Shifted Plans

by Brandy Walker

  “Don’t mind Tess. She’s just a little angry with men at the moment. She caught her boyfriend cheating on her. Walked into one of the practice rooms in the music department and found him banging his friend, Steve. Both guys, surprised at the interruption, fell forward, knocked over the music stands, and ended up making so much noise a group of kids coming in the room, rushed over and saw them. She’s been angry and humiliated ever since.”

  “Damn, I can’t even imagine. How long ago did it happen?”

  “Last week, soon after she moved in. I guess he didn’t think she would be here so early. Thought he could have his boyfriend without her finding out.”

  Declan cringed at the callousness. College guys were assholes.

  Technically speaking, you’re a college guy, too, Weller. “I’m gonna get changed. Why don’t you heat us up some more pizza and find another movie.”

  “Aye, aye, captain.” She saluted then walked off, laughing.

  “Damn right.” He spun, heading to the bathroom before she could retaliate.

  ***

  Avery yawned, tilting her head back to get a look at Declan. The frown lines around his mouth gone. He snored softly beneath her ear, having fallen asleep halfway through the third movie. Going on midnight, she hated to see him go, so she let him sleep, staying snuggled up against his chest. The steady beat of his heart and deep even breathing lulled her, making her feel secure in her position with him.

  They may have only just met, but she was comfortable with him, the tug of being mates going a long way to soothing any awkwardness they should be feeling. Even though they were mates, it didn’t mean they would fall in love. But that was exactly what she thought could happen.

  A loud thump from downstairs made her frown. So much for peace and quiet.

  Her phone buzzed and lit up with a text message. She debated whether she should get it or not. If she moved, she chanced waking Declan up, and then he might feel obligated to leave. She didn’t want that to happen, not ready to let him go for the night. They never got around to talking about schedules or work or when they would see each other again.

  Another message came in, lighting up the darkened screen again, quickly followed by another text. Uh-oh. Someone really wanted to get hold of her.

  As carefully as she could, she reached for the phone, but it lay just out of reach. Gently, she pushed off Declan and sat up. He immediately awakened, eyes alert and looking around as if he didn’t know where he was. When his gaze finally landed on her, he settled down.

  “Hey.” He tried to pull her back with him.

  “Hey, yourself. Give me a sec.” She reached for the phone and checked the insistent messages. All from Reese. She was at Chugs, and Nik, the giant rat, had told her everything that had happened. She shot her friend a text, telling her she would call later and not to worry, things were okay.

  Putting the phone down, she turned her attention to Declan but didn’t crawl into his arms like she wanted. His hair was sleep mussed. Stubble shadowed his jaw. His eyes were narrowed, but she could still see the glow.

  “What’s on your mind, Avery?” he rumbled.

  “It’s late. You probably want to get home, don’t you?”

  He studied her for a long second before drawing her toward him. “I am home.” He kissed her deeply, their tongues tangling, mating.

  Pulling away, she stood, holding out her hand. It was a silent question—one she didn’t need to say out loud. If he took her hand and followed her to bed, he would be staying. He would be choosing to be with her. Forever.

  Declan grinned and, without a word, laid his palm onto hers.

  ~A Letter From Brandy Walker~

  Shifter U is the University I wish existed. Shifters of all types coming together in one place. The bars, the restaurants, the frat parties. There is so much that can go on, so many things that can happen.

  I hope you enjoy this peek into my college world. With any luck it will get bigger and bigger.

  I would love to hear from you. You can email me at brandy@brandywalker.net

  Sign up for the Decadent Publishing Newsletter here and never miss stories like:

  Coming Soon!

  Book 6 in the ROAR Series

  Tempting Her Tiger by Virginia Cavanaugh

  Chapter One

  Butterflies tumbled in Stacia Carter’s belly. She strode into the room, desperate to exude a confidence she didn’t feel. Shyness had always been her greatest handicap. Biology class wasn’t the cause though. She excelled in her studies—always had. The cause of her distress came from one male wrapped in a very sexy package. Jordan Bayne. Jordan talked with friends on one side of the room, and it was hard to tear her gaze from him—her first real look in over a year. He’d only become better looking. His dark-blond hair was longer than before and swept across his broad shoulders. The henley shirt he wore hugged his biceps and upper chest, falling loose around his lean waist.

