by Becca Van
“That’s not possible,” Krista whispered hoarsely. “Is it?”
“Apparently it is,” Kailin said.
Bas nodded. “Somehow, long before our time, a polar bear and a saber-tooth tiger mated. Half of our genealogy comes from that pairing on our fathers’ side and our human half from our mother’s. We don’t know how it came about, but in our shifter culture, it’s normal for brothers to share a mate. That’s been going on as far back as we can trace.”
When Krista didn’t say anything else but just blinked up at him, he shoved his jeans and underwear down over his hips and thighs, then kicked them off. His brothers followed suit. He was glad that Kailin had seen he was about to take the rest of his clothes off and closed her eyes, because there was no way on earth he wanted to deal with the other woman’s mates’ jealous anger and possessiveness. If things got out of hand and they ended up fighting, they were likely to scare Krista stupid. If Kailin had seen his hard, aching cock, he was sure there would have been hell to pay.
Pushing those thoughts aside, he stood straight and still as did his brothers as she gazed at each of them from under her lowered lashes. Her cheeks were so pink they were sure to be hot to the touch, and if it had been dark, he wondered if they’d glow.
Hs shoved his whimsical thoughts away once more and sank down to the floor on his knees. “Keep your eyes on us, baby. The change happens fast, and I don’t want you to miss it.”
Krista didn’t react, but at least she didn’t glance away. Bas let his inner beast have free rein and embraced the other half of his soul. His muscles and bones began to ripple, and as his sabear surged forth, a bright white-blinding light flashed about the room as the magic of shifting shape washed over him.
Two more lights flashed as his brothers accepted the animalistic sides to their personalities.
When he looked at Krista, man and beast moaned with concern. All the color in her cheeks had leeched out, leaving her so pale he could easily discern the blue veins under her now translucent milky skin.
“Wh…that’s…oh. My. God.” Krista covered her gaping mouth with her hand as she panted loudly. With his enhanced senses, he could hear how hard and fast her heart was beating, and he was worried she was about to faint.
Just as he was about to take a step toward his mate, Kailin opened her eyes and turned toward Krista. “Take a deep breath and hold it to the count of five, Krista,” she instructed. “Good, now count as you breathe out slowly and do it again, and again until your heartrate and breathing slow.”
“Are they real?” Krista asked. “Am I imagining them? What the hell was in that coffee?”
“Nothing, I promise. You’re not hallucinating,” Kailin said. “Shifters are real, Krista.”
Kailin stood and Krista quickly scrambled to her feet. Bas remained statue still even though he wanted to go to her and steady her when she took a wobbly step in their direction. She stared at his five-inch-long, curved, tusk-like, canine teeth before looking at his brothers. She took another step closer and then another and another, stopping only when she was a few feet from him. “Can you understand me?”
Bas nodded, then held his breath as she lifted a trembling hand toward him. She hesitated with her hand hovering inches from his muscled chest. “Can I touch you?”
Bas plopped his ass onto the floor and nodded again. He shivered when she dug her fingers into his thick white fur and caressed him. Goose bumps rushed over every inch of his body, and though he tried to stifle his animal’s moan of pleasure, he wasn’t successful. She jumped back from him, and he was disappointed she was no longer touching him even though he was in his other skin.
Darian Blythe, one of Kailin’s mates, was standing against the wall separating the living room and kitchen/dining room. He straightened and walked further into the room. “Don’t be scared of Bas and his brothers, Krista. They’re retired SEALs and would never do anything to hurt you or anyone else, even while they’re sabears unless they were being threatened. We’re all very protective of women and children. The moaning sound was one of approval. Bas’s beast likes you touching him.”
“He does?” Krista asked.
“Yeah.” Darian smiled.
“So, he wasn’t going to bite me?”
“No. He’d chew off his own leg to keep you safe if it was necessary.”
Krista crept closer again, muttering under her breath. “I can’t believe how big you all are. You’re huge men but as…sabears, you’re massive. Intimidating.”
Bas shook his head, hoping she understood he was negating her last word. He gazed at his brothers, glanced toward the floor, and met their eyes again. He didn’t need to speak to them telepathically for them to understand his silent direction. Byron and Beck both sat down on their asses.
“This is so amazing,” she whispered and met Bas’s gaze. “Does it hurt to change?”
He shook his head again then chuffed out a breath when she started patting him again. One of his front legs twitched as the urge to lift his paw from the floor and wrap her up and pull her against him shot through his animal’s and man’s soul, but he kept still. She dug her fingers into his fur, and another shiver shuddered down his spine as she scratched his flesh. “Can you stand up again?” she asked.
Bas waited until she stepped back and shoved to all four paws. While her heart was beating faster than normal, he could no longer scent nervousness, or, thank fuck, fear. She was excited, but that wasn’t a surprise considering they’d just changed forms in front of her. Krista lightly stroked a finger down one of his elongated tusk-like teeth, and when she got to the sharp point, she touched the tip with the pad of her finger. “So sharp,” she gasped out. As she moved from view down his side, she placed her hand on his shoulder and ran it over his body as she walked around him.
