Readers love
GRACE R. DUNCAN
Turning His Life Around
“Part character study and part intriguing personal drama, Turning His Life Around had me spellbound from the very start.”
—Rainbow Book Reviews
“Love. That undefinable emotion… I know what I would like it to be and I did like the way it was described in this book. It was simple and realistic, and easy for anyone to understand.”
—Sinfully… Addicted to All Male Romance
“I loved everything about this book! From the cover to the words to the emotions to the denial to the realisation….I just loved it all.”
—Prism Book Alliance
Healing
“Ms. Duncan draws a perfect picture of a broken world without much hope for the future but still manages to infuse her characters with almost reluctant promise.”
—Love Bytes
No Sacrifice
“I found this story very well written… I enjoyed reading this…”
—Hearts on Fire
“Duncan does a great job of giving us a really detailed story, and taking us on a great ride as two men find their happily ever after.”
—Joyfully Jay
By GRACE R. DUNCAN
No Sacrifice
Turning His Life Around
Devotion
GOLDEN COLLAR SERIES
Choices
Coronation
Deception
PANDEMUS CHRONICLES
Celebrating You
Healing
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Copyright
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Devotion
© 2015 Grace R. Duncan.
Cover Art
© 2015 Reese Dante.
http://www.reesedante.com
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/.
ISBN: 978-1-63476-598-5
Digital ISBN: 978-1-63476-599-2
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015942828
First Edition September 2015
Printed in the United States of America
This paper meets the requirements of
ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).
I’d like to blame Mary Calmes for this little venture, but instead, I’ll simply thank her. I had the worst thoughts on shifter stories until I read her Change of Heart series, which… changed my heart entirely about them.
To TK, who’s taught me so much, and I have no doubt has much, much more to teach me yet!
To Sara and Áine, who keep me sane the whole way through the writing process. Your support means the world to me.
And, of course, to Joe, who puts up with my hours lost to the computer and still has a smile and a cup of coffee for me when I look up. I love you!
Chapter One
TANNER STEPPED into the club and moved to the side to let his eyes adjust. Even with his heightened eyesight, going from the bright lights of a city block to the dim room took a little while. When he could see well enough, he shifted his gaze from one group to the next, working slowly around the dance floor and bar. The interior looked to him like every other gay club on the planet.
He resisted the urge to inhale deeply and look for the scent he knew so well. His oversensitive nose was already being bombarded with too much sweat, deodorant, cologne, alcohol, and arousal. No matter how well he knew his recalcitrant mate’s scent, he’d never be able to find it masked by all of that.
He skipped the bar and moved out toward the dance floor. Thankfully, this particular club only had one level. The last two Finley had disappeared to had been the multilevel clubs full of side rooms and lounges.
If I have to do this one more time, I swear I will spank his ass until he can’t sit for a week! Tanner pushed the annoyance away, saving it for when he found Finley. When a hand ran over his ass, he fought the urge to growl, carefully peeled it away, and decided it might take until he got his mate home—to Finley’s parents’ house—before he could reasonably control his temper.
Besides, he couldn’t spank Finley yet. Not for another four years. If he survived another four years, at this rate.
The owner of the hand gave him a beguiling smile, but the wafer-thin, spritelike twink looking up at him held zero appeal. Even if he’d been built like Finley, he wouldn’t be appealing to Tanner. Finley was his mate, the one given to him by Diana, their patron goddess, and the only one he wanted.
“Sorry, not interested,” Tanner grunted and almost felt bad when the smile melted. “I’m sorry, really. Uh, here with my partner.” He didn’t think he could be heard clearly, but the boy gave him a slight smile and nodded before moving on, obviously at least getting the gist.
Tanner turned his attention back to the dance floor. It shouldn’t be this difficult to find Finley, and Tanner’s blood pressure and anger were rising quickly the longer he looked.
Then he spotted black hair and blew out a breath in an effort to cool his ire a little. He gritted his teeth to keep the newfound calm in place as he stalked across the floor, dodging hands and asses, and other body parts. He couldn’t exactly rip the man currently rubbing against his mate limb from limb, no matter how much he wanted to.
His wolf—the other half of his soul—disagreed.
He reminded his wolf he had a human half, and tearing a full human to shreds was a bad thing. His wolf grumbled but curled up, though he still watched from a distance. Mine, he growled in Tanner’s head, and Tanner agreed.
Finley was his. Finley knew it. And these stunts he was pulling were getting old.
He stood in front of the man and crossed his arms. Finley spun around and his green eyes widened in surprise; then he stepped away from his dance partner. The dance partner, Tanner noted, was built much like he was, though with blond hair instead of dark auburn. And was human. Even without drawing a deep breath, he could smell it from there.
Said man reached out toward Finley, but Tanner’s hand shot out and gripped the wrist. “He’s with me,” he growled. It couldn’t have been heard over the music, not by human ears, but the guy obviously got the drift.
One blond eyebrow rose. “Didn’t see you here a moment ago.”
“I’m here now,” Tanner replied, letting go of the man’s wrist and grabbing Finley’s hand. Finley took advantage of it and slid up against him, grinding to the music. Tanner tried—he really did—to hold himself in check. But his wolf was already frustrated with the other guy for touching Finley, and calming him further was nearly impossible. He needed to put his scent back
on his mate.
And, well, he was a normal, healthy twenty-four-year-old guy. He could only take so much of Finley rubbing against him before he took advantage of it. He gave in, wrapping his arms around Finley, wedging one leg between Finley’s, and picking up the beat.
Even with his superior hearing, he felt more than heard Finley’s groan of appreciation. Tanner slid his hands down to Finley’s hips, gripping them as they moved. Finley held Tanner’s shoulders to steady himself, but Tanner kept him off balance deliberately, forcing him to lean into Tanner’s body.
He slid one arm back around Finley’s waist and held him close, moaning when Finley’s hard cock rubbed against his through their jeans. With the other hand, he couldn’t resist cupping Finley’s amazing ass. God, Finley felt so fucking good in his arms, against him. He tilted his head, burying his face in Finley’s neck and inhaling the scent deeply. His wolf growled in appreciation, and Finley—and, undoubtedly, Finley’s wolf—echoed it back to him.
One of Finley’s hands found its way into Tanner’s hair, the other cupping Tanner’s face. He leaned in, pulling at Tanner, who couldn’t find it in himself to resist. Their lips met, mouths hot and wet, and Tanner groaned at the taste. Finley slid his tongue into Tanner’s mouth and they fought for domination of the kiss.
Tanner broke the kiss and glanced around. He spotted a quiet corner nearby and danced them to it