Shifters in the Snow: Bundle of Joy: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Winter Wolves, Merry Bears, and Holiday Spirits

by J. K Harper

  “Everyone wants to tell me what to do,” he muttered. “Momma and Shitball and look what happened to them. Bye-bye, Momma. Bye-bye, Shitball.”

  When she found him, he was covered in mud and grunting while digging a hole. She ducked behind a tree and watched him as he picked up the sticks he had spent hours sharpening and positioned them in the hole.

  A snare, you motherfucker. Really? Leah let him finish, scanning the area to make sure he didn’t have any weapons. He placed a looped cord in the hole and wrapped it around a large tree before trying to camouflage the snare with random brush. Pathetic.

  Dennison sat down on a rock to catch his breath and Leah saw an opportunity to fuck with him. She shifted quietly and snuck up until she was directly behind him. Her roar was so powerful it made his hair quiver. He turned in horror and immediately started to run. Leah tripped him with her paw and stood over him, dripping drool onto his chest as she roared again. She could have swiped her claws across his neck, ending this once and for all, but she wasn’t a killer. He would have deserved a nice, painful demise, but Leah did not have it in her. She released her paw off his chest and let him run again. This cat and mouse game was invigorating. She would let him think he had escaped under a rock only to swat at the top of his head when he surfaced to see if the coast was clear. She could do this all day.

  He ran higher up the mountain with speed that shocked her. Adrenaline gives mere mortals the strength of superheroes sometimes. Leah bounced along behind him, purring each time he slipped and fell back down a few feet. Dennison’s fear had distracted him from the fact that he had a hunting knife strapped under his pant leg. When it finally clicked in his memory, his hand frantically pulled it from the sheath. Dennison turned the blade towards her with a snarl. Leah wanted to shift back to human form and ask him if he actually thought his little knife could beat her claws. She decided to let him chase her up the hill. Her true desire involved knocking him down once they'd reached the top. She wondered if he would roll forward like a ball or horizontally like a freefalling log.

  Leah would let him get close to boost his esteem before zipping away in a flash. When she reached the top of the ridge, she waited patiently for him to catch up to her, searching the mountainside for the perfect path for his downward trip. Just as he pulled himself to the top and as Leah got ready to pounce, a rock flew out of nowhere and hit him in the shoulder. Then another came flying and bounced off his back, and another, and another.

  “Run, panther!” Leah recognized Tyler’s voice coming from below.

  Shit. She had been careless. This chase should have ended soon after it started. Now the boys were in danger. They didn't look afraid, though. With their slingshots loaded and ready, they looked like a misfit army willing to defend a maiden.

  “Fucking kids! Get out of here or I’ll gut you!” Dennison snarled and waved his knife in the air. The boys responded with another flurry of rocks, hitting their target each time.

  Bobby had answered the call of nature and stepped behind a tree. The yelling sent him running up the hill, and his eyes saw her immediately. Leah needed to end this and get the lunatic far from the children. She turned and started running down the mountain, hoping Dennison would trip and fall of his own accord. He didn’t. Bobby corralled the boys to one side. They gasped as Leah passed, whispering for the panther to run faster. Dennison ignored them, blinded by his desire to hurt her. Bobby wasn’t far behind; free to fight now that the boys were safe.

  Leah made a beeline for her clothes. It was a wise choice as it brought Dennison in direct contact with his snare. The sharpened twigs collapsed under him as he wrestled to free his leg from the constricting cord. Each time he fought, the cord dug in deeper and deeper. He swiped at the tightening loop with his knife, causing a severe gash on his leg. Dennison was still writhing against the snare when Bobby reached him.

  “I warned you,” Bobby said as he stepped on the hand holding the knife and removed the weapon. “Now look at the mess you’re in.”

  “Fuck you! And that fucking cat and those fucking kids!”

  Bobby grabbed the cord and gave it another tug, causing Dennison to scream in agony. “Those are my fucking kids, you piece of shit.”

