Snowfall
Arctic Station Bears, Book Three
Maeve Morrick
&
Amelie Hunt
Contents
Author’s Copyright
An Excerpt
Amelie Hunt Presents Series Listing
Get News
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Epilogue
Ready For More?
All The Amelie Hunt Presents Series
About Maeve Morrick
About Amelie Hunt
Amelie Hunt Presents
www.ameliehunt.com
© Maeve Morrick, 2015
May not be replicated or reproduced in any manner without express and written permission from the author. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to author and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
An Excerpt
He dropped his own line in the boat and came to sit by me. “Okay, easy,” he said. “Pull on the line, then reel it in a little. This is contest of wills. It’s life and death right now.”
I grinned. “I didn’t realize it was quite so serious. I wouldn’t worn different shoes.”
Actually, I would’ve been happy to be wearing nothing at all. Just sitting on the second-floor deck of the cabin, getting a little sun and having a cup of coffee sounded lovely at the moment. But Liam had been very excited about going out on the lake today, so here we were. Fighting a battle for life and death. And any minute now, I would meet my opponent.
The fish that broke the water couldn’t have been more than eight inches long. I was still pretty jazzed though. My first catch! I thought. I could get used to his whole alpha predator thing.
“We should throw him back,” Liam said.
I spun around to face him, cocking my head and lifting an eyebrow. “Are you kidding? He’s mine.”
Amelie Hunt Presents - Series Listing
Ophelia Bell’s Black Mountain Bears
Clawed
Bitten
Nailed
Vivian Woods’ Winter Pass Wolves
Howl
Growl
Prowl
Sennah Tates’ Sunset Glade Panthers
Spark
Ember
Blaze
Maeve Morricks’ Arctic Station Bears
Snowbound
Snowman
Snowfall
Cass Reynolds’ Emerald Isle Tigers
Scoundrel
Soldier
Scholar
Get News
Join The Hunt
Moonlight caresses your skin. Your bare feet crush leaves and grass as you run. Your heart hammers in your chest and your breath burns, but you can't stop. He's so close now.
A flash in the corner of your vision! The chase is drawing to a close. For a moment, you feel a prickle of fear. But the feeling is fleeting. After all, you're not the prey.
You're the hunter.
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This book is for the GH Crew
Thanks for the sanity.
Chapter One - Oliver
Oliver sat on the floor of the lab, bleeding from wounds received by Calder. The metal wall was cold against his back. His breath came in ragged gasps. Finally, he thought. I’ve finally done something right. He leaned back and closed his eyes.
“That’s not really true though, is it?” said a voice. Alanna!
His eyes snapped open. There she was. Sitting on the table where he’d freed her from Calder not an hour before.
“What? Why are you here? Where’s Calder?” he asked.
“Gone,” she said. “In the Company man’s ride.”
“And you came back for me?” Tears streamed down Ollie’s face.
“Well, you came for me. I figured it would be nice to return the favor.”
“I don’t deserve it,” he said. His voice cracked.
“No,” she said. “You don’t. You’ve been greedy, Ollie.”
Ollie lowered his face. He couldn’t bear to look at her. His chest was tight and there was a lump in his throat that he could not swallow. “It…wasn’t greed.”
“Of course it was.” Oliver’s head jerked up again. Every muscle in his body went rigid. His veins were filled with ice water every bit as cold as what he could find outside.
It was Calder. He sat alongside Alanna on the table. The same table that he’d strapped her to in order to inject her with the virus he’d concocted. His plan. And now here they were together.
Ah, I see, Ollie thought. I’m hallucinating. He leaned back against the wall.
“You showed me her photo and told me all about her the very first day I was thawed,” Calder said. “I didn’t even understand the words you said as you drew my blood, but I remembered them once I learned their meaning. When I suggested you adding her to the research team, you jumped at the chance. Because of greed.”
Ollie leaned forward with a jerk. “It wasn’t like that!” Every wound on his body punished him for the sudden, violent moment. He exhaled fire from his lungs and took another ragged breath that hurt just as much. “I…just wanted what was best for her.”
“You mean for yourself,” Alanna said. “How did I factor in exactly? You’d become famous when Calder released the virus through me? Then make a fortune with the cure?”
“It wasn’t about greed,” Ollie sobbed. “You’re not listening! It wasn’t like that…at first.”
“Of course it was, Ollie,” Calder said. “Admit it to yourself. Sure, you wanted what was best for our kind. To come out of the shadows. To suddenly be like everyone else. To be able to control our gift and celebrate it. But more than our day in the sun, you wanted your own.”
Ollie’s body was wracked with sobs. He stared at Alanna with wild eyes. “I did it for us, Allie! All of it. I’ve never stopped thinking about you. I know you so well. But then I…saw you with Liam, and I knew, I…” Ollie hid his face in his hands as he wept. “I knew you were fated and it was really over.”
