by Jane Jamison
As soon as they’d turned their backs, she scooted out of the bed and began dressing. “Is it that bad?” She paused when no one answered then started getting dressed again. “Come on, guys, how horrible can it be? Did you kill someone?”
She’d expected them to say something, maybe even chuckle, but nothing. Pulling her shirt on over her head, she tried again to lighten not only the sudden tension in the room but also the tightness surrounding her heart. “Seriously? Did you kick a puppy?”
They had to laugh at their own joke but didn’t. Their solemn faces struck her as they pivoted back around. “Please. You’re scaring me.”
Garner took her hand and pulled her to the end of the bed. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. Just remember one thing. They won’t hurt you.”
“They? Who? Your brothers?”
Brogan sat next to her. “He’s right. We’d rather die than hurt you.”
She fought to understand and failed. “I don’t get it, Garner. Why would you say that? Why would I ever think they’d hurt me? And why didn’t you include yourself?” She stared into his silver-blue eyes. “You wouldn’t hurt me, would you?”
“Never. But it’s going to be harder for you to believe that in a minute.”
“Just tell me.”
Brogan stood up and stood next to Sterling. “Tell her, Garner.”
Garner kept hold of her hands, squeezing them hard. “What you saw at Pearl’s was real.”
They were playing a game. They had to be. Otherwise…
“No. I dreamed that while I was knocked out. It wasn’t real.” She tried to pull her hands from Garner’s, but he held on. Alarm stiffened her neck. If she turned her head too far, it might break off.
“Pearl’s mates, Liam and Bill, are werewolves. They’re men who can change into wolves.” Sterling was the fun one, yet he was deadly serious now.
“No. You’re making this up. You’re trying to scare me. Why are you trying to scare me?”
How had they gone from loving, caring men to men who wanted to frighten her? Did they want her to leave now? Had they gotten what they’d gone after and no longer wanted her?
“We’re not.”
“You’re telling me they’re real. That what I saw, them changing into wolves, really happened.” She searched Garner’s face and saw he was telling the truth. The truth was written on his brothers’ faces, too.
Again, she tried to pull her hands away. She attempted to stand up, but he tugged her back down. “If this is real, then we have to tell everyone. They have to know that there are monsters in Fate.”
Her mind whirled, unable to believe her own voice. She was still unconscious. But if she was, then the lovemaking they’d shared was only a dream. Which would be worse?
“They’re not monsters.” Garner glanced at Brogan then Sterling. “They’re good men.” He paused and put more emphasis on his next words. “Just like my brothers.”
He wasn’t making sense. From the way he’d spoken, she could almost believe that he meant…
No. This is crazy. Either they’re crazy or I am.
“Brogan and Sterling.” She sought them out. Still, their stern expressions hadn’t changed. “You’re…werewolves.”
“That’s our secret.” Sterling looked to Brogan, his mouth parted as though searching for words he couldn’t find.
“Baby, about seven years ago, Sterling and I lived in New York City. We had the stupid idea that we could make it as actors.” He snorted. “Never mind that we didn’t have any talent. Like all the other unemployed actors, we took jobs as waiters and bartenders.”
“What does this have to do with anything? With us?” Couldn’t they hear the strain in her voice? She felt her throat close up.
“We want you to know the whole story.” Brogan’s eyes flashed with bits of amber. “We’re hoping that’ll help you understand better.”
Amber eyes.
Pearl’s men had amber eyes.
They’re werewolves.
She held back a laugh. She had to. If she didn’t, she’d never stop laughing the hysterical laughter of the insane.
“I was attacked.”
Her heart fluttered in her chest. The thought that anyone would attack Brogan was unthinkable.
“I was attacked by a werewolf. One minute I’m standing outside, alone, and then I woke up in the hospital. I knew something was different about me, inside me, but I didn’t know what it was.”
“They didn’t know what you were? What you’d become?”
“No. I didn’t even know. Not really. But I guess my new animal instincts took over, and I got my ass out of there. I shifted for the first time later that night.”
Brogan hung his head as though ashamed. “I shifted, and I attacked Sterling, changing him into a werewolf, too.”
Sterling shrugged. “I don’t blame him. Unless you’ve got a pack around you to help, it takes a while to get your wolf side under control. It took me a while, but now I’m happy he changed me.”
She was trying to understand, but it was hard. “Are you a werewolf, too, Garner?”
“No. Not yet.”
“We’ve tried to talk him into letting us change him, but he’s stubborn,” added Sterling.
“I wanted to wait until we found our mate.” Garner touched her cheek, a sweet caress with the back of his hand. “And now we have.”
“I’m your mate? I’m not sure I understand what that means.”
“It’s the same thing as being our wife. Just not legally and on paper. Around here, once you’ve accepted us as your mates, then that’s all anyone else needs.”
“Anyone else? There are more werewolves besides Pearl’s men?” How had she not noticed? Was she surrounded by people who could take animal forms? A tremor shook her.
“Easy, darlin’. There are a lot more, but they won’t hurt you, either. They aren’t like the werewolves in the movies. They’re men and women just like you and me. The only difference is that they have another side, their animal side.”