Disappointment filled him when she walked closer to Byron, but his brothers and their inner animals needed the attention of their mate, too. He wasn’t about to begrudge them such a special one-time moment. Bas followed her path with his eyes as she patted and caressed his brothers’ beasts. By the time she was back to where she’d started there was a smile on her face. Her blue eyes seemed to sparkle from within and her full lips curved up with joy. He was enamored of her and could have stared at her for hours, days, weeks on end.
She’d taken their differences without hardly batting an eye, and Bas just hoped she took their declaration that she was their mate, just as well.
If she decided they weren’t the men for her, it would destroy him.
* * * *
Krista couldn’t believe what she was seeing with her own eyes, but there was no way she could keep denying that shape-shifters were real. The proof was standing right in front of her. This was one of the most surreal moments of her life, and she was taking everything in so she could remember when she was old and gray.
She’d touched each of the sabears in turn, patting and scratching them as she listened for those moaning, chuffing sounds. Heat suffused her cheeks when she envisaged touching the three men in the same way. She tried to push the fantasy from her mind, but for some reason it stayed front and center. The three Tenant men were handsome and sexy, and her body responded as it had to no other man before them. Her breasts felt swollen and her nipples were hard and achy. Her pussy was wet and getting wetter, and her clit was throbbing so hard she wasn’t sure how much longer she could stand it.
With a sigh of frustrated desire, she backed away from the animals and sat on the sofa again. She glanced about the room to find that she was alone other than the three monstrously huge sabears. She’d been so entranced by them she hadn’t noticed when Darian and Kailin left.
When the hair and bodylines of the three animals began to shimmer, she knew they were about to shift back. Krista closed her eyes, not wanting to be blinded by the bright, white light again, but then she opened them quickly since she didn’t want to miss them changing back.
She blinked a few times to clear the spots from her vision after the
flash and couldn’t help but stare at the three muscular, naked men. How she’d forgotten that they had no clothes on, she had no clue, but figured it was because she’d been so astounded by their sabears. Now she wished she’d kept her eyes closed. The longer she looked at their bare bodies, the more aroused she became.
All three of them had impressive hard-ons, and while the sizes of their erect dicks was intimidating, she couldn’t make herself look away. She subconsciously licked her lips and almost moaned when she saw their hard cocks twitch and bob. When her pussy clenched, causing more cream to dampen her already soaked panties, she squeezed her eyes closed. If she’d kept gazing at those inspiring dicks she could have ended up embarrassing herself and doing something totally out of character.
Krista wasn’t a virgin since she had sex a couple of times, but she wasn’t a pro, either. She’d never orgasmed with her boyfriend at the time she’d been in a relationship and had decided mixing with the opposite sex wasn’t worth her while. She’d met Tony at college while studying for her teaching degree. They’d dated for the total of six months, and she’d slept with him after four. She’d thought she was in love with him but had quickly found out she was only infatuated. The ass had dumped her after their second sexual encounter and chased after one of the popular girls in his major. She’d been devastated at the time but had concentrated on her school work instead of pining over what could have been.
She’d had the last laugh even if he didn’t know it, since Tony had failed to get his accounting degree. The idiot had been too busy partying and playing the field to worry over his school work.
“You can look now, darlin’,” Beck said.
Krista opened her eyes just as the three brothers were pulling their T-shirts back over their heads. She eyed the brawny chests and sighed with disappointment when they were once more covered. When she noticed they were all only wearing short-sleeved T-shirts, she shivered but this time as she imagined how cold they had to be. Here she was wearing layer upon layer and she was still on the cool side. The only things she didn’t have on were her coat, hat, mittens, boots, and scarf. She was wearing fleece-lined slipper boots as well as thick woolen socks. The cold didn’t seem to faze them, and they still had bare feet.
“Aren’t you cold?”
Byron shook his head as he walked toward her. He sat on her left, and then Beck moved to sit on her right. Bas stepped forward and then knelt down near her feet. Her heart flipped and then pounded hard and fast at their close proximity. When she sucked in a breath she nearly whimpered. They smelled so damn good, she wanted to breathe them in again and again. Bastian’s aroma was spicy and warm. Beck’s scent was lemony, and Byron’s had an icy, pine tinge to it. Her mouth watered as she imagined licking them all over, and she shifted in her seat. Her pussy was so damn wet her panties were uncomfortably sticky, and her clit wouldn’t stop pulsating along with her heartbeat.
When she heard one of the men growl, she realized she was sitting there with her eyes closed like a lump of lard. They probably thought she was insane. She opened her eyes and gasped when she saw that all three of them were giving her hungry, heated looks.
A shudder skipped up her spine when Bastian placed his hands on her jeans-covered knees. “You are so fucking beautiful.”
She swallowed around the lump in her throat but kept quiet because she was worried that if she opened her mouth to speak she would end up begging him or his brothers to kiss her. Or she’d do something stupid like making the first move, and that would probably make her look like a whore. Krista had never chased after a man in her life and she wasn’t about to start doing that now. She was only ever confident when she was dealing with kids in a classroom setting. No matter how much she craved to feel their touch and their kisses, she wasn’t going to get involved. She had too much else to worry about.