“I don’t care about fame, Ollie,” Alanna said. “And I sure as hell don’t care about fortune. I care about love and loyalty. Liam has that to offer and more.” She shook her head. “You don’t know me as well as you thought. I don’t think you ever did.”
Ollie’s hands fell to his sides. He blinked in the bright fluorescent light. The table was empty. Allie was gone. Calder was gone. He took one last breath. I’m glad we settled that, he thought.
Donny
“Ow, God! Where did you learn how to do this?” Donny said. He jerked the needle and thread out of his skin and Viktor’s hand, prompting the wound to bleed. Donny sutured his own shoulder with steady hands.
“Sorry, Dr. Bragg,” Viktor said. “I’m still learning these things.”
“Hopefully you won’t have to deal with digging too many silver bullets out of your arm in the future. But just remember that these things don’t heal immediately like a normal bullet or a cut or a broken bone. You’ve got to be able to stitch yourself up. It could end up saving your life one day.
”
Viktor nodded. “Why do you think he only shot to wound?”
“Wish I knew. Ben said that he works for the Company. To be fair, we did almost take his face off.”
Viktor smiled. “We were on edge and he had a gun. Instinct took over.”
“Yeah, that’s pretty much how I see it, too. You don’t sneak up behind a bear and expect not to get your ass handed to you. He’s just lucky that he was using silver bullets. Otherwise things would have turned out a little differently.” Donny finished his suture.
“So what do we do now?” Viktor asked.
“They’re headed to Alert, apparently. Calder took Liam. We’ve got to follow.”
“How? The cutter ship has been disabled and we don’t have a means of flying there.”
“We’ll hike it.” Donny grinned.
Viktor’s mouth dropped open. “You’re joking. It’s four hundred miles of ice.”
“Well, if you’re gonna be a baby about it, we can use one of the wind sleds. The ice is pretty thick this time of year. It’ll be fun.”
“Those things that look like a sailboat on skis? I’ve never used one.”
“Well, there’s a first time for everything. Now c’mon. We’ve just got a minute to grab some supplies and get our asses in gear.”
“We’re just abandoning Arctic Station?”
“Liam needs us, and I’m not waiting around to figure out why the Company sent a guy to shoot us. And for them to send another one. So are you coming or not?”
Chapter Two - Liam
Liam woke to the smell of bacon. When he rolled out of bed, his shoulder ached for some reason. I must be getting old, he thought. Allie wasn’t in bed. He plopped down on the bed and laid on her pillow. Still warm. And her scent was more intoxicating than the bacon.
He got up and walked out of the bedroom. He loved the layout of his cabin in Nova Scotia. Giant windows on the landing overlooked a pristine lake and pine forest in the distance. The early morning sun shone through the trees, highlighting fish as they jumped out of the water. He’d have to take the boat out today. Maybe have some fish for dinner.
He walked downstairs and into the kitchen and there she was. Alanna. In a little apron and underwear. And nothing else. He growled as he felt his cock stir. The cheeks of her ass peeked out at him from across the room, beckoning him over. Who was he to argue with an invitation like that? Plus, there was bacon.
He walked up behind her and put an arm around her. His pulse quickened as he brushed her hair to the side and kissed the smooth skin of her neck.
“Mmm. Good morning, lazy,” she said. “Breakfast will be ready in just a few.” She pressed her ass against his cock and it throbbed. “Well. Good morning to you, too.”
He’d never wanted anyone so badly in his life, and every new day reminded him of that. He laid his strong hand over hers, taking the pan of sizzling bacon and moving it to a cold back burner. With the other arm, he spun her around to face him.
Allie’s hazel eyes glittered as she smiled up at him. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. She was his and he was so completely hers. When their tongues touched, it was electric. Liam put his hands under her ass and lifted her up onto the counter. She almost instinctively wrapped her legs around him. Her chest was flushed beneath her apron as Liam tugged on the tie in the back that held it tightly to her skin and pulled it over her head.
Liam slid his hands across her thighs, pushing her legs apart and pulling her to the edge of the counter. Liam knelt between her open thighs, caressing the length of her legs, causing her to sigh happily when he kissed her belly down to the waist of her panties. Gooseflesh rose on her thighs, either from the cool countertop or Liam’s proximity to her sex. She was very wet. The scent of her made him dizzy and caused his pulse to thunder in his ears. His cock issued commands that he fought to ignore.