“I don’t know if I can believe this.” Even after seeing Pearl’s men, to believe the incredible was too hard.
“The best way to make you believe is to show you.”
Suddenly, she knew why they hadn’t bothered getting dressed. They’d known they’d have to show her what they were.
If she’d doubted her sanity earlier, she doubted it even more now. Sterling and Brogan began changing, their bodies blurring as though her vision had gone bad. For a moment, she considered the possibility that she had a concussion and was only now feeling the symptoms.
“Shouldn’t the doctor be here by now?” The feeling of her hands in Garner’s was the only thing keeping her grounded.
“Soon.” Garner leaned nearer. “Remember. No one here, no matter what they look like, no matter what form they take, is going to hurt you. I swear it on my life.”
His brothers’ bodies were changing. Bones broke with far too much clarity. Fur spread over smooth skin while limbs elongated and facial structure changed. Although it seemed like a lifetime, in only a matter of minutes, two of the men she’d come to love dropped to the floor.
On to their paws.
Oh shit.
Panic took over, ridding her of any thought except to run. She struck out, determined to fight to keep them away from her.
* * * *
The last thing Garner wanted to see was Heather frightened. He’d done everything he could to keep her calm, but in the end, he’d known what would happen. The first time he’d seen his brothers shift, he’d picked up a two-by-four and started swinging. What sane human wouldn’t?
Fortunately, hitting them with the board hadn’t hurt them other than giving them headaches and pissing them off. By the time he’d slammed the wood against their huge heads several times, he’d worn himself out so much that all he could do was to sit down in the middle of the barn and stare at them.
Finding out his brothers were werewolves had been a shock. How much worse
would that shock be when finding out that the men she trusted weren’t what she thought they were? Still, he’d expected her to scream, to freak out and cling to him—which might’ve felt pretty damn good—or to gape at them in disbelief. What he hadn’t planned on her doing was to fight back as he’d done. She fought back and then, once she realized how vulnerable she was against two large wolves, she took off as though she had two hounds from hell on her heels.
She was a lot faster than he’d imagined.
Dashing past his brothers, she made it to the bathroom door before he had time to catch her. When she grabbed the door and spun around to face them, her eyes were huge, her face white. With something akin to an animal’s pained whimper, she slammed the door closed.
He was halfway to the bathroom door when he heard his brothers growl. “Damn it. Don’t blame me. We should’ve eased into telling her. We damn sure shouldn’t have waited until after taking her to bed.” He could act indignant about the last one, but he’d had no more control than Sterling or Brogan. As a human, he’d craved getting between her legs. As werewolves, his brothers had an even harder task. They had to calm the lust of the beast as well as the man’s.
“Well, fuck, we screwed that up.” Sterling’s voice still contained some of his growl as he shifted back into his human body.
Garner put his hand against the door. “Heather, it’s okay. I told you. They won’t hurt you.”
“Leave me alone!”
He glanced at his brothers, hoping for a little help, but from their expressions, he could tell he wasn’t going to get any. Keeping his voice as calm and level as he could, he tried again. “Come out. They’ve changed back and are getting dressed.”
“No!”
“Damn it, Heather, open this door.”
Garner glared at Brogan. “Yelling at her isn’t going to help.”
But his brother wasn’t listening. “I’m ordering you to open the door.”
“No!”
“She’s not a werewolf, man, and she’s not part of our pack, either. Ordering her around is only going to make her feel more threatened.”
Brogan wanted to argue, his mouth working, but he was logical enough to see the sense in what Garner had said. Sterling looked to Brogan and took his cue from him.
Noise came from the other side of the door. Was she searching for a weapon? Or was she doing something even worse, like trying to get out the window and along the roof to safety? He prayed she wouldn’t take the risk.
“Heather, they’re still the same men they were before.”
“They’re werewolves! Animals!”
He cringed, knowing how her remark had to have hurt his brothers. “You’re right.” He shrugged. What else could he say? If agreeing with her got her to listen and, hopefully, calm down, then he’d agree with her. “They’re both. Yet even when they’re in their wolf forms, they still know who you are. They still wouldn’t hurt anyone, much less you.” At least not without deciding to hurt them. An attack against their inner wolves would be an attack against the men they were.
“Go away. I’m not coming out.”
At least she wasn’t shouting. Was she calming down? He kept after her. “Where are you going to go, darlin’?” He couldn’t ask her about going out the window without fearing that he’d be giving her the idea.
“I don’t know. Please. Go away.”
Stepping away from the door, he whispered to Sterling. “Go out and make sure she’s not going to try slipping out the window and onto the roof.”
Sterling nodded and took off. Brogan eased closer to the door.
“Baby, it’s me.”
“Go away.”
“What’s going on up here? Sterling about knocked me off my feet hurtling down the stairs.”
They turned to see the older man standing in the doorway. Although he was human and lived in another town, he knew about shifters and other supernaturals of Fate.
“Hey, Doc.” Maybe having Doc Brown talk to her would help.
“Our mate has locked herself in the bathroom,” said Brogan.
“There’s more to it than that. Brogan and Sterling shifted to show her what they are.”
“Oh, it’s the big reveal day, huh?” The doc hefted his bag from one hand to the other. “I take it she got scared and ran.”
“Yeah. Straight into there,” added Brogan. He leaned against the wall next to the door.
“Are y’all slowing down? You couldn’t catch her?” Doc was fighting a smile, but not fighting it hard enough.
“She was faster than Garner.”
“Good. Y’all could use another fast female in your pack.”
Garner could’ve struck the older man. He wasn’t helping at all. If anything, he was hurting their chances of getting her out. “Will you two knock it off? Help me get her out of there.”
“Well, from what you’ve told me, she seems to have recovered from the wreck. Call me if she feels dizzy or faints. As far as the other thing goes, it’s none of my concern. I’ll leave you guys to it. I’ve got patients who actually need me. Good luck, boys.” Doc Brown gave them a smirk then pivoted around and stalked out of the room.
Brogan pounded his fist again the door just once, but it was enough to make her squeal in surprise. “Damn it, Heather, come out of there so we can talk.”
Nothing happened for over a minute. No sounds, no refusals to come out. Nothing.
Was that a good thing? Was she calming down enough to listen?
“Hey, darlin’, you know you can’t stay in the bathroom forever, right? Why not talk about this?”
Again, silence. Please tell me she hasn’t crawled out the window.
“We had to show you. Just like you needed to tell us about your son, we needed to tell you what my brothers are. Would you have believed it if they hadn’t shifted?”
Silence and then a soft whispered answer. “No.”
“Then isn’t it better that they showed you now?” Granted, it would’ve been better to have told her before they’d taken her into their bed, but he wasn’t about to point it out.
“Y–yes.”
Brogan gave him a smile but kept quiet, letting Garner continue.
“Okay then. How about coming out and talking? You know who they are, They’re men who love you more than life itself just like I do. We’re ready to commit the rest of our lives to you. We promise we’ll love you more than any men have ever loved their woman. We’ll protect you and keep you safe.”
Sterling returned just as he finished. “He’s right, Heather. Without you, we’re nothing.”
“Darlin’, we know this is tough to take, but you’ve got to remember them as men. Remember lying in our arms. Remember everything we made you feel.” He pressed his palm against the door, trying to connect with her any way he could. “You know us, Heather. From that first day, you knew us. If you’ll just listen to your feelings and not to your fear, you’ll know I’m telling you the truth. I’m human, and they’re shifters, but when it’s all said and done, we’re just plain people who love you so much it hurts.”
As an alpha, as a werewolf, and as a man who wasn’t used to flowery language, Brogan would have the hardest time telling her his feelings. “Baby, you’re our mate. Whatever we have to do to make you happy, we’ll do.”
Garner saw his older brother swallow before taking the biggest risk of his life.
“If you want us to leave and never see you again, then just say so. If that’s what will make you feel safe, if that’s what will make you happy, then say the words and we’re gone.”
Garner couldn’t have been prouder of his older brother than at that moment. Proud and scared as hell that she’d take him up on his pledge.
“Please.” She sounded small and fragile. “Leave me alone. I need…time to think.”
“Okay. We’ll be downstairs when you want to talk to us.” Garner motioned for his brothers to leave. After one last glance, he followed them.
* * * *
Hea
ther remained by the bathroom window. She’d considered crawling onto the roof, but she doubted she could’ve jumped off without getting hurt. Instead, she stayed next to the window, ready to take that risk if they broke down the door.
When she heard them going downstairs, she finally tiptoed over to the door. Her hand was on the doorknob, but she stopped. They’d given her acceptance, and now they were asking for her to accept them. Could she?
She needed time to think. Slumping to the floor, she started to cry.
They’re werewolves.
If she repeated it often enough, would it help her believe what she’d seen? Not only were Pearl’s men werewolves, but her men were, too.
Her men. When had she started thinking of them in that way? The truth was, no matter what happened next, she’d always think of them as her men.
The things they’d said to her had set her heart to racing. Even as she pictured Sterling and Brogan as wolves, she couldn’t stop the joy their words had given her. Her tears dried up as she remembered how they’d held her.
They might be animals, but they were also caring and loving men. Men who not only set her lust on fire, but also filled the emptiness in her heart.
But they’re werewolves.
Her head fought with her yearning. She needed them as much as any woman could need any man. They’d listened to her past and had accepted her for what she was regardless of what she’d done. Even because of what she’d done. Other men might do the same, but would they do it with such openness? Would they tell her that not only did she not have to be ashamed she could be proud of giving her son a better life?
They’re amazing men.
More than the animals they could change into, they were the best men she’d ever dreamed of loving.
Garner wasn’t a werewolf. Did that mean she should stay with him alone? Yet thinking of Garner meant thinking of Sterling and Brogan. She couldn’t separate them. They were three parts to one whole. One whole romance she’d long for since she was young enough to dream of a future filled with love and family.
She was thinking crazy again. That was all there was to it. If she had any sanity at all left, she had to leave, had to run. Nothing else made any sense. Several times she reached up to take hold of the knob to pull herself to her feet, only to let her hand slide off.