  They’d known each other all her life. He was her brother’s best friend. Of course, their relationship relegated her to the little sister category. A category she couldn’t wait to escape, and this was her chance. Seth had left to go to a division one college on a full scholarship. Jordan had always worried more about sports than his studies, so for the first time, the two best friends were separated. Stacia only hoped Jordan seeing her without her brother around would help get her out of the kid sister zone. With effort, she looked away from his powerful back muscles and focused on where she was going. It wouldn’t do any good for her to trip up the steps to her seat. Not exactly attractive behavior. She’d find the right time to talk to him—preferably without an audience.

  Stacia took her seat and rummaged through her bag for a spiral and a pen. Moving away from her family hadn’t been the easiest thing to do, but she didn’t dare let any more time pass without at least attempting to snare Jordan’s affection. He’d already been at college for a year. A whole year surrounded by other females. The thought made her grind her teeth.

  Talking her parents into the New Mexico Junior College hadn’t been easy either. They had big hopes of Stacia attending an Ivy League school. She had the grades, but what she wanted she wouldn’t find at Harvard. It had been difficult to convince them because she had to find the right balance of ready to leave but not wanting to go big yet. They finally relented when she promised to transfer to a division one college after a few semesters.

  A familiar male laugh rose above the teetering of other conversations in the room. Her gaze snapped to him. An auburn-headed female laughed beside him. Stacia squeezed the pen, the crack of breaking plastic filling her ears.

  The woman stood too close, her large breasts grazing against his arm. Stacia took in a calming breath. She had no right to be jealous of the woman who wore way too much eyeliner. Jordan wasn’t hers, no matter how bad she wished he was.

  This time, she couldn’t stop staring at the group below her. She wondered who the bimbo was. Jordan assumed a flirty expression and said something, which had her laughing again. Could she be his girlfriend? She would definitely complicate things. If she was his potential mate…. No, she wouldn’t go there. The idea left her heartsick. But her brother hadn’t said anything about Jordan settling down, so with any luck, the chick was only hopeful of becoming involved.

  And what if Jordan was attracted to this female? Stacia couldn’t be more the opposite in looks. She’d always wanted curves and at least moderate breasts, but unfortunately, it never happened. Over the years, she’d become comfortable with her barely B cup and tried to eat like crazy to keep her hipbones from showing.

  Her gaze wandered to him again, and her pulse raced. She’d harbored a crush on him since she was thirteen. But he’d never shown any interest in her in a sexual way. At least not any way she’d seen. His shoulder muscles rippled. Tension could be seen in the rest of his body. He turned, fixing his stare on her. A flash of yellow in his irises betrayed his rush of emotion. It was there and gone, leaving his blue eyes to shine wi
th mirth. A smile spread across his face and he broke away from the group making his way toward her.

  His movements were determined and quick. She sucked in a breath, about to issue a greeting, but she let out a yelp when he gripped her arms and pulled her out of her chair and into his embrace. Her feet left the floor. The bear hug was more like something her brother would do. He placed her back on her feet and her heart constricted.

  “What are you doing here, Stacia?”

  She pushed her hair away from her face then looked up to meet his gaze. “Going to school.”

  He rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. How did you convince your parents to cut the cord?”

  It was her turn to roll her eyes. If he looked at her like the girl who hid behind her mother’s skirt, it would make her job even harder. But being the only survivor of her litter had caused her family to be very overprotective. As she’d gotten older, the excessive coddling had become annoying. “You make it sound worse than it really is.”

  He lifted an arched brow.

  Okay, so maybe he didn’t. “It doesn’t matter. I’m here, and I don’t have them guiding my every move anymore.”

