20 Shades of Shifters_A Paranormal Romance Collection

by Demelza Carlton

  The woods called, with their shadows and sounds and scents, begging her to run and hunt. She tasted the air and found no scent of the intruders to her new territory. She let her tongue loll out in a wolf grin and gave in to the call, bunching her muscles and pressing into the loping run that could devour the mountain if she so chose. She ran.

  Chapter 10

  Well, shit.” He was a complete idiot. How was he going to protect her if he couldn’t even follow her? Helen in wolf form hadn’t looked back once as she dashed off into the woods. He ran but she was long gone before he even hit the edge of the trees. He stopped, looked into the dark shadows. No doubt she could see just fine in there, but him? Not so much.

  The only thing he could do was go sit on the porch and try to listen in case she called for him or if she tried to make a run back to safety. He walked back to the cabin and parked his butt on the warped wooden stairs. “Fuck. Goddammit.” All he could manage was a curse word or two. “Completely useless, Sherman.”

  He needed a minute off his feet anyway. And time to wrap his mind around the sight of Helen shifting forms. Jesus, she’d changed so fast he had to think about it all to try to see it. Considering what she’d told him before, tonight wasn’t an ordinary shift. She must have tried to hide it from him. He set the gun across his lap and rubbed his face. Last night she’d been gone until sometime around midnight. All he could do was wait.

  It was a lot earlier than midnight when the first strange sounds caught his attention. A rustle in the trees, a snap of twigs. In the moonlight he caught movement in the light bush. He picked up the gun from his lap and lifted it silently to his shoulder. There was motion in a few areas. Someone was out there and wanted him to know it. He picked up the powerful hunting flashlight beside him. His dad didn’t believe in jacking deer—freezing them at night in the beam of the powerful light—but he had one or two of the massive lights for some reason, and David had gone to get one not long after he’d first sat down to wait.

  The beam caught the reflection of eyes, three sets. Wolves, considering the height from the ground and the growling that came as he pinpointed them. Likely the same wolves that had gone after Helen the night before. She’d thought there were three and this confirmed it. At least they were here, watching him, not out in the forest, chasing her.

  He set the flashlight down on the step beside him and stood. The gun might not be much help against three, it was only a lightweight shotgun meant for bird hunting, but it would have to sting like hell. If he shot them, they might leave. Or they might attack. He took a slow, deep breath. Then another. A line a cold sweat dripped down the back of his neck and he ground his teeth against the feeling, and the fear that hung low in his belly.

  In the next moment, they were gone. No rustles, no twigs snapping this time. Just a sense they’d left. He lifted the flashlight and scanned the edge of the trees, the bushes. Nothing. But no sounds of life from the forest either, not a breath of wind, an owl cry, nothing.

  Minutes passed and he eventually sat back own. They were gone. They’d left a message, maybe, that they could have attacked him while she was running. Could have attacked her, too. Their behavior shone a strange light on the previous night. Had they meant to kill when they’d rammed the Jeep at him and Helen? They’d been chased, but neither of them ended up hurt. And they probably could have been—a fledgling werewolf and simple human man. Something he would discuss with Helen when she returned.

  A chill ran through him. Maybe she wasn’t going to return. Maybe they’d killed her and shown up to threaten him after doing it. Tell him silently to go away, stay out of their business or he’d end up dead too.

  He paced the length of the porch and caught the edge of his sneaker on a broken bit of board. This place really needed some work if he were going to start using it again. If he didn’t knock it down and build a retreat. His father would have both been proud of that, as something his son built, and hated it, as it was on his precious mountain.

  David shook his head and looked out into the dark. It was going to be a long night, with nothing but memories for company and worry for a woman who wasn’t quite human.

  The bitter, angry scent of the intruders bit at her nose the closer she came to the cabin. Not daring to increase her pace, she crept closer. When she was nearly in sight of the small building she realized that the scents had split into three—three wolves—and that there was a fresher path of their stink leaving the bushes near the cabin than the one arriving. Whatever they’d wanted to accomplish, coming here instead of coming after her, they’d done it and moved on.

  Her belly tightened. She’d left the man alone when she’d run. Not her fault; she’d needed the space, the air, the night. But he couldn’t keep up and had stayed back. She’d left him undefended. She sniffed at the tracks left by the wolves No blood. But they could have hurt him in human form. She hesitated. She could leave him now. She knew where to go next, could see it in her mind the route she would take. She could travel a long time in the remainder of the night. Maybe half the distance between her and the closes band of the Rom. The man would only slow her down, as he had the night before, when she’d tried to run from the wolves in human form. Twice he’d shown he couldn’t keep up, but…that felt wrong. She couldn’t abandon him.

  The moon had begun its descent. The intruders were gone from her territory, and if they’d hurt the man before they left, well, she would continue her hunt for the people and if a few throats were torn, so be it.

  She trotted into the clearing and spotted the man sitting on the steps. Her man. She walked to him, taking her time. His eyes were wild and his scent tainted with fear. Something had happened, but she could smell no blood. She stopped a few feet from him and waited until he seemed calmer.

