by Lacey Thorn
They had her. Her scent was strong, as was the stench of blood and sweat. His body shook with the need to burst in and get to her. The panther in him wanted to shed blood, to conquer and kill so they could get back to their mate. They both wanted to leave, go to their mate and ensure she was safe and protected. It was taking all Zane had not to shift and just let the animal have his head. He should have known better than to leave Diane. But would they have been any safer? Or would the hunters kill Kenzie then go after them? What was to say they still wouldn’t?
He had to think, to be smart and find the solution that would save them all. Kenzie. He had to focus on her first as she was the one in the most danger. Unless… There were more hunters circling behind him, searching for Diane. He shook his head. They wouldn’t know he and Diane were there. Chances where, they’d caught Kenzie’s scent and taken her, and she wouldn’t have given him or Diane up no matter what they did to her.
For the hundredth time, he wished he had a way of contacting Tah or Reno. He shook his head. No, he wouldn’t put either of them in danger if he could help it. He’d call Murphy, though. That son of a bitch would have his back in a heartbeat. Finn, too, if he was still okay. Zane should have asked Diane about what was going on, how everyone was. He didn’t even know if Abby and the baby were okay.
He rose and moved stealthily around the cabin the hunters were using. It looked similar to the one he’d taken Diane to, and made Zane wonder how many of them were hidden out here. Perhaps housing people that posed a threat to Tah and the pride. It was definitely something they should all be aware of. Maybe they’d made their perimeter too small?
Four men out front, three more in the back and at least two inside. It was a full-blown hunter party and sure as shit they were here looking for shifters. They might know about Tah. Hell, chances were higher they were here looking for Amia and Reno, especially if they were Blane hunters. They’d understood the risk when Reno had mated with Amia Blane. But Blane was simply Amia’s last name, it wasn’t who she was. She was one of them, now, more so than she’d ever been a member of the Blane clan.
Zane circled around farther. There were two men on the other side, bringing the count up to eleven. More than likely there were at least an even dozen of them, which meant there might be a few unaccounted for. He couldn’t know for sure exactly how many were inside with Kenzie. The sweat and stench of multiple bodies bled together. Kenzie’s scent was the only one he could sift through to with any certainty and even it had been altered. His senses were everywhere, though, and he couldn’t figure out what was off about it.
Would he have time to get back to Diane, get her to safety, and come back with help for Kenzie? Not likely. He continued until he was in front again, pausing for a brief minute before starting his circuit again. The numbers didn’t change and the stench of blood only grew stronger. His lips peeled back, flashing his canines, and he felt the burning in his joints that preceded a shift. He was edgy and twitchy as fuck. His mind was chaotic. The only thought he could focus on with any clarity was his mate. He was tearing apart, and the only one who could prevent it wasn’t with him.
The animal had changed tactics. It wanted to run, to get to Diane as quickly as possible. It was his only thought. The man worried he might be missing something and leading hunters right to her. He couldn’t risk it, risk her. So he fought to hold on, fought to think, fought against the fever burning in his veins and the animal that sought control, once more.
Until something tickled his nose. A scent that shouldn’t be there. A scent that should be locked up safely in a cabin several miles away from here. He inhaled deeply and moved back as the rumble in his chest threatened to leave in a hiss and growl that would expose him to the hunters he was watching.
His mate was close. And she wasn’t alone.
Chapter Nine
Angel moved quickly but managed to make sure Diane was able to stay right behind him every step of the way. She was grateful for that. He seemed to have picked up a scent that upset him as they moved, and now he stalked forward with a stealth she found frightening. His chest vibrated with low growls he didn’t seem aware he was making. He glanced back at her again, and she swore his eyes glowed brighter. His cheeks were dark with color, and he looked as if he was beyond angry. He appeared ready to kill.