  “Good morning, class. If you’ll take your seats, we can get started.” A pudgy, slightly balding man stood next to a desk laden with papers. His blue tie had already been loosened, and the day had only begun.

  Jordan ran his hand over her head and down her spine. “I’ll talk to you after class.”

  She didn’t even get to say a parting word. He made his way quickly to his seat in the midst of the group he’d been talking to. It was hard not to hope his caress meant more than pride affection. She shook off the longing filling her and reclaimed her seat, opening her spiral to take notes.

  The professor launched into the lecture. The lights dimmed and he turned on a PowerPoint. She scratched the pen across her paper, and a black smear came out instead of her normal flowing script. Her fingers were an inky black mess. She reached into her bag—teeth clenched—to retrieve a tissue.

  Her emotions were running too high, and she needed to get a grip. But it was hard to do when all she could think about was the male seated below her and to her left. Good thing she’d already taken biology because she wasn’t paying very much attention.

  Jordan had a hard time concentrating on the lecture. It had been awhile since he’d seen Stacia. It made him miss home. He liked being out on his own, but the feeling he experienced when among his pride couldn’t be replaced.

  He glanced over his shoulder at Stacia two rows behind him. When had she gotten so beautiful? Her strawberry-blonde hair was shorter than it used to be. She wore it arranged in a stylish cut framing her face. Her light green eyes were bright and full of life. Frowning, he focused his attention on the blank paper sitting in front of him. She’d probably always been beautiful, and it had taken him until now to notice, and he shouldn’t be noticing now. She was Seth’s sister, which made her off limits.

  The feel of her body pressed to his entered his mind. Damn, he shouldn’t have hugged her. What had been an innocent sign of pride affection had stirred his body. It shouldn’t have. He shifted in his seat and tried to ignore the way his cock pulsed behind his zipper.

  Teeth clenched, he pushed the thought away and tried hard to concentrate on what was being said. It worked for a few minutes. At least his paper was no longer blank. He’d managed to scrawl a few sentences down before his thoughts wandered—directly to her. Her presence confused him the more he thought about it. Why would she come here? He knew she had excelled in school, like her brother. So, if she was trying to get away from her controlling parents, why choose a school only an hour and a half away from them? If she’d wanted to get away, she could have gone somewhere in the northeast.

  “Are you all right?”

  The whispered question had Jordan glancing at Serena who sat next him. “Yeah. Fine,” he whispered.

  Serena should be the one his lusty thoughts centered on. She clearly wanted to have something to do with him, and he had to admit she had a nice body. Normally, he would’ve already made a move in her direction, but the hit-it-and-quit-it game at college had already started losing its appeal.

  Yeah, when he got here, he’d been a little bit of a man whore. What teenage idiot free of his parents and pride didn’t act out? The thought of Stacia experimenting with sex and multiple partners made him growl low.

  Serena gave a small jerk in her seat. Good thing he was surrounded by shifters. Others near them probably wouldn’t have heard his slip.

  Maybe he should have left the party at The Pit last night earlier and gotten more sleep because he was definitely not his normal self this morning. He knew how to control his inner animal and his libido. But in less than an hour, he’d made two huge mistakes. Was it only a coincidence both mistakes were centered on thoughts of the tigress who sat behind him?

  He shouldn’t be thinking about her in a sexual way, regardless of the reason. Stacia and sexual fantasies didn’t belong in the same sentence. As for her sex life, well, he could definitely do something to keep her safe. If the guy wasn’t right, he’d make sure they didn’t get close enough to her to do anything more than talk. Talking to her might even prove difficult. She’d always been so shy.

  The lights became brighter, and Jordan gave himself a slight mental shake to clear his thoughts.

  “Class dismissed. I’ll see all of you on Wednesday,” the professor called out, turning off the projector.

  People stood up, and a low murmuring built into full voice conversations. People gathered their stuff and made for the exit.

  Jordan grabbed his backpack and shoved the paper he’d taken very few notes on inside. When he straightened, he was met with Serena’s quizzical look.