  “I thought you might be dead,” he whispered.

  She took a step closer. Not all of his words were clear to her, but the meaning, and the emotion, she understood him well enough. He’d been afraid of the wolves, known they were there and feared for her.

  “They came here and I thought maybe they’d gotten to you and came here to warn me off. To forget what I’ve seen or they’d be back.” His voice was so harsh to her ears, like he had to force the words out.

  She put a paw on the step beside him, and leaned against him. He smelled better, the fear fading. He smelled good.

  Very slowly, tentatively, he touched her. This was also good. The feeling of his hand on her ruff, the weight of it and the way he ran his fingers through her fur. She stepped aside and he immediately stopped, but she walked to the door and waited for him. He was probably cold. He needed warmth. The fire inside didn’t smell good to her, but he would enjoy it. If she didn’t go in he might not either. So when he took the hint and opened the door, she trotted inside and flopped down on the wood floor beside the sofa, far enough away from the flames that they didn’t bother her eyes or her nose.

  “Right. Okay.” He followed her inside and locked the door behind him. “Uh, let me know if you want out, okay?”

  She showed him her fangs. What did he think she was, a labradoodle? But the bowl of water he offered was very nice. And even better, when he sat down to rest, he sat right beside her where he could touch her. She listened as he told his side of the evening’s events. Maybe he didn’t think she understood him, not really. But he told her how he felt about losing her, his guilt over not being there to protect her. Then he revealed his fear over the wolves’ appearance, and his understanding that they could have attacked him. How he’d waited and not fired. Brave and smart. This man would make a good mate.

  The thought occupied her for some time. So long in fact that she barely noticed the man falling asleep, and hardly minded when she realized she was dozing off as well.

  Morning came and she stretched. Somehow she’d slept though her change. Slept so deeply she hadn’t woken when David apparently moved them to the bed. Her outstretched arm encountered the warmth of his skin and the rough sprinkle of hair on his chest
. She took a deep breath of his scent.

  “Finally. I wondered if you were going to sleep all day, Miss Wolf.” David’s rumbling voice sent a thrill of sensation down her back. She snuggled closer to him and he wrapped his arms around her. His cock stood at attention, apparently waiting for a repeat of the day before. Sounded perfect to her. She rolled over, flipped him onto his back, and climbed onto his lap. He had time to make a gasp of surprise before she slid onto him and began a rhythm that left them panting and pleasured only a few minutes later. Then she kissed him and rolled away laughing before walking to the shower.

  Speed had its advantages, but she’d take it slower next time, savor him and let him drive her just a little bit crazy. She stood still under the cold spray. Maybe it was the water temperature, but she was suddenly struck with how completely she’d accepted him in her life. Expected him in it. When had that happened? It had something to do with a conclusion the wolf had come to, but she couldn’t remember now. Instead the voice of her father threatened to appear with one of his awful warnings. Put downs disguised as advice. Not what she needed. Today was the first day of the hunt. She had eight weeks to regain her humanity and put her life back together.

  She threw on some clothes. It was just about time to hit a laundromat. A few steps in the cozy cabin and she was back in the living room. David stood at the window, his back to the glass and a coffee cup in his hand. Coffee would be so good now. Even the dreadful instant. But the taste was so different now in reality than what her memory claimed. The curse had taken that from her.

  “Good morning,” she said and walked toward the kitchen.

  “I think we already exchanged pleasantries, and definitely had a good morning,” he quipped, then pointed to the counter. “There’s tea made and the last of the toast. Supplies are running out.”

  “Then it’s a good thing I’m moving on. I’ll repay you for the supplies.”

  “You know I’m coming with you,” he stated calmly and took another drink of his coffee.

  She picked up her cup, took a sip. “A girl’s gotta try. But maybe you should listen to me, David. I can drive you to where you can get some help for your Jeep if you want, or even to a car rental place, but you shouldn’t come with me. I have eight weeks off from work to take care of this mess. But you run your company, you can’t just go off on vacation. How will it look?”

  He tilted his head and watched her for a moment, long enough to make her fidget under the weight of his gaze. “Since I do own the company, I can go on vacation, and I don’t really care what anyone thinks. Do you?”

  She set down the cup. “Of course I care. I just made partner. I can’t throw that away.”

  “No, of course not. But do you really care if anyone comments on us? They will. Maybe they’ll say it started out business, and maybe they’ll say it started out as sex, but they’re going to talk about it.”

  He was right and it made her stomach churn. But it was already done. The gossipers would have a ball with her latest disappearance and David’s happening at the same time. It was too much to think about.

  “Let’s get moving then. We’ve got a long drive.”

  He held up her keys. “Already packed except the stove and your clothes.”

  The Rom’s trail was easy enough to find. With the clues from the blog and a little searching on the internet for gift stores where the Rom might sell their wares, David and Helen found two spots where the Romany bands sometimes stopped. None occupied the open fields or old National Park campgrounds as they located them; but they learned a little each time. The bands were made up of five to nine families linked through marriage and often traveling in RVs. They weren’t always welcomed as they could be a boisterous bunch, but the nearby towns seemed to have accepted the fact that they would be back, sooner or later. And, despite what seemed like an odd way of life, they made good money through their crafts, and several had a growing business in commissioned art. The expensive RVs proved the point.

