by Lisa Oliver
He had only held the delicious man, who, Fergus realized would make mincemeat of two jackals and think nothing about it. But Fergus had laid down his challenge. Cam was supposed to adore him, and his mate couldn’t do that if he was dead. So, he hit back, swinging his rolling pin wildly, trying to get the guys to just give him some room so he could actually hit something breakable.
But then a hand came up, his rolling pin was wrenched from his hand and before Fergus knew what was happening, his breath whooshed out after a hard shove to his chest and he heard the sound of glass breaking. He just had time to realize I’m flying, before he landed on his back with a thud.
The fall winded him. It took a moment for Fergus to open his eyes and he reached for his aching head automatically. “Well, flutter-butts,” he said wincing as blood appeared on his hands. “That didn’t go the way I had hoped and anticipated.” He looked around, before his eyes landed on Cam. “They got my rolling pin.”
“Who? Where?” Cam reminded Fergus of a human minotaur, his nostrils flaring, his eyes black and flashing with another presence Fergus couldn’t identify.
“Two.” Fergus held up two of his fingers, or he thought he did. His eyesight was still a bit blurry. “Jackals. In my room. My bedroom.” Cam was up like a shot, racing towards the house. “Don’t let them see what’s in my bottom drawer,” Fergus yelled as his head slumped back on the grass again. “That would be so embarrassing,” he muttered. He ran his hand through his wavy hair, and grimaced. The blood was already drying so it was sticky. “I need to shift. A shower. Something to wear other than unicorn pants might be a good idea. Darn it, and I was going to make Cam lunch.”
“How about you lie still, until we can make sure you’ve not got a serious head injury.”
Fergus blinked. His eyes were watery, so he tried again. He could make out two large shapes in front of him. “Is that you, Doc? Is Deputy Joe with you? Only there are two jackals…” He tried to point to the house, but the Doc was stronger than he looked, or maybe his arm had stopped working.
“Lie still, you young fool. I don’t know if you’ve broken anything yet.”
Fergus felt a slight prick in his arm, and then his head was filled with clouds. “You have such a lovely bedside manner,” he whispered, or at least he thought he did. He found it difficult to speak when he was floating.
/~/~/~/~/
Cam pulled his fist back just in time as Deputy Joe came around the bedroom door. “They’re fucking gone, probably out of the back door. They must have realized someone would come running with the sound of breaking glass.” He was snarling, his fangs half out, but Cam didn’t care. Someone had broken into his mate’s lovely home and gone through his precious things.
“I’ll call Rocky,” Joe pulled a phone out of his jean’s pocket. “He’s got the best nose for tracking, unless you wanted…”
Oh, Cam wanted all right. He wanted nothing more than to find the assholes who hurt his mate and rip out their guts and dance in their blood while their eyes were still pleading with him to stop. The throat slash that killed them would be the final act, not the first. But he had to think of Fergus – shit. Cam closed his eyes. He could still see his mate’s body flying out of the window and landing with a splat on the unforgiving ground. “Call Rocky and see if Dan from the hardware store can send someone over to board up the window. Apologize to him for me, for disturbing his Saturday.”
“Fergus is going to be all right,” Joe said, laying a comforting hand on Cam’s shoulder, that he barely resisted shaking off. “Doc’s with him and he’s his normal grumbly self which means the young bull is going to be fine. I just don’t understand… Were you just passing by, or…”
“I thought Mal would have told you. Fergus is my mate. Unclaimed, but you know, we only met this morning.” Cam ran a hand over his head. He could still smell Fergus’s blood and his animal wanted to savage something with his teeth, but he knew he had to pull himself together.
“I haven’t seen Mal or Rocky today,” Joe said. “Doc and I called into the bar for a quiet drink and Sarah told us what was going on. We got here as fast as we could.”
“Appreciated,” and Cam did appreciate it. He loved how caring everyone was in Arrowtown even if he didn’t show a lot of that love himself. “I’m just going to…” He waved at the stairs.
Joe nodded. “I’m sure he’ll be fine, but you see to Fergus, I’ll get Rocky on the trail and organize the window clean up.”
