is to bring me to the place you work?”
Okay, she’d love him even if his surprise was an outing to that dive of a bar she was once attacked in, but really — could he not come up with something better than this?
“I mean, I like Seymour Ranch and all, and Tina and Rick are the best, but they’re coming for dinner tonight anyway.”
His eyes danced, making her soul sing, and he kissed her knuckles as he drove. “This will be worth it. I promise.”
Only her cowboy could pack three syllables with so much innuendo without even being aware of it.
She flashed him a hungry she-wolf smile and walked her fingers up his thigh. “Let me guess. You’re finally taking me to Spring Hollow.”
Now that would be a great Christmas surprise. Her neighbors — the wolves of Twin Moon Ranch — all raved about that little pocket of undisturbed nature tucked away in the hills. A timeless corner of paradise where a creek babbled underneath a whispering canopy of lush leaves. She’d seen Tina and Rick exchange knowing glances whenever Spring Hollow was mentioned, and even Ty Hawthorne, the badass alpha of Twin Moon pack, shot heated looks at his mate at the very mention of the place. From what Janna had heard, those weren’t the only couples who’d escaped to Spring Hollow for romantic trysts, and she’d had been dying to visit the place with her mate someday.
Her wolf wagged its tail at the thought. Quiet getaway. Privacy. Just me and my mate.
“Nope.” Cole laughed, shattering that fantasy. He laughed, damn it. “We’ll save that for another time.”
“Make that a promise, cowboy.”
“I promise. And I promise you’ll like this, too.”
She shook her head. What was he up to? And what was so great about Seymour Ranch? Sure, she liked the place. Tina, Rick, and their crew had been working hard to make the long-neglected ranch flourish again, both as a business and as a home. She could see it in the row of fairy dusters planted along the drive, the deep red of the freshly painted barn, and the potted plants on the shady porch of the homestead.