Namely the men from the gang back in New York City who were hellbent on revenge.
Krista knew they weren’t going to give up on her until they’d avenged one of their members. It didn’t matter to those assholes that she’d been defending innocent children, nor that she hadn’t meant to kill that young man. She’d done what she had to, to keep her students safe.
She was just glad that the people on the island didn’t seem to know what had happened and what she’d done. That made her think about whether they had TV reception. She glanced at the wall directly opposite the sofa and saw that there was a huge flat-screen TV on it. She frowned as she pondered over things. The incident had been televised nation and worldwide. Did they not recognize her? Had they not seen the news broadcasts?
“What’s wrong, baby?” Bastian asked. “You’re not scared of us because we can shift, are you?”
“No,” she answered sincerely. Krista wasn’t worried about them hurting her at all, and that made her pause. She’d never trusted anyone implicitly before, and she couldn’t work out why she did them. Sadness filled her heart and soul as she remembered the way her parents had treated her and her siblings. Tears burned the back of her eyes, but she shoved the emotion away. Now wasn’t the time to reflect on how she’d been such a disappointment to her parents.
When she breathed in the men’s intoxicating fragrances again, she couldn’t stop a whimper from escaping from between her parted lips. Krista was so turned on she began to perspire, and she knew if she sat surrounded by them much longer she was going to do something she’d probably end up ashamed of.
Just before she could ask Bastian to move aside so she could gain her feet and put a little distance between them, he spoke. “We feel it, too, baby.”
“What?”
“We feel the heat sparking between you and us, too, sweetness,” Byron said.
Krista shook her head and pushed at Bas’s hands, which still covered her knees, but it was like trying to move a brick wall. He wasn’t hurting her, but he wouldn’t let her shove his hands off her body, either.
“You can deny it all you like, darlin’,” Beck said as he interlaced his fingers with hers. “But we can see it in your eyes just as I know you’ve seen it in ours.”
“I’m not here to get entangled with the opposite sex.” She frowned at Beck. “I’m here to do a job.”
Bas grasped her chin, turning her eyes back to him. “That may be, baby, and we know you won’t shirk your responsibilities. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean you aren’t allowed to have a life outside of school hours.”
Krista shook her head. She’d only just met these men and didn’t think it was conducive for her to get emotionally involved with them. She was going to be living with them for the next however long until one of the rentals became available to her. If she started something with them and it didn’t work out, then where would she be? Would she be stuck here with them and have them ending up hating her?
“Talk to us, Krista,” Byron said. “Tell us what you’re thinking about.”
“I am attracted to you,” she said without meaning to. When they smiled at her, she held up a finger so she could continue. “That doesn’t mean I should get involved with you all. I’ve had one serious boyfriend in my life and that didn’t work out so well. What if we start something and you find out you don’t even really like me? We only met a few hours ago. This is moving way too fast. I’m overwhelmed with everything I’ve learned, had my mind blown by the realization that shifters are real.”
“We’ll give you all the time you need, Krista,” Bas said. “We’re not going to pressure you into doing something you’re not ready for.”
“What’s between us isn’t going to go away, darlin’,” Beck said then inhaled deeply before continuing. “You’re our mate, Krista.”
“I can’t be,” she said breathlessly, trying to curb the excitement and desire fluttering in her belly and body. “I’m not like you.”
“You don’t have to be, baby,” Bas said.
“We don’t know how it works, but the fates, gods, or whatever else you want to call them creates one female out of billions that fits u
s perfectly,” Byron explained. “We knew as soon as we smelled your sweet scent as you appeared in the plane doorway that you were ours.”
“Let me up,” Krista demanded and was relieved when Bas stood and stepped away. Beck and Byron released her hands, and she quickly rose then moved away from them. She hurried over to the living room window seeing nothing as everything whirled around in her brain. It didn’t matter that she was attracted to them. She was being targeted, and if she was brave enough to get involved with three men, they’d likely end up getting hurt, too.
Her eyes stung with unshed tears as she silently berated herself. She never should have come here. She never should have applied and accepted another position as a teacher, because she could be inadvertently putting unmet students in the line of fire.
What the hell was I thinking?
She’d been so scared she’d jumped at the chance to get clear across the country and away from her previous home and the threat to her life. Krista had reacted to her endangerment without contemplating about the consequences to others. She could hear her estranged parents disparaging words in her mind. “You’re a selfish little bitch, Krista. Why can’t you be more like your brother and sister? They think of others before themselves. Now you’ve gone and put innocent people in danger. You’re a disgrace and a disappointment.”
The tears welled and flowed down her cheeks. She swiped at her face angrily but the tears just rolled over her flesh faster.
“Fuck!” Bas muttered from behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “I’m sorry, baby, we didn’t mean to make you cry. We shouldn’t have unloaded everything on you all at once. It was too much, wasn’t it?”
Krista shook her head. She wasn’t crying because of an information overload. She was crying because she had no idea why they wanted her. She wasn’t good enough and never had been. When they found out she was lacking, they wouldn’t want to have anything to do with her, just like everyone else who’d been in her life.