They moved farther, and he stopped, pointing to the tree at his back. She slipped behind it, pressing herself tightly against the bark while he did that inhale thing again. If possible, he looked even more upset when he titled his head and glanced over his shoulder toward her again. Diane trembled, praying Zane was okay. Don’t let them be too late to help Zane and Kenzie.
Angel’s chest rumbled with displeasure again, prompting Diane to speak up.
“Are you okay?” she asked as quietly as possible.
He turned on her with eyes that glowed neon. “I didn’t expect this,” he grunted, his canines flashing like sharp daggers at the sides of his mouth. “I didn’t think it was possible.”
Despite the anger emanating from him, she sensed a bit of wonder in his voice. What had him so off balance?
He shook himself. “It doesn’t matter. It can’t matter,” he muttered. “Good news is we’re almost there. Bad news is it seems panther boy has caught our scent, and he’s not happy with either of us. And there’s a good chance he’s leading them right to us.”
“Oh, God,” Diane said, her voice shaky.
Angel sighed. “I didn’t plan to do this, but I have no choice, now.”
“Do what?” she managed to ask before he grabbed her and jerked her to him.
She wasn’t prepared. He hadn’t touched her once since she’d opened the door for him. It had made her lax, made her feel a false sense of safety it seemed. Her breasts collided with his chest, and he gritted his teeth as if he were the one in pain. He dipped his head toward her, and she strangled on her own breath as panic set in. He was going to kiss her. God, no!
She tugged against his hold, clawing at him as she struggled to break free. She wanted to scream but bit her lip to hold it in. The last thing they needed was to have every hunter nearby heading straight toward them. And Zane? What would he do if he heard her scream? She could get her mate killed.
Angel’s head dropped past her lips, though, and he rubbed his cheek and hair over her neck and throat then along her shoulder. He reached out and pulled her shirt aside and rubbed the spot where Zane had marked her. She shuddered and felt a wave of nausea hit her that almost knocked her to her knees. She gagged and fought against his hold.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, and he looked it. His too bright eyes were tinged with sadness.
But any sympathy she might have felt was cast aside when he tossed her over his shoulder and began moving faster through the trees.
“I know you’re pissed, but I need you to be quiet. If you want your mate to stay alive, then muzzle yourself, Diane,” he grunted.
Diane slammed shut her lips, trapping the scream she’d been about to let loose inside. How had he known she was going to scream? There was more to Angel than he was giving away. What was it about him?
“Stay here and stay quiet,” he ordered as he dropped her softly onto the ground behind a tree. “Your mate’s not far behind us. I had to circle and sprint to get ahead of him. Sorry if I jarred you.”
“Is he okay?” she whispered back. Her eyes widened as he dropped his gear and began stripping his jacket and shirt off over his head.
“He will be if you keep him distracted. When he gets here, do whatever it takes to keep him with you. If he comes in after me, he might die. Best case scenario, he just gets injured.” He inhaled deeply again and his eyes narrowed. “I can’t make promises, now. I’m not sure how much control I’m going to have when I get in there. I’m sure you’d like to avoid either of those possibilities, though.” His long fingers reached for his jeans and began unfastening them.
Diane turned away, embarrassed he was stripping beside her.
&nbs
p; “Don’t be afraid,” he whispered quietly, drawing her gaze back to him as he stripped out of his jeans. “No matter what I seem, I would never hurt you.”
A hiss rocked the woods followed by a growl that had her searching frantically around them for her mate.
“Stay here. Don’t go to him. Let him come to you,” Angel ordered. “I’ll take as many of them as I can, but he’s already alerted them he’s here.”
A scream pierced the air, cutting off anything else Angel might have said to her. The look on his face was terrifying in that moment and a roar that almost rivaled Tah’s rocked the air. One moment Angel was there, and the next, a huge beast was rushing away from her. Holy shit! She’d never anticipated seeing one of them in the shifters she’d met. The tawny mane of a lion flowed around the golden striped flesh of the beast. Angel was a liger.