  He would have beaten him to a pulp, but Bobby looked up to see the boys standing in awe. They didn’t need any more violence in their lives. He reached into his pocket, pulled out the satellite phone, and instructed them to call the Mistletoe Hollow Police Department. Leah appeared fully clothed and used a bandana to apply pressure to Dennison’s leg wound.

  As Bobby attempted to untie the cord, he leaned in towards Dennison and growled, “And that was my panther! If I see you in these parts again, I will rip you apart. They will never find your body. Just try me, motherfucker.”

  Leah had never seen this side of him and she was beyond impressed. Before the police arrived, she also offered Dennison some advice of her own.

  “You should be careful about hunting in these parts,” she instructed. “The tables may get turned when you least expect it. Someone higher on the food chain may decide your head would look nice above their mantel, right next to the bass they caught last summer. Remember, there’s nothing more dangerous than an angry pussy.”

  With that, she leaned in a released a soft, threatening growl in his ear while tugging hard on the snare herself. His eyes grew wide, and his body shook with fear.

  “Well, God damn. Did you shit yourself?” She moved away from him, contorting her face with disgust. “I expected a slightly stronger constitution from someone with so much bravado, but I guess when you’re full of shit, it always finds a way out.”

  As soon as the police had Dennison cuffed and loaded into an ambulance, she tried to apologize to Bobby for the trouble. He wouldn’t hear of it.

  “He had to be stopped. Who knows how many times he’d come up here to hurt someone we know.”

  “But the boys. I … I wasn’t thinking. I should have led him somewhere else.”

  “Are you kidding? Look at them,” he said, pointing at the group. “They feel invincible.”

  Leah watched them re-enacting every move. It was hard for her not to admit she had been there with them.

  “Leah, guess what?” Tyler asked, jumping up and down with excitement.

  “What?”

  “The panther smiled at me.”

  “She did? Were you scared?”

  He shook his head vigorously. “I remembered you saying they were nice. And you know what else?”

  “What?”

  He looked around and motioned for her to lean in closer. “Bobby said we were his kids … and he said a bad word, but first he said we were his kids. He loves us.”

  “Of course he does. You are an awfully lovable bunch. Where do you think the panther is now?”

  “Probably making lunch for her panther family,” he said as if it was common knowledge.

  “Where else would she be? Makes total sense to me.”

  He skipped off and joined the others who were now engrossed in re-enactments that were decidedly more fantastic than the actual event itself. They were energized like nothing she’d never seen before. They had become heroes.

  Bobby walked over to Leah and placed his hand in her pocket. “Trying to cop a feel?” she asked.

  “I’m just delivering your invite. Sorry it’s tattered. It’s the only deck Sally had in her back office.”

  Leah pulled out and Ace of Hearts playing card with “Suck and Blow Re-Match” written on one side. “Oh that’s not forward at all,” she said with a laugh.

  "Get your mind out of the gutter. I just want to play a game," Bobby teased.

  “When are we doing this?”

  He motioned for her to flip the card over. "Ahh, okay. Tomorrow at 5 in the fire watch tower?"

  “I don’t have a cabin here. The tower is free tomorrow.”

  “You could have come to my place,” she said, flicking the card between her fingers.

  “I prefer neu
tral territory for this rematch.”

  “Fair enough. Should I bring anything?”

  “Nope. Sally is preparing a basket for us.”

  “I’m impressed,” she said, trying not to smile but failing.

  He leaned in and gave her waist a gentle squeeze. “I’m just getting started.”

  Leah took the time to give each boy a big hug during the goodbyes. She promised to join Bobby for their Christmas performance and reminded them she would always welcome them in Mistletoe Hollow. She tried to drive away quickly so they wouldn’t catch her crying. Sissy. Leah couldn’t help herself. She missed them already.

