by Julia Talbot
Talking to Logan about it had been sort of anticlimactic. Logan just stared at him, then shook his head and said, “Duh.” Logan snorted. “She’s so human sometimes.”
“The girls always are.” They shared a look of complete commiseration. “What about you? Anything on the lady front?”
“Not yet.” Logan let him go and stepped back. “Sooner or later the girl will come along who doesn’t care about my status, huh?”
“I guarantee it. Heather sure doesn’t give a shit about mine.”
“Yeah? That must be a good thing.”
“It is.” It had never occurred to Lee that Logan might be lonely, but he guessed they all had their secrets. Every once in awhile he remembered to be grateful for Heather, who just laid it all out on the line, no bullshit. Games, yes. Bullshit, no.
“What about Danny?”
Lee laughed out loud, feeling better, more even. “He doesn’t know enough about pack politics to know I have status. He thinks I’m just a hot redneck. His mom and dad are, like, pack separatists.”
“You think they were turned, not born?”
Was that possible? “Can turned wolves have a wolf baby?”
“Absolutely.” Logan sounded pretty sure, and the alpha was the keeper of all the lore and shit.
“Well, maybe, then. They’re all citified.”
“That’s unnatural.” Logan went to the kitchen and pulled two beers out of the fridge. “Sit with me and have that beer?”
The scent of Logan suddenly completely overwhelmed the bits of leather in the bag Lee had brought with him. “Is that all we’re having?” Lee asked, moving in close again to grab one bottle.
“I won’t press, but I won’t say no to helping you blow off some steam.”
Lee might have felt guilty about that as well, but he’d been raised in the pack. Logan was the alpha. When the alpha wanted you, it was kind of impossible to say no. The mating drive took over in a hurry. He set his beer on the counter, grabbing Logan’s and putting it aside too. “I like to blow. You know that, huh?”
Logan’s expression turned feral, and he reached out to grab Lee’s belt buckle, making Lee’s pulse race. “I do.”
“Then we’ll get to catching this guy, huh?”
“You know it, Lee. I protect my own.”
That was the God’s honest truth, and Lee was glad of it. He only hoped that if he ever led his own pack, he would do half as good a job.
Chapter Five
Heather cooked.
She wasn’t a great lover of fine dining or anything, but she could make bacon and eggs, and rage left her wanting to eat. She beat the hell out of half a dozen eggs, watching the yolks and whites come together to make a gooey mess.
“You okay, babe?” Danny slid up behind her, his arms going around her waist.
It cracked her shit up that he called her and Lee both “babe,” just like Lee called them both “baby.” Boys. So predictable. “I’m all right.” Luckily, she hadn’t turned the heat on under the pan she’d laid the bacon out in, or she might have started to burn something. Danny was getting grabby hands. “What about you?”
“I’m mad. I would have been scared a while ago, but right now, I’m mad. I wanted to be able to look forward to our first moon together, not worry about the Boogeyman.”
“Yeah.” Yeah, that was it exactly. She wanted to tear something apart with her teeth, damn it. Danny deserved to run with the pack.
“Where the hell is Lee, anyway?”
Heather snorted. “Fucking Logan.”
“What?” Danny recoiled just enough for her to turn and face him.
“Don’t get all indignant. Logan is the alpha. That’s the way it works. Besides, your ass will thank Logan later for letting Lee get all that aggression out. He’s a bear when he’s pissy.”
“Shouldn’t that be a wolf?”
“Ha.” She whapped his chest, right above his nipple. “I’m sorry, Dan.”
“For what?” His eyebrows went up, his mouth quirking a little.
“For getting all your stuff messed up. I mean, if I hadn’t hooked up with you…”
“I blame Lee.” She started, and Danny laughed, his eyes twinkling. “Think about it. You’ve flirted with a lot of guys. Maybe more. Lee was the one who decided to keep me.”
“True.” Huh. She’d never thought of it that way. Call her shallow, but it helped with the guilt. “Sweet. Wanna neck?”
“God, yes.”