The scream sounded again and Diane recognized it this time. Kenzie. What were they doing to her? She prayed it wasn’t anything like the hell she knew both Amia and Clara had been subjected to. Chained to the wall, beaten and cut, unable to defend themselves.
She heard a rustling in the trees and pressed her back firmer against the bark. It wasn’t Zane. She didn’t know how she knew it, but she did. Then he was there, all six and half feet of pissed off mate. Not a panther. Still a man. He spared her a brief, angry glance before darting around her. She heard a grunt as flesh hit flesh, and she dared a peek around the tree. Zane had a man in his hands and, with an ease that shocked her to her toes, her mate bared his teeth, reached out and snapped the other man’s neck as if it were merely kindling.
Another roar rocked the air, and masculine screams sounded from the direction Angel had gone. Zane turned toward them, and she remembered Angel’s words. She had to keep her mate safe.
“Zane!” she cried out and stood up, moving around the tree.
He turned to her immediately. His nostrils flared, and he growled again as he stalked toward her.
“I’ll kill whoever it is,” he vowed then grabbed her and tugged her against him.
He took her mouth first, forcing his tongue deep and ravaging every nook and crevice. She gasped for air when he finally pulled free. He ran his lips and tongue over her neck and throat, following the path Angel had traced with is cheek and hair. Angel! He’d done this intentionally.
“Did he fuck you?” Zane demanded as he yanked her shirt to the side, the material ripping beneath his grip.
“No,” she answered, shaking her head frantically.
Zane growled again, lowering his head to the mark he’d revealed and licking over and over it.
“You are mine,” he grunted to her and his bright golden gaze met hers.
“Yes,” she agreed quickly. “I’m yours, all yours.”
He growled again, teeth flashing briefly before he bit her again. He slid one leg between hers and pressed her back against the tree as he bit and sucked at her flesh. Diane rubbed wantonly against the hard muscle of his thigh and came with a low moan.
Zane released her and licked over her skin again and again. “Did he touch you anywhere else?” he asked softly.
“No,” she said, doing her best to reassure him.
“Who do you belong to?” he demanded.
“You, only you.”
He pulled back from her, letting her feet touch the ground again.
“On your knees,” he commanded and reached for the button on his jeans.
Diane licked her lips and dropped, more than eager for what it appeared he wanted. Angel had told her to do whatever it took to keep Zane with her. She intended to. She just prayed he was keeping anyone who might be a threat occupied, as well. She watched Zane, knowing there’d be no stopping him, now. He made quick work of the zipper, jerking the material wide and shoving it down until his thick, black cock surged free, reaching toward his strong, taut belly. He gripped the hard stalk of flesh with one fist and pointed his cock toward her mouth.
“Lick it,” he ordered.
With a low moan, she complied, leaning in with her hands resting on his thighs. She flicked her tongue out and slowly rubbed it over him, claiming the small pearl of liquid that graced the head.
“Mhmm,” she moaned, pressing her tongue against the roof of her mouth and savoring that small taste of her man. She licked her lips and moved in for more.
“Suck it.” He fisted his other hand in her hair.
She felt the sharp bite of pain against her scalp where he tugged her hair and whimpered as lust filled her. She opened wide, sucking as he pressed his cock between her lips and began a shallow fucking of her mouth. So good. No, more than good. So much more than good.
“You are my woman,” he told her, his voice hard and deep. “You disobeyed me.”
Oh, shit. He was mad just like Angel had warned her.
“You put yourself in danger. You put yourself in a position where someone else could put his hands on you, his scent on you.” Zane’s lips pulled back, his teeth locked together, the cords on his neck standing out.
He slid his fingers to cup the back of her head and pressed deeper, hitting the top of her throat and gagging her for a moment. She swallowed around him and fought to breathe through her nose. He groaned with pleasure as he eased out then thrust deep again.
“You will never do that again,” he warned. “Do you understand me?”