  David looked at the painting hanging on the wall in the most focal point of the tiny gallery. The price was certainly hefty, but it would look damn good in his office, if Helen didn’t mind him buying it.

  And wasn’t that an interesting turn of thought. She was already staring in all his fantasies; was she about to take over his daydreams of the future, too?

  “The Rom that passed through here last night only stayed a day. I guess that’s unusual.” Helen spoke beside him and he jumped. Second time the wolfgirl had snuck up on him.

  She laid her hand on his arm. “Sorry.”

  Her touch felt good and he returned the favor by wrapping an arm around her shoulders and walking her out the door. “The next town might know more, or we could drive straight through to where we know they tend to meet up and camp at Woodberry Forest.”

  She let the way back to the SUV and held out her palm for the keys. “Let’s just go. It’s my turn to drive, though.”

  He held them out of reach. “Do you think it’s a good idea, just driving up to them when we find them and asking for their priestess or whatever to take off the curse?”

  She turned away and picked up her pace until she was half jogging. “What other choice do I have? There has to be some way we can come to an agreement.”

  He caught her by the hand, made her slow down and look at him. “And if there isn’t? If they won’t take the curse back or stop the attacks?”

  Her eyes filled with tears. “I…I don’t know.”

  They drove for the next two hours quietly. David turned on some music, but neither of them sang along.

  Chapter 11

  This has to be it.” They sat in the car and stared up a long private lane. The cultured stone on the edges of the drive and the gates at the street ‘screamed money,’ a phrase taken word for word from the blog. “How did they get an agreement to park here for like three weeks every couple of years?”

  David shrugged. “Hard to say. The gate’s wide open, should we just drive in?”

  Helen jiggled her leg up and down and she shifted in her seat. He’d recognized the signs of growing nervousness as they came closer to what was supposed to be a good-sized gathering of the Rom. She’d barely eaten her supper, and the greasy hamburger and fries had for the most part gone out the window to feed the crows.

  She twitched again. “I don’t know. I mean, there could be a lot of them in there. What if they’re all wolves?”

  “Could they be? Don’t you think someone would have discovered whole bands of werewolves roaming the country every year?”

  “Maybe that’s why they move around. I need out. I need to run.”

  The sky had slipped into twilight as they’d sat staring at the estate and he hadn’t noticed, but she had. The full moon was only the night before and it pulled at her now to change and run. That’s what she needed, not all these decisions and worries. She growled lightly.

  “Can you keep it together until we talk to them or do you want to find a place to stay? Go see them in the morning?”

  He was so considerate. It made her want to grind her teeth. No, that wasn’t right. It was good that he was thinking of her. The wolf inside her was impatient and she needed to gain control. Soon. I promise we’ll go running soon.

  When had she started talking to herself as another person? As two people, or rather one person and one wolf, caught in one body? This was so not good.

  “I’m good. Let’s talk to them. What’s the worst that could happen?” She laughed weakly.

  He didn’t reply, just put the SUV back in drive and rolled through the gates.

  The lane led to a large house, one that looked empty and possibly abandoned, but more importantly they could see a number of RVs parked some distance to the side. David took a small, paved side road and drove close to the first RV.

  This was it. Time to demand or beg, depending on their reception, for relief of the curse. Surely, turning someone into a werewolf was overkill for the loss of a camping spot?

 
He shut the engine down. “Nervous?”

  “Oh, yeah. Just a bit.” She laughed but it came out a little strangled. He didn’t say anything but got out of the car and came around to her side. He opened the door and held out his hand. Taking it gave her strength.

  Already, a few people had noticed their arrival and had stopped doing whatever they had been doing. They stood around, apparently waiting to hear what the strangers to their little campsite wanted. Some wore nice clothes, some less nice, some wore artists smocks or aprons covered in paint or other things. All favored bright colors. They didn’t seem angry, and Helen couldn’t smell any fear coming from the band. A large number of children scampered and played nearby, or were held by curious mothers. Most of the people seemed young, maybe thirty at most. One held up a cell phone and took a picture of the SUV and its occupants.

  Helen and David took a few steps away from the vehicle and waited. He didn’t let go of her hand. Finally, a young boy with short black hair and a big smile led an old woman to the growing group of watchers. Her back was bent and she had so many wrinkles her eyes were nearly hidden with laugh lines. She wore a long skirt and a tunic, both in vivid shades of purple. She had wispy silver hair and about a dozen bangles on one arm. She stepped forward and smiled at them, raising the un-bangled hand in greeting. “Hello.”

  This was the Rom? The people who threw blood and curses about willy-nilly? Helen had a hard time associating the people in front of her with the instigators of the events of the last few months. She took the lead and a step forward. “Hello. I’m looking for someone.”

  “Many people are. Who are you seeking?”

  Her words felt like a riddle, or a test. Nothing for it but to tell the truth. “Bianca Donceanu.”