Half hour later they were still on the couch, kissing slowly, taking comfort from the touch, when Lee came in. It hadn’t gotten wild and hot. It was just being close.
“Hey, you two. Everyone okay?” Lee moved her butt so Heather was more on Danny’s lap, Lee sitting behind her, his body crowding them both. Oh, he smelled good. Hot, musky, all bruised up.
“We’re good.” Danny peered around her head at Lee. “You?”
“Fine. Better, anyway. Sorry, I had to have a beer with Logan and all.”
“A beer.” Turning slightly, Heather whapped him just like she had with Danny earlier. “We’re not stupid.”
“I needed to unwind before I came back here.” Lee drew in a deep breath. “Logan is looking into it. I’m supposed to keep an eye on you two.”
“Nice.” No wonder Lee had needed to work off tension. He hated to have control taken out of his hands. “What about the moon?”
“Well, if Logan doesn’t catch the guy before then, he’s got a plan.” She could tell by the way Lee’s shoulders went up that he didn’t like the plan. Not one bit.
“He’ll find the guy, right? I mean, how big can a pack be here in Wyoming?” Danny asked.
“Not as big now that we’re off the endangered list, but bigger than you think.”
“Oh.” Suddenly Danny seemed a heck of a lot more unsure.
Heather bent back around to kiss the left side of his mouth. “It’ll be fine, honey. You’ll see.”
“I hope so.” Danny gave them a smile that was almost convincing. “Can we all go take a shower now?”
Lee hooted. “You saying I stink?”
Heather answered that one. “You reek. Come on, baby. Dan. We’ll go scrub up.”
She knew what Danny was feeling. Like he was dirty because his stuff was. Lee would probably never get it; he had all the emotional maturity of a carrot. She understood.
Hopefully, Logan would just find the guy fast and that would be that. An example would be made, the pack would close ranks. That was the best case scenario. Heather really didn’t want to think about the worst.
Chapter Six
Danny woke up feeling warm, safe and horny as a goat.
It had been a long time since he’d come awake with morning wood this hard and happy, and he pushed against whatever was pressing down on his cock, making a humming noise deep in his throat. Fuck, yeah. That was the ticket, for sure.
“Mmm.” A male voice answered with an even happier noise, and Danny had a moment of complete panic, worrying that he’d crawled into bed with his roommate, Simon.
Then he realized three things. The ass he was all snuggled up to was round and soft, not hard and male. The male voice came from the other side of the body he was pressed up against. Finally, the bed was about three times the size of his dorm cot.
Heather and Lee. Amazing, that he couldn’t remember having woken up this way before, as he’d been at the house a lot to have hot monkey sex. Hot wolf sex. Whatever.
Blinking, he opened his eyes and looked at Heather. She was still sleeping, but a smile spread across her face. Danny glanced over her shoulder at Lee, who was definitely not asleep. Those bright gray eyes were watching him right back.
“Hey, baby.”
“Hey, Lee. Thanks for letting me stay the night, man.”
Lee’s eyes widened. “Letting? Dude, you belong here.”
That put a ball of warmth right down in his belly. It helped his cock not one bit. In fact, the words made his cock ache a little. “Thanks.”
>
“Mmm. Listen to you two, being all sensitive and shit.” Heather laughed, her eyes stubbornly staying closed, her dark blonde lashes resting on her cheeks.
Lee smacked her ass, the sound ringing out loud in the room. “You’re a regular comedian.”
“So, are we skipping work and class today?” Heather asked, stretching long, her breasts bobbing against Danny’s chest.
“Mmmhmm. I called around last night after you two crashed out.” Lee nuzzled at Heather’s neck, and it was so pretty that Danny moaned. “Left messages. No one is expecting us.”
“Excellent.” Heather finally opened her eyes, grinning at him before slipping up to give him a kiss. Yum.
Danny kissed Heather back, deciding right then that he wasn’t going to worry about it today. Lee was confident that Logan could handle it, so he would be too. He would spend a lazy day with Lee and Heather, in bed and out, and he’d check in with Simon to make sure he was good, but that would be all he did about the mess.