  Chapter 6

  She purchased a new outfit for the date. Every inch of her body had been softened with lotion and readied for the rematch. I’ll show you a game of Suck and Blow you won’t forget. She saw the fire tower in the distance as she drove and wanted to wave out the sunroof in case Bobby was watching. He was and nervously zipped around the small area making sure everything was in place. Leah parked under the tower and realized she would have to climb up the ladder.

  “Rapunzel, let down your hair,” she called out.

  He leaned over the railing and smiled at her. “Use the safety harness.”

  “No elevator?”

  “I promise it will be worth it.”

  “It better be,” she sighed. She was tempted to shift and just use her claws to climb up the side, but that would ruin her outfit.

  When she reached the deck, Bobby was waiting for her with cat ears on his head. Leah burst into laughter when she saw him.

  “You’re trying to make the crazy cat lady adopt you?”

  “Bingo. Come inside. Let me take your coat.”

  Removing the bulky jacket revealed the new pair of pink long underwear she had purchased for the occasion. She spun around for him to see the easy-access buttons on the back. “I believe you thought this was a good look for me.”

  “You would be correct,” he said, reaching for the buttons.

  She playfully smacked his hands away. “Patience. The plan is for you to have this set and I'll keep the pair I borrowed from you."

  “Those won’t fit me,” he said, eyeing her up and down.

  “I just assumed you would place them in bed next to you as a surrogate Leah.”

  “Don’t give me any ideas. I could tape a picture of your face to the pillow and –”

  “—Eww! Forget I brought it up. Show me what you’ve done to the place.”

  He swept his arm ahead of him towards the faux fireplace lit up by LED flames and the picnic spread displayed on a blanket in front of it. “For Madame.”

  “Wow! This is perfect.”

  “I thought a bear rug would be sexier, but then I realized that would be a bad idea when trying to woo a shifter.”

  “Wise choice to go with the blanket.”

  “Not just a pretty face,” he said, pointing at his head. “Sometimes I’m smart too.”

  “And wonderful,” she said, reaching out and hugging him tightly. “Thank you for being you.”

  "I've wanted to hold you close without interruption for so long." He wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her neck.

  “These past few days with you and those beautiful kids … I can’t explain what I’m feeling right now.”

  "You had the same effect on them. The boys could not stop talking about you. I have some homemade gifts. They insisted we make these." He grabbed her hand and led her to the picnic blanket. "Look inside," he said, placing a small box in her lap.

  He stared as a smile grew on her face. “No way, pet rocks! I love them!”

  “The convenience store only had three colors of permanent markers, but I was impressed with their artwork.”

  She held one up that had a cat with whiskers. “Is this the smiling panther?”

  “Probably,” he laughed. “Tyler’s story changed on the drive home. He says you winked at him too.”

  “I just love that kid.”

  Bobby got quiet and watched her for a few moments. “I’ve been thinking about what you said … how we have free time to spare. I really am going to become a foster parent. I’ve already started the application process.”

  “Really? That is the best news you could ever tell me. Can you come up every weekend?”

  “Yes and – maybe every evening. I’m thinking about buying a cabin up here as well. It’s not a very long commute to Oak Grove.”

  He waited for her to respond verbally, but was surprised when she tackled him, straddling his hips and covering his face with kisses. Bobby laughed hysterically and pulled her against his chest. He stealthily let one of his hands slide down inside the buttoned flap and brushed it against her skin.

  “You’re not wearing any underwear!”

  “I didn’t think it would be necessary," she said, pushing herself up, so her hips were straddling his again. “This is my slingshot moment. I’m going for the bullseye.”

  He laughed as she bent down to kiss him.

  “I love the way your hair smells,” he said, trying to tangle it around his face.

  “Better than the funk, right?”

  “I’m not going to lie.”

  He stroked her cheek softly with his hand and gently tasted her lips. Her mouth was soft and sweet and eagerly welcomed his warm tongue. Each contact sent chills throughout her body. As he continued kissing her, he would frequently pause just to look at her face.

  “You’re beautiful. I could stare at you all day,” he whispered.