She mumbled around his shaft. Luckily, it seemed to satisfy him. She couldn’t shake her head with the grip he had, much less speak with a mouthful of cock. Hell, it was taking all she had to work through her instinct to gag every time he entered her throat. Thankfully, he interspersed the deeper strokes with more shallow ones.
“I’m going to come down your throat,” he grunted. “Then you’re going to drop to your hands and knees, and I’m going to fuck you until I can’t smell him on you anymore. Do you understand?”
She tried to answer with her eyes, show him how much she loved him. And she did. She might not have said it, yet, but she knew she did. It explained why her whole world had been torn apart when he’d left. It explained why she felt happier in danger with him than she did in the safety of their group without him. It wasn’t just a need for a mate. It was a love like none she’d ever dreamed of. Now, now she understood what Abby had, what Amia and Clara shared with their mates. It was a bond with no human equivalent.
He grunted and fucked her mouth, his dick sliding between her lips and gliding back into her throat or stopping just short of it. She sucked, swirled her tongue around and tried her best to keep her teeth sheathed behind her lips. He tasted so good, delicious, a carnal treat she hoped to indulge in more often.
“Diane.” He moaned her name, and her gaze flicked up his perfect body to lock with his. “I’m going to come, now. Swallow me, baby. Drink me dry.”
She mumbled her acquiesce around his shaft and felt her pussy dripping with need. Once she swallowed his tasty cum, he was going to fuck her. God, yes. She needed it, needed to feel him pounding hard into her pussy, filling her with all his long, thick inches.
“Ahhh,” he groaned as she felt the first hot spray of seed coat her tongue and splash against the top of her throat. “Yes, baby. Just like that. Just like that.”
He growled as she sucked and swallowed, wrapping her tongue up, over and around the crown to make sure she didn’t miss any of what he gave her.
He closed his eyes and let her keep sucking for a moment even after she’d swallowed every drop, then he tapped her check.
“Open,” he ordered and slid free when she complied. “Turn around. Hands and knees. Get your jeans down or I’m going to rip them off you.”
His words had her pussy getting impossibly wetter as she hurried to comply. Everything else was forgotten as she got lost in the dark promise of his voice. She was undoing her jeans and shimmying them down as she turned on her knees. The ground was rough against her palms, but Zane commanded her full attention when he pressed against her. He plunged into her, sheathing his cock fully inside her s
ex. She dropped her head to her hands and used one hand to bite on, muffling her cries of pleasure as best she could when he began a rough fucking that had her flying toward release.
“Mhmm,” she moaned, enjoying the dominant way he claimed her.
“Mine,” he grunted. “You are mine. I won’t tolerate another man’s scent on you. Ever.”
“Yesss,” she agreed with a hiss as her belly tightened.
He bent over her and bit her shoulder where her ripped shirt exposed it. That touch was all she needed to free-fall into an orgasm so intense she almost felt torn apart. She was flying, spinning out of control and the only thing keeping her tethered was Zane—her lover and mate. He released her from the grip of his teeth and slammed deep as he joined her in orgasm. Each heated splash of his cum sent her spiraling again and again until she collapsed beneath him, too weak from the pleasure to remain on all fours.
Slowly, the sounds around them trickled back to her and reality intruded. What had she been thinking to let him take her like this in the open when there were hunters around them and Angel was there? Shit! She’d forgotten all about Angel and Kenzie, as well.
“Zane.” She moaned his name softly and wiggled her hips, catching her breath as his cock tugged free from her well-fucked channel.
He grunted and moved from behind her. The next thing she knew, he was lifting her to her feet and dropping to his knees. He placed a chaste kiss on the apex of her thighs just above her trimmed pubic hair and pulled her clothes up and fastened her jeans. He leaned his head against her belly and just held her as if he were afraid to let her go.
“I shouldn’t have left you,” he finally whispered. “I could have gotten us both killed.”