Feeling better already, he took another kiss, then another, letting Heather be the best medicine ever. She laughed, the sound happy and hot, while she rubbed up and down on him, her body covering his.
Lee pressed up behind Heather, growling a little, his eyes glowing at him over Heather’s shoulders. “I could just eat you two up.”
“Promise?” Feeling daring, he reached between Heather and Lee, feeling up Lee’s cock, teasing with the very tips of his fingers.
“Fuck yes.” That cock jerked in his hand; Lee bucking against both of them, which pushed Heather’s soft body down against him.
“Mmm. Oh, my boys.” Sharp teeth stung Danny’s neck, Heather biting him, not too hard. Just right.
“You know it.” Danny rubbed Lee’s cock against Heather’s ass, and Heather’s eyes lit up.
“Get condoms, Lee. I have an idea.”
Lee groaned, but moved fast, rolling over to rummage in the bedside table. Then he was back, handing Heather both condoms. She’d knelt up over Danny, and now she opened a condom and rolled it down over Danny’s raging morning wood, smoothing it into place. That actually helped back him off a little, giving him some control.
“You too, Lee.” Heather turned to smile at Lee over her shoulder, which made her breasts do amazing things, pulling up to the perfect, perky centerfold shot.
He heard Lee snap the condom into place. “What now, baby?”
“Now Danny goes here…” Heather rose up, taking Danny’s cock in one hand to hold him still before sliding down over the head of Danny’s cock. Tight. So, so tight.
“I like it.” Lee’s voice came out guttural, and the look he shot Danny over Heather’s back almost burned Danny to a crisp it was so hot.
“You’ll like this even more. Get your fingers wet and get your cock all slick.” Heather was moving already, rising and falling like she just couldn’t stay still, and Danny moaned, reaching for her breasts.
“Okay.” Lee sucked his fingers, which might have been the most perverse thing Danny had ever seen somehow, then reached down, his hand moving out of sight.
“Now, you go here.” Heather reached back, and it took a moment, but both Danny and Lee realized what she meant about the same time, and both of them just howled when Lee slid home inside Heather’s ass.
“Christ! Heather. Baby. I can -- Dan, I can feel you.”
Danny could feel Lee too, right there inside Heather, and he squirmed, trying to get more.
Moaning, Heather bounced on them, pushing down, then back. Her tits filled Danny’s hands, her cunt grasping him, squeezing, and no one could stay still. Bucking, Danny pushed up, feeling the pressure when Lee slammed down, Heather caught between them, suspended in a net of pleasure.
The scent of their rutting rose around them, hot and musky and enough to make Danny’s mouth water. He panted, listening to Lee growl love words, listening to Heather cry out over and over.
The pressure built in his balls, the very idea of what he and Lee were doing to Heather enough to make him want to come, even when the reality was better than he could ever imagine. If he died tomorrow, today he was a happy man.
“Boys. Danny. Lee. Someone touch me.” Heather flailed, trying to get to someone’s hand, and Danny unclamped one hand from her breasts, but Lee beat him to it. Those thick, strong fingers pressed down to Heather’s clit, rubbing hard, pushing Heather even higher.
When Heather came around him, it was like an earthquake or something. She shook, her voice high and thin when she called their names, her head falling back against Lee’s chest.
Lee moaned, the sound agonized, and Danny could feel every pulse of Lee’s cock, every tiny movement.
Seconds later, Danny went off like a rocket, his cock aching as he shot, his balls emptying hard. He probably filled the damned condom to overflowing, as hard as he was pushing, as strong as each pulse moved through him.
They collapsed together, all of them panting, all of them laughing a little. “That was a damned fine idea, baby,” Lee said, kissing Heather’s nape, one hand stroking down Danny’s side.
“I try. Morning.” Heather kissed Danny on the mouth before turning her head to Lee let have the next kiss.
It was a surprisingly good morning, and in a weird way Danny had to be grateful to whoever had ruined his room. Waking up with Lee and Heather could become addictive.