Clumping down the stairs, Cam checked the time on his phone. It was a little after two. Bringing up his contacts, he hit one of them. “Nicky? It’s Cam. Can you start your shift early for me please?”
“Sure, I can be there in twenty minutes if you need me. Just let me have a quick shower. Have we got busy?”
“I don’t know.” Cam swallowed hard around the lump in his throat. “Sarah, the little rabbit shifter that works for Fergus is minding the bar with her new wolf mate. I’m at Fergus’s, I just found out today he’s my mate. He’s been hurt. I don’t know when I’m coming in.”
There was a moment’s silence, and then Nicky said, “Sure thing, boss. Leave it to me. We’ll close up for you tonight if that’s what it takes and if you need a few days, just let me, Sue or Darwin know, and we’ll cover for you. You focus on what’s important. Congratulations boss.” The call went dead.
Relief. As Cam pocketed his phone and headed back out Fergus’s front door, all he felt was overwhelming relief. That was one of the joys of living in a shifter town. Everyone accepted the importance of mates, everyone chipped in, helped out and did what they could for their neighbors. Oh, not all shifters were wonderful people. The Quincy family was a proven example of that, but for the most part, and in Arrowtown in particular, everyone pitched in to help and Cam had never been so thankful he’d picked Arrowtown as his home.
Walking outside, he stopped on the porch. There, standing on the grass was a massive animal with lethal looking horns that were at least four feet across. A giant head housed big dark eyes, barely visible under the long fringe that hung from between his ears. Tufts of the lawn were hanging out of his mouth as the bull kept up a slow chewing motion. The darkness of his fur was the same shade as Fergus’s hair. There was a gentle peacefulness about the animal, despite his size, and Cam felt his shoulders relax.
“I had to give him a sedative, just a short acting one so I could reset his spine,” Doc said gruffly. “Damn bastards broke his lower back, but Fergus probably didn’t realize it as he was all fired up with adrenalin. He shifted easily enough, and I didn’t let him stand up until I knew his bones had fused right. He should be fine. There might be a few lingering symptoms of concussion when he shifts back from the numerous head injuries he had, but I’m sure you know what to look out for.”
Cam nodded. He couldn’t take his eyes off the gentle giant. He knew he was going to get angry. He was probably going to be downright shitty once he thought about the extent of Fergus’s injuries and how easily he could have died. But for now, he just wanted to bask in the fact that Fergus was alive. “Thanks, Doc. I.., anything I can do for you…”
“Just make sure that young mate of yours keeps baking. He makes a custard cream to die for.” Doc stomped off, probably to go and find his own mate in the house. Cam guessed Mrs. Hooper was watching their twins.
Fergus, as a bull, was still watching him steadily, his big mouth scrunching around the grass he was eating, only his tail and ears flicking occasionally. Moving slowly, Cam went down the steps, and across the lawn, his lips twitching in a semblance of a smile. Fergus didn’t move, letting Cam walk right up to his chest.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Cam whispered, wrapping his arms loosely around the bull’s thick neck. “If you had died…” He couldn’t even complete the sentence. He just leaned his face on Fergus’s neck and breathed slowly and evenly. He felt the heavy weight of Fergus’s head resting over his shoulder, and in that moment, Cam felt true peace.
Chapter Ten
“I didn’t know there were jackals in town,” Fergus said, blowing on his nail polish. Cam was in the kitchen, cooking, and for some reason, the stubborn male wouldn’t let him help. So, deciding he needed a pick me up, Fergus perched on one of his bar stools, his foot up and set about painting his toenails. He’d already laid a base coat of pink and was now debating whether he needed any decorations. He frowned when Cam didn’t answer. “I thought jackals lived in human areas. They don’t like shifter towns.”
“That’s because for the most part jackals are mean, selfish, and lie through their eye teeth most of the time.” Cam hunted through the cupboards and pulled out a grater. “And you’re right, they weren’t locals, so your bottom drawer secrets are safe. Rocky traced their scent out of town, so it’s unlikely they’re coming back.”