  She tried to push herself up but had to wrestle with him to break free. "I need your shirt off," she said, tugging at the flannel before working her way through the buttons. She ran her nails along his bare chest, taking in each muscle.

  Leah bent down to kiss him again, but bypassed his mouth and started working her way from his collarbone down. When she reached his belly button and playfully circled it with her tongue, he squirmed with delight and pulled her back, so she was straddling him again.

  “Now you take your top off,” Bobby said as he reached up and pawed at the hard nipples poking through the fabric.

  “No bra either,” she whispered as she pulled the shirt over her head.

  He gasped at the sight of her dark hair cascading around her full breasts and rosy nipples. Leah felt her pussy getting hotter and wetter as Bobby reached up and gently squeezed her flesh. She rocked her hips against his, rubbing her crotch against the cock that had grown rock hard beneath her.

  “Turn around,” he said. Leah looked behind her, which made him laugh aloud. “No, stand up, turn around, and sit back down … over my face.” She hesitated, reaching up to feel the heat growing in her face as she blushed. “You can’t be nervous now. Do it.”

  She obliged and then started to stand again, thinking the long underwear might be in his way. He stopped her, pulling her hips close and yanking on the back flap until her pussy was exposed and within reach of his tongue. He used the side fabric to his advantage, pulling it tightly to control her body. Bobby’s mouth watered as he stared at the curvy ass positioned above him. He kissed one cheek and then the other before lightly running his tongue along the delicious pink sweetness waiting for his mouth.

  Leah’s moans filled the air as she started to wiggle her hips and arch her back. Her hair reached down to her waist and framed her perfect ass. He stroked her curls and lightly ran his hands down her back, stopping at the curviest part of her body. He gently gripped and spread her cheeks apart, giving his tongue easier access to her pussy. She exhaled loudly as he probed deeper, encouraging her excitement to coat his chin.

  Leah loved the contrast of his grip over the long underwear versus his mouth against her bare flesh. His tongue felt like silk against her skin. Her body quivered with every pass. His fingers dug firmly into her rear as his breathing took on an animalistic tone. Bobby dug his face in as deeply as possible, grinding his tongue against her as her legs shook from the pleasure. Leah reached behind and presse
d his head against her even harder. She began riding his face with a quickened pace, smacking hard against his cheeks as she continued grinding herself into ecstasy. Leah’s body trembled as she released a scream of pleasure. Bobby kept kissing her flesh until her body became still again.

  “Flip over,” Bobby whispered.

  “No, you rest. Let me take care of you.”

  He reached up and gave her ass a hard smack. “Flip.”

  “My knees are weak. I just need two seconds.”

  "I'm sorry, Leah. You don't need to flip. Just lay back flat on me."

  He helped her bend her legs up and wrapped his arms around her as her back pressed onto his chest. Every inch of her body was now fair game for his greedy hands. He nibbled on her neck and softly stroked the sides of her body, causing goose bumps to form on her skin. Bobby sat up, easily lifting her along with him and reached down to unbutton his jeans. His massive cock was now free.

  Leah gasped with admiration. “Are you sure you’re not part shifter?”

  Bobby laughed and returned to the position on his back, scooping up Leah's legs just behind her knees, so they folded against her chest. He lowered her body down gently until she felt the tip of his cock against her opening. She tried to move towards it, but soon realized she had zero control in this position. His powerful hips controlled the depth and speed of the introduction. Bobby tried to go slow, but the heat and softness waiting for him rendered his self-control useless.

  The head of his cock had barely entered her before his hips thrust hard, sending his entire shaft deep inside. Leah groaned loudly from the surprise.

  “Too fast?” he whispered against her neck.

  “Fuck the shit out of me,” she moaned. “Your cock feels so good.”

  She didn’t need to tell him twice. He reached down with one hand and rubbed her swollen clit as his hips thrust wildly, sending his cock slamming in deep. Leah gasped each time his balls slapped against her, enjoying the fullness invading her center. She let her body relax against him, giving in to his control.