Chapter Seven
It hadn’t worked. His warning had fallen short, obviously, because the little city wolf hadn’t gone away. No, instead Lee had gone to the alpha who’d been sticking his long, sensitive nose into everyone’s business.
He’d had to quit watching, because the alpha had put a sentry at Lee and Heather’s house, a big male that Lee was related to.
Frustration boiled up inside him, but he didn’t let it overwhelm him. Instead, he used it to focus his rage. The first night of the moon came tomorrow.
Tomorrow Lee and Heather and their little city wolf would pay.
* * *
“You ready to run with the big wolves, Dan?” Lee clapped Danny on the back, rubbing a little to release the obvious tension he felt in Danny’s muscles.
“I think so.”
“Don’t sound so sure.” The sun was making its way toward setting, and the moon was coming. Lee’s skin and bones told him, feeling wrong in their human form.
“I just wish your Logan had found the guy who trashed my room, is all. Maybe I should go run with the campus pack.”
“No way.” Baring his teeth, Lee growled a little. “They can’t protect you like I can.” He would protect what was his, both Danny and Heather. He’d fucking tear anyone up who came near them.
“My hero.” Danny smiled, his dark eyes a little haunted. Hunted.
“You’d better fucking believe it, baby.”
“You two ready to roll?” Heather came out of the bathroom wearing a loose pair of sweats and a T-shirt, and she was still the hottest thing Lee had ever seen. God, he loved her. He would talk to her folks in the morning, now that he’d talked to Logan. Let them know it was a love match as much as a pack thing.
“Ready.” Danny gave them both a smile, and this one reached his eyes.
“Let’s go, then.”
The pack tried to get as far away from town and the college as they could when the moon came, no one wanting to harm the non-wolf folks who lived among them. They met at a pre-arranged location, usually determined by Logan, and picked for terrain and game availability. They headed out in Lee’s truck, and almost an hour later they got to the big clearing where everyone was parked, the moon riding Lee hard. His hands shook on the steering wheel when he hit the brakes for the last time.
“Remember, baby. Stay close.” He said it to both of them, knowing he needed to be able to protect them from whoever or whatever the threat might be.
Heather nodded and Danny grunted, and Lee figured that was as good as it would get. Lee nodded at his cousin Gabe when he got out of the truck, knowing the big guy was there to protec
t his lovers, just like he was.
Everyone milled around, probably two hundred werewolves were there, ready to start the hunt. There would be some fighting, some fucking, and a lot of running. That was the way of it.
Danny crossed his arms over his chest and hunched his shoulders. Lee glanced at Heather, and as one unit they moved close, bracketing Danny in safety and warmth.
“It will be okay, baby. I promise.”
“I know. It’s just weird.”
Yeah, Lee imagined it was. The campus pack was way, way smaller than this. The scents alone had to be overwhelming. Logan came by, not saying a word, but nodding at them, those sharp eyes scanning the pack, his long nose vibrating.
Lee was sniffing too, trying to catch the scent of the guy who had trashed Danny’s room. With no luck, damn it.
“Here it comes.” Heather bounced and grinned. His girl loved the full moon, loved letting the wolf take over.
The moon broke free of the clouds in the sky overhead -- and boom. Lee’s body began to change, his face elongating, his arms and legs pulling in, then out as he sprouted a tail and ears. He’d learned long ago not to fight it; it was way less painful if you just let the wolf out of the cage instead of making him break the bars.
His senses sharpened as all four paws hit the ground, and he smelled his mates, then his alpha. There was another scent there, something he was supposed to be searching for, and Lee fought the urge to let the moon carry him off on his monthly scramble for prey. He stopped, his head tilting, his nose picking up every scent in a half-mile radius. There was Gabe, right there, six feet to his left. The sweet and spicy scent of Heather was close, too close for his good sense, almost. Then there was Danny. Less earthy, smelling almost like rain and cinders…
There. There it was. The trail of the asshole who’d tried to hurt what was his. Lee took off, following it, trusting Danny and Heather to be at his heels, to be close enough for Gabe to protect their back trail.