The heat on Fergus’s cheekbones was intense. “You looked in my drawer?”
“The jackals were looking for something. I had to know you weren’t hiding government secrets in there.”
Fergus narrowed his eyes in Cam’s direction. The big man was scattering grated cheese over a large casserole. “Are you smirking?”
“Nope.” Cam lifted the casserole and slid it into the oven. Closing the oven door, he grabbed a dish cloth and wiped his hands. “Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes and for the record, I don’t smirk. I just might have been slightly happy about your non-governmental secret stash.”
“I think some things should remain private until after the claiming bites have been shared,” Fergus grumbled, but secretly he was pleased with Cam’s response. The big man had been so attentive, putting the money Sarah had brought over away in Fergus’s safe, dealing with Rocky and Mal, and the host of nosey neighbors who all wanted to know what was going on. Fergus’s window was fixed, with glass and not the plywood Cam had ordered, and at least a dozen people all patted his shoulder, while he was still in furry form, and wished him well.
All Fergus had done was stand like a lump on a log, on all four feet, quietly chewing, watching the business, not even flinching when the twins from two doors down jumped up and tried swinging on his horns. It was Cam who finally got everyone to leave, and Cam that waited patiently with a blanket while Fergus shifted back. The damn man didn’t even take a peek at my body when I shifted, but he looks in my drawers. What does that tell me about him as a person?
Not that it mattered what type of person Cam was. Fergus was subject to the mating pull as much as any shifter would be. His bull was a placid and quiet animal, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t been suffering with the hard on from hell for the past hour and a half. And Cam hadn’t touched him. Even when he wrapped Fergus in a blanket, he didn’t touch any bare skin.
“Did you want to watch a movie or something?” It seemed Cam had tidied up while Fergus was wool-gathering and was now looking at him expectantly.
“We don’t have to.” Fergus hoped his grin wasn’t showing his evil side. “Come, sit beside me. We’ve still got a lot to learn about each other and I’d far rather talk to you than drool over some stud on the television.”
Cam did sit, but not beside him as Fergus hoped. Instead, he pulled one of the bar stools to the end of the kitchen counter and sat there, one eye on the oven door and one eye on Fergus.
I can work with that. “So, tell me, I don’t know what type of animal you share your spirit with, and honestly, that’s fine, because as you know some people are a little embarrassed about their shifted size.” Cam’s jaw tightened and inside Fergus giggled. “But what do you think about sex and how does that relate to your shifter side? I mean, us bulls are built as the name implies, which can cause problems if you’re with a human, and I know wolf shifters have sex so often it’s a wonder their dicks don’t fall off. Cat shifters have that innate grace just like their furry selves, and my gods, have you ever had sex with a squirrel shifter? They just don’t shut up.”
A stuttered growling erupted from Cam’s throat and the man’s fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were white. Fergus decided to ignore all that tension and inspected his toenails. They were dry, which was handy for what he had planned next.
“Of course, not all animal halves translate into sexual behavior. I mean, take rabbits for example. Everyone jokes about ‘going at it like rabbits’ but rabbit shifters stay virgins until they meet their mate or bond with someone. And then you have to think about elephants, don’t you? I mean, can you imagine how big an elephant shifter’s cock would be?” Fergus held his hands out as though imagining it. “I mean, what if he was fated mates with a mouse. Oh, my gods, that could be trouble. And snake shifters. I mean, has anyone ever seen a snake’s penis? Aren’t they all like tucked up in their body somehow? Oh, that’s right, Darwin has seen one because of Simon, but I mean…”
“Can we talk about something else?” A sneaky side peek at Cam had Fergus wanting to howl with laughter. The man’s face was red, and he had a huge vein popping out the side of his temple.
“But it’s so interesting, don’t you think?” Fergus would not be deterred. “I mean, we are our animals, but we’re not, and you have to wonder how much influence our animal halves have over our human sex drives. Think about it. Bulls can rut until the cows come home, which is really funny because cows do come home if the bull is calling for them, and then, well, I don’t know what you are, but it’s not like there’s an asexual animal type, is there?”