  “It’s nothing,” he mumbled, panning the room, looking for his new obsession. He spotted her near the door. Apparently, she didn’t want to waste any time getting to her next class. Did she have another class this soon? He’d have to get a copy of her schedule. The thought made him grind his teeth. He was at war with himself. He wasn’t her keeper, but at the same time, she was his best friend’s sister. And if Seth happened to be away from the pride and Jordan’s sister was around, he’d expect Seth to watch out for her. So, he’d do the same. And he damn sure would stop lusting after her while he did it.

  Once outside, he called out to her. “Stacia, wait up.”

  Her spine stiffened and she stopped forward movement, turning slowly to face him. She gave him a shy smile and he closed the distance between them. “Hey.”

  The green shirt she wore hugged her pert breasts and accentuated her lean waist. Wow, he really needed to stop noticing these things. “Do you have another class to get to right now?”

  She hitched the strap of her bag a little higher on her shoulder. “Actually, I do. Can we maybe talk later?”

  Black spots decorated her hand. “Pen bust?”

  Her face and neck started to take on a red tint. “Yeah. Listen, I really need to go.”

  “I’ll walk with you. I have an hour before my next class.” He fell into step beside her. “So, why did you choose NMJC?”

  “It’s a good school.”

  “Yeah, it is. But I’m betting, like Seth, you could have gone anywhere.” A breeze floated past them, stirring her hair and bringing her scent into his nose. She smelled so good. Like flowers and sunshine. He remembered the silken feel of her hair when he’d touched it in the classroom. His dick gave a slight pulse of approval. What the hell? He needed to stop that shit. In no world could he fuck her and it be okay.

  “I wanted to get out of Portales, but I wasn’t ready to go too far from home. I thought it would be nice to take it slow and ease into the world. Besides, at least ten people from our pride go here.”

  She had a point. And she’d always been on the shy side, so he could see why a smaller college would appeal to her. “Well, I’m glad you’re here.”

  She smiled.

  “Seth will be h
appy, knowing I can watch out for you.”

  “I better get inside.” Her smile faded. “Your friend is headed this way.”

  Jordan glanced over his shoulder and Serena closed the distance between them. He was a little shocked when she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the mouth then turned to smile at Stacia.

  “Hi, I’m Serena.”

  “I’m Stacia,” she said, raising an eyebrow. “And I better go before I’m late.”

  He shook off the arm Serena’d draped across his shoulders and reached out to stop Stacia. “Meet up with us in the cafeteria for dinner tonight. I’ll introduce you to my friends.”

  She gave a nod then turned and walked inside the building. Jordan pivoted and caught Serena staring at him like he’d grown two heads. Mixed feelings spun inside him like a tornado. The kiss thing had been a dick move—a claiming move. But one thing was for sure, Serena didn’t have any claim on him.

  “Don’t ever pull shit like that again, Serena.”

  “So, you like the new meat?” Jealousy laced her words.

  “She’s my best friend’s sister.” Leaving her, Jordan started in the direction of the dorms, but he didn’t miss her red flush. Did she feel ashamed? Somehow, he doubted it. She was probably more pissed and embarrassed. There sure as hell wouldn’t be anything happening between the two of them.

  His phone vibrated in his pocket. He sighed and pulled it free, hoping it wasn’t Serena. Surely she knew he wasn’t happy with her. If not, he would make it clearer. An incoming text message waited to be read.

  Seth: WRUD?

  Jordan: Nothing. Just got out of class. U?

  Seth: Gonna grub. I heard my sister is there. Ran into her yet?

  Jordan grimaced.

  Jordan: Yeah. She’s in my 1st class

  Seth: Cool. Then I can count on you to watch out for her

  He let his head fall forward—guilt for lusting after Stacia gripped him. Seth knew how best friends were supposed to be there for each other. Jordan ground his teeth. He could do this. He could stand in as a big brother for her. She needed someone to do this. Her whole life she’d been protected by her family, and since they weren’t here, Jordan damn sure would be.