Liam sighed deeply and looked up at Allie’s piercing hazel eyes. “God, you smell so good, Allie,” he said softly. He planted a row of soft kisses on each of her thighs, ending each row with a soft lick at the apex. He wanted to taste her. To revel in her. He pressed his mouth against her panties. The thin scrap of fabric did nothing to deter him from tasting her, and as he pressed his tongue against the delicate material, he briefly considered that the heat of her sex might singe off his facial hair. He dragged his tongue from the bottom of her cleft all the way up and over her clit. Then he pulled her panties to the side, exposing her, and did it again. Alanna threw her head back and moaned.
“Liam!” She was panting. “Don’t you want breakfast?” She tried to halt him by straightening up slightly and he replied by gently sucking on her clit while stroking the entrance to her pussy with one finger.
“This is all I need,” Liam growled, punctuating each word with a quick lick of her clit. “It’s my favorite.”
The way she pressed her hips into his face and ran her hands through his hair, Liam was pretty certain that she wasn’t keen on him stopping anyway. Her hands cupped her breasts and pulled gently on her nipples. Liam slid one finger inside her, alternating between using the tip to gently stroke her G-spot, and sliding his finger out and up over her clit. In the fog of contented pleasure settling over his brain as he devoured her, he suddenly realized she was going to cum faster than he wanted. It felt suddenly selfish, but he knew that he wanted to have his cock inside her when it happened. He wanted to hear her gasping breath against his neck and feel her legs wrapped around him.
Liam. Please. I need you. He heard Alanna’s voice in his head.
He wasn’t going to argue. He’d never wanted anyone or anything so badly in his life.
Liam got to his feet, his thick cock mere inches from her opening. Alanna pulled her hips closer to him.
They kissed ferociously as he slid inside. Her gaze was wild. He could only imagine his own. Her breathing was fast. His heart was a jackhammer and so was his cock. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m cumming for you,” she said. Every word was a gasp.
I’m coming for you. Her voice in his head, but from far away.
Liam opened his eyes.
Chapter Three - Calder
Calder closed his eyes and slid the needle into his skin. The contents were meant for Alanna, but it didn’t matter. There was enough left. He closed his eyes. His blood boiled with this new addition. He was already a shifter. Infection was instantaneous.
He doubled over in pain.
At his feet, the staff of the Alert research base was on their knees. Their eyes were wide and then shook and sobbed as they watched him.
Calder understood their reaction. He’d had to kill some of the soldiers. They were easy prey compared to his old life. Even less dangerous than the bears. He didn’t mean them harm, really. He just needed to change them.
The pain subsided. Calder grasped the head of one of the remaining soldiers as scientists and assistants looked on in horror. The woman’s eyes were steel and her jaw set as she stared at Calder defiantly. Calder stoked her cheek and she jerked away from him, her face contorting into a twisted mask. The same mask he saw on the faces of the men who took his mate.
He extended his finger. Small bones snapped and reshaped and suddenly his hand was a massive cat’s paw. He extended his claws.
“You want to pick on someone, pick on someone who could kill you,” said a voice from behind him.
Calder smiled and turned around, but did not release the woman. “Liam,” Calder said, “I was getting worried.”
Liam was bound on the ground. His shoulder bled from a wound that would not heal while the silver bullet was still in his shoulder. He bent and contorted his body trying to approach, but Calder wasn’t worried. Even if Liam was an alpha, if he couldn’t shift, he was just a man.
“You should be thrilled, Liam. I am about to create a new society. People like you will study it forever. Sadly, you might not be around to collaborate with them.”
Liam growled, deep and rumbling. “Go fuck yoursel
f. Take this bullet out of my shoulder and untie me. Let’s find out,” Liam said.
“Not just yet. Our guests haven’t arrived.” He placed his claw against his captive’s face. “But we might as well get the party started.” He slid his claw gently down the woman’s cheek, drawing the thinnest line of blood.
She started to change almost immediately. Beautiful, Calder thought. As she writhed and moaned, her bones cracked and reformed. Her skin grew taut in places, loose in others. Fur grew from her skin. Claws sprung from fingertips that had once ended with neatly trimmed nails. She looked up at Calder.
“Hello my dear,” Calder said. “You are a real beauty.” Now, kick the man behind me.
She was graceful and fast as she crossed the floor and kicked Liam with her powerful leg in mere moments. Liam coughed and fought for breath. The woman roared and screamed at him.
“She knows I am more alpha than you,” Liam. “She will obey me. And soon she will bring your mate right to me.” Calder smiled, as if remembering the punchline to a joke. “But she’ll need help.”
Calder turned to the cowering group of people on the floor in front of him. “Who’s next?”
Alanna
Ben circled the base as Parker worked on closing the wound in his leg. Very neighborly of him, I thought. Especially considering that Parker had been the one to put a silver bullet in Ben in the first place.
This helicopter was much more quiet than the one Ben and I had taken from Alert. We were actually able to talk to each other without the need for headsets.
Snowfall (Arctic Station Bears Book 3) Page 1