“Fergus!” There was so much grit in that one word, Fergus pictured Cam spitting out gravel.
“You have to feel sorry for all the little shifters, well, don’t you?” Fergus mentally hummed a happy tune. “Think about them, with their tiny cute dicks, although maybe for them, there isn’t a correlation. I mean, maybe their dick sizes are proportional to the form they take at the time – like in their fur it’s teeny tiny, and then in their human form, if they’re a big bloke…”
“I’m a honey badger! A, don’t give a fuck, all animals fear us, honey badger!” Cam stood up so fast, his stool fell over.
Fergus wanted to bellow in triumph. His mate’s jeans were so tented it’s a wonder Cam could stand up straight. Looking up, Fergus flipped his hair out of his eyes and smiled sweetly. “Do they have a big dick? Only, I’ve never seen one.”
/~/~/~/~/
Cam’s jeans were so tight, they were threatening to tear. His skin was hot, his blood felt as though it was burning a trail through his veins and every time he inhaled he could smell Fergus’s musky arousal. Cam had been in that state for freaking hours.
But Cam had handled it. In fact, while he’d been making a casserole, he’d been mentally patting himself on the back for not plastering Fergus’s slender body over the kitchen counter and fucking into him like a man possessed. His mate had broken his back that afternoon and while Cam knew on an intellectual level, Doc wouldn’t have given him the okay for sex before leaving unless he was absolutely sure Fergus was fine, there was an emotional side of Cam that couldn’t stop seeing the image Fergus made as he went flying out of the window.
Fergus wanted to talk instead of watching a blissfully distracting movie, and Cam was fine with that because mates did need to learn about each other. But instead of asking him his favorite color, or about the bar, or anything considered a safe conversational topic for a first date situation, Fergus started talking about sex. Or more specifically dick size, and while Cam was sure he was being baited, he couldn’t help but respond.
So, he spoke up. Cam couldn’t help it. He told his deepest secret that no other living person knew. And what did Fergus do? Did he react with horror? Did he screw up his nose in disgust? No. All Fergus did was look at him with those amazing eyes and ask him if he had a big dick.
“What do you think?” He roared waving his hands in the direction of the front of his jeans where his dick size was implied even if it wasn’t blatantly on show. “This isn’t a sock puppet. I’ve been fucking horny for hours, and no, no, before you open those luscious lips of yours again, I am not fucking
you because in case you’d forgotten, you broke your back today.”
Fergus grinned, reaching behind himself, arching that spine Cam was so worried about and running his hands down it slowly. He tilted his head back, showing off a gorgeous long neck and made a satisfied moan. “My back feels fine to me. Maybe you should touch it and see for yourself if you’re so worried.”
“Fergus.” Cam gripped the sides of the kitchen counter, his head bowed as he tried to control himself. “I swear, if I touch you, I won’t be able to hold back. I’ll have your pants off and your ass over that counter so fast…”
“Like this?” Cam heard the sound of skin slap. Don’t look. Don’t look.
Cam couldn’t help himself. He looked. The loose sweats that Fergus put on after his shower were pooled around his ankles, a bright rosy red mark showing where Fergus had slapped his own butt cheek. His forearms were resting on the counter, and his torso was hunched over them, so his ass stuck out. And then he wiggled his hips – a saucy little side wiggle showing off sexy glute muscles.
“Or maybe, you had something like this in mind.” Fergus kicked off his sweats, turned and hopped up on the bench, lying back and spreading his legs.
Mother of God, help me. He’s wearing a butt plug. There was only so much torture a man could take and while Cam’s animal half did contribute to his nature – it was the nature of take what you want and to hell with possible consequences. Yes, the honey badger was thinking about food, but he also wanted a claimed mate. Cam’s hands reached out before he knew what he was doing, pulling on Fergus’s ankles until the man’s butt was just over the counter top. He fisted the leaking length splayed across Fergus’s belly.
“The counter is the perfect height, don’t you think?” Fergus had the audacity to wink. “Good thing you’re so tall.”