Shifter Romance Box Set

by Unknown

  A gentle hand brushed Lacey's hair back and she looked up. Rebecca knelt close to them, with a look of concern in her eyes.

  "I just wanted to make sure you weren't ripping my mate's throat out." Rebecca smiled as she traced a finger down Lacey's face.

  "She's a hellcat." Jeremiah chuckled as he gazed back from his supine position. "But I like it."

  A blush crept into Lacey's cheeks. "I'm sorry—I didn't mean—"

  "Don't worry about it sweetie," Rebecca whispered. "It's the beast. Sometimes you have to let it out."

  Rebecca suddenly gasped and her eyes fluttered closed as her back arched.

  Mark gripped her thighs, his hips pressed to the woman's backside. "She's not the only one." He gave Lacey a wink.

  Lacey closed her eyes but a grin played on her lips as she released Jeremiah's wrists. Then her hands traveled down to his pants. With renewed confidence she pulled them down his legs, freeing his hard cock. Returning to a crouch, she pressed against him, rubbing his length.

  Rebecca leaned down to her mate and their mouths meshed in an upside down kiss. A strange sensation washed over Lacey as she realized that the other woman was sharing the taste of her. Although Lacey had never been with another woman, it was as if Rebecca were going down on her by proxy.

  Curiosity filled her as she glanced up at Mark. Then she gave him a seductive smile as she rocked her hips.

  "How is she?"

  Mark's teeth sharpened as his fingers dug into Rebecca's flesh. "Wonderful." But his eyes remained fixed on Lacey; his breath coming in short pants in time with his thrusts.

  As the other couple licked and sucked, their tongues dodging between their lips, Lacey angled Jeremiah's cock up. A moan trailed out of her mouth as his girth spread her lips. As her fingers lengthened into claws, she lightly scratched down his chest. He whimpered, his own hand digging into her knees.

  She raked him with her claws, scoring his flesh with shallow furrows as she rode him. He might be the leader of his little enclave, and he could command powers she didn't understand. But in that moment, her wild instincts drove her to claim him.

  And Mark must have felt that same drive. His muzzle lengthened and his lip curled as he slammed into Rebecca's backside, sending her forward. Her mouth gaped as her eyes closed. Then she snarled as Jeremiah latched onto one of her breasts.

  Eyeing Mark, Lacey rocked her hips, bringing her pelvis down on Jeremiah's crotch with force. His cock jabbed into her, bumping a spot deep inside her. She whined as waves of pleasure spread out from her sex, spreading over her thighs and up to her navel. Her breasts bounced on her chest, her nipples erect. And her face flushed with a fevered radiance as the beast clawed up from the shadows in her mind.

  This was what she'd always known that she wanted. Oh, not transforming into a werewolf. Not that specifically. But the strange happenstance of their condition was surely what allowed her to revel with such unrestrained passion, fully accepting her own needs and those of her husband.

  She gloried in her arousal and drank in the powerful scents blooming around her. Lust, both masculine and feminine, light and dark, earthy and heavenly. All intertwined and teaming with life.

  Jeremiah whined as he stretched her open again and again: gliding, thrusting, bumping deep into her. His face extended as rows of pointed teeth gleamed under his curled lip. Then she felt him throb and swell inside her. With a guttural moan, he tensed, his clawed hands digging into her thighs.

  His warm seed spurted inside her, filling her, and dribbling out over her flushed lips.

  Her clit twitched with each smack against Jeremiah's firm body and his swollen cock pulled at her entrance, refusing to let her go. With resonance, the tantalizing pleasure grew, filling her with urgency. Then with a bright burst of starlight behind her dark eyelids, she spilled over, flooding with ecstasy.

  A growl rolled through her muzzle as her sharp teeth clenched. Panting, Jeremiah held her with his knot, locked in primal exhaustion, prisoner to their mutual relief.

  Her eyes fluttered open and focused on Mark's furry coat. She gazed into his predatory eyes as her chest heaved. He stared back with hunger as he pounded into Rebecca.

  Then his long jaw shot up, his head back, his breath hissing out his muzzle. Rebecca's wolfish eyes widened and she yelped as her wobbly legs buckled under her chest. She braced over Jeremiah, whimpering under Mark's tense hold.

  Lacey's muscles went lax and she sank against Rebecca's shoulder, pressing down on her and Jeremiah both, as Mark let out a groan. She grinned under her sleepy eyes as she watched her husband twitch and jerk, knowing that he was trapping Rebecca, as she herself was trapped. Chained by the beast, shackled by desire.

  Unleashing the Wolfman

  Mark didn't remember how long the four of them lay together, just that it was a comfortable sort of companionship that he hadn't expected. Warm sprawled bodies, furred limbs. Like the easy kinship of wolves sharing a den.

  But eventually the transformation receded. As his human skin and senses began to return, he rolled away from Rebecca and recaptured Lacey in the protective circle of his arms.

  His wife was amazing, and he needed to show her that. Part of him couldn't believe that she'd even allowed this. And it had been mind-blowing, a fantasy come to life out of nowhere. But the whole thing was worthless if she didn't enjoy it.

  Lacey gave him a sleepy smile. Mark pressed his lips to her forehead and stroked her hair. That was a good sign. He let his shoulders relax into the pillows.

  Jeremiah gazed at the couple as Rebecca nestled against him. "The two of you are strong, but you haven't always been werewolves. When were you bitten?"

  Lacey sighed. "Well, a few months ago." Her brows pinched as she looked up at Mark. "For me."

  An ache clenched his heart and he looked down at his fist, unsure how to respond. "I wish I'd known. I might have been able to stop myself."

  Rebecca's eyes widened. "You didn't know you had changed?"

  "I had no clue." Mark brushed his hand through his hair. "I blacked out every time."

  "That is an extreme case." Jeremiah frowned. "When were you attacked?"

  "I was never attacked, or bitten, or otherwise."

  Rebecca raised an eyebrow. "You had to have been. Those who are born with the curse know early on, usually after puberty."

  Mark shrugged. "Closest I've ever been to a wolf was at the zoo. I've never seen one in the wild."

  Lacey cleared her throat. "Will we pass the curse on to our children?"

  "Oh, no, honey," Rebecca said with a tone full of sympathy. "Just like us, the two of you cannot have children."

  "What?" Lacey jerked, sitting straight up. "What do you mean we can't have children?"

  Rebecca's eyes were shadowed in the candlelight. "I'm sorry, two werewolves can't breed." She glanced at Jeremiah.

  He rubbed his jaw. "There have been extensive studies into it for as long as the Council has been around. They've tried to understand why, but the reason remains elusive." He flicked his gaze to Mark. "There's something about the pairing that prevents the fertilization process."

  It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice-cold water on Mark's head. But he managed to wrap his arm around Lacey, to pull her back against his body. He knew she was crushed. And he couldn't blame her.

  He'd grown up in a large family and always expected to continue that tradition: raising his own kids in a boisterous home full of love and support. The scientist in him rebelled against the whole premise. Who was this "Council" Jeremiah was talking about? And what the hell did they know about studying anything?

  Later, he promised himself. He would figure something out later. Right now, he needed to be there for his wife.

  "You said people can be born with it. So it has to be possible."

  "They're hybrids." Jeremiah rubbed his hand over Rebecca's smooth shoulder. "Everyone who is born comes from a human, werewolf pairing. Even then, it's almost always between a human female and a male w
erewolf."

  "That doesn't make any sense." Mark knuckled his forehead. "I know my family's not like that. And I've never been bitten."

  Lacey gasped as her unfocused eyes stared off at something beyond their vision. Then she whispered, "It was your work."

  Mark grimaced. Part of him had guessed that his work with animal blood might have been the cause, but rather than explore the possibility further, he'd always pushed the thought away. Too complicated.

  Yet it was difficult to deny when faced with Lacey's words. And it made all too much sense: the two situations had happened so close together. Truthfully, he should have discussed this with her earlier. It might have made the whole thing easier to admit to himself.

  "You're right," he finally said with a nod.

  Rebecca flashed a glance at Jeremiah before returning to Mark. "Now I don't understand."

  Mark took a deep breath. "I was doing extractions for wolf's blood when the centrifuge broke from its stabilizer. It exploded." He lifted his hand showing the faded scar along the underside of his forearm. "I was cut by flying glass... tainted with blood."

  A long whistle sailed through Jeremiah's lips. "You might just be the only werewolf alive who was neither bitten nor born as such. I never heard of the infection spreading that way."

  Rebecca cocked her head. "What exactly were you testing for? Werewolves can't be darted. They're too strong."

  Mark grinned as he tried to imagine himself with a large orange tag on his ear. But she was right. How did werewolf's blood get in with the batch?

  "The lab was studying wildlife abnormalities." Mark crossed his arms. "I assumed it was federally funded. Beyond that, I don't know."

  Jeremiah quirked his lips as he stared at him.

  Mark raised an eyebrow. "You didn't realize you had a multi-million dollar testing facility in your backyard?"

  Rebecca blushed as Jeremiah shook his head. Then she cupped her cheek and looked away. "We've been so isolated..."

  Lacey bent her knees and braced her arms over her legs. "I think we've all had some surprises tonight. But right now I don't see what we c—"

  "Jer!" The shout came from outside.

  "Was that Torry?" Jeremiah jumped to his feet.

  "Rangers have come back." Rebecca slipped her shift over her body. "I'll go see what's going on." She raced down the tunnel.

  The rest of them dressed and strolled to the entrance of the cave. Jeremiah glanced over his shoulder. "Hopefully your friend made it back."

  Rebecca stood with her arms crossed as she listened to Torry. Jax leaned against the stone wall, his furry head downcast.

  Mark glanced at Lacey, whose eyes widened as she stared at the black-coated beast man. That's right, she hadn't seen the half-shifted werewolf before. But Mark wasn't in the mood for introductions or pleasantries. Instead, his eyes narrowed. "Where's Cole?"

  The heated conversation cut off abruptly as Torry glanced up. Rebecca took a deep breath but wouldn't meet his gaze.

  "Tell them," Torry said curtly as he gestured at Jax.

  The black beast gazed at them from under his heavy brow. "We got separated." He shrugged his shoulders.

  Lacey's mouth worked, then she swallowed. "You left him?"

  Jax leaned his head back and stared down at her. "Look wolfling, the forest is crawling with Huntsmen. I wasn't going to get nabbed because the baby wolf couldn't keep up."

  Blood pounded in Mark's ears. His hand jerked, but he forced down the urge to slug the wolfman. He turned to Torry. "We need to go find him."

  Lacey nodded. "Please."

  Jax chuckled. "Good luck with that. The Hunt will have you skinned and mounted by morning."

  Rebecca frowned, her arms tight across her chest.

  A careful hand pressed to Mark's shoulder. "Jax is right," Jeremiah said. "We'll wait for morning."

  Mark shrugged out of his grasp. "The hell we will." He jabbed a finger at the half-shifted beast. "I never should have left him with you."

  Jax dropped his arms and snarled. "It's not my fault the country boy doesn't know his nose from his ass."

  The wolfman's muzzle kept moving but white noise roared in Mark's head, drowning out the rest of the words. And at that moment, Mark didn't care. Hell, he wanted Jax to keep talking, so he could silence the half-creature himself. His hand clenched into a fist.

  Lacey grabbed his arm. "No," she pleaded. "Don't do this now."

  With a quick glance around, he saw Torry with his lips pressed tight, Rebecca covering her mouth, and Jeremiah braced to tackle him. Red clouded his eyesight but he took deep breaths to calm himself. Damnit, he had to think. His anger wouldn't help now.

  He closed his eyes and focused his mind. Where would Cole go? No, Cole wouldn't go anywhere on his own. He was too much of a newcomer in the area and he'd always looked to Lacey and Mark for direction. The cowboy was a decent guy, but he wasn't much of a threat... to anyone, let alone a group of armed wolf-agents roaming the woods.

  So Cole must have been captured already. But where would they take him? The closest city was hours away, and an airport even farther than that. Considering that Mark had seen the black sedan prowling for days, these Huntsmen—or whoever they were—must have some kind of local operation.

  The question was where? He gritted his teeth. Not in town. People talked and he would have heard something. With a savage bite, he chomped down on his tongue and let the pain and metallic taste clear his head.

  Then his eyes flashed open. The smell. The goddamned agents hadn't smelled like the forest in their wolf forms. They'd smelled like a hospital. And Cole had said he remembered a medical facility. Like a rubber band, the last piece snapped into place. The only thing remotely like that around here was...

  "They're at my lab," Mark said with calm conviction.

  Torry's jaw dropped and he glanced at his pack leader.

  "Are you certain?" Jeremiah asked.

  "Dead certain. It explains their strange smell." Mark crossed his arms. "And I'm willing to bet Cole is there too. I think they're performing experiments on werewolves."

  "That would explain how they got the blood." Rebecca pinched her chin. "This changes everything."

  Jax turned to her. "You can't possibly be going along with this bullshit leap of logic."

  Mark jabbed his finger at Jax and glared before he turned back to the pack leaders. "I don't know what they're after but they have to know about you hiding here."

  Lacey grabbed Mark's bicep with both her hands. "What are they going to do to Cole?"

  Mark gave her a warm smile. "They're not going to do anything to Cole." Then he looked straight at Jeremiah. "Because we're going to get him back."

  * * * *

  "Wake up, doggie."

  A sharp jab to the ribs rocked Cole out of a deep and dreamless sleep. His eyes were sticky and the room spun as he shook his head. Something weighed down on his collar bone.

  He reached a sluggish hand to his throat and touched cold, hard iron wrapped loosely around his neck. A thick chain clinked as it trailed over the ground, secured to a loop on the collar.

  "What—" He rasped with parched lips. Memories trickled back at a frustratingly slow pace.

  He'd been with Mark. They fled from men in suits who turned out to be werewolves. Then he was captured but he couldn't remember how.

  "Why did you come back?" asked a husky, feminine voice. "I went through a lot for you."

  A boot clipped his shoulder, sending him sprawling onto his back. He gritted his teeth as fire shot through his arm. Thoughts tumbled in his head, falling out of order and he desperately tried to snatch one.

  "Please," he wheezed. "Stop kicking me."

  As awareness crept back into his senses, Cole saw the room was white-walled and bare. Harsh fluorescent lights shone down, burning phantom afterimages into his sensitive eyesight.

  He wore loose cargo pants, but his chest and feet were naked. The concrete floor scraped against his bare skin.

&nbs
p; Then the chain pulled taut, yanking him into a sitting position, the metal collar smacking the back of his neck, pinching his flesh. His eyes twitched and his stomach rolled with the sudden movement.

  A merciless fist gripped the hair above his forehead and a hot breath blew across his face.

  "Now I have to hurt you, little doggie."

  Fighting the vertigo, he snarled; irritation stewed in his gut. "Why do you keep callin' me—"

  His voice caught in his throat as he stared into glistening, gray-blue eyes. Her features were strong but smooth, her nose and cheeks covered in fine freckles. A mane of dirty blonde hair covered her ears and cascaded over her wide shoulders.

  A pendant shaped like golden spurs hung on a fine necklace, suspended over her generous cleavage. Cole's heart fluttered and moisture returned to his mouth as he licked his lips. Where have I seen her before? Heat bloomed on his face as he tried to place her.

  "Do I know you?" Cole croaked.

  She sneered. "You forgot?"

  Her voice had a hint of a drawl that reminded Cole of home. No, maybe not. Somewhere else. But fragments of his memory jumbled together as he tried to place where.

  "Sorry I have to do this to you. You should have stayed away."

  Then she released him, and rose from her knees to tower over him. A tight black tank top covered her well-defined chest and extra-short denim shorts barely covered her curvy hips. A tiny strand of a thong peeked over the top of her waistband, and if he angled his neck just right he could see the lush contours of her perfectly round backside.

  Her full lips pressed together in a grim line and she tapped a riding crop on her thigh. And yet he could only gape at her beauty. She's an Amazon goddess.

  "Good dogs obey." Her hand swung and the crop smacked his arm as he shielded his face.

  The crack of the impact stung his ears more than his skin. He winced—not because it hurt though. No, it was another distraction, adding to the chaos of his thoughts.

  "I don't know what you're talking about," he replied in earnest.

  His memories were thick like molasses, and trudging through them was painstaking. He and Mark had been in the woods. That much was clear. Then other wolves and a fight, but it was hazy. And overshadowing it all, a grinning monster with razor-sharp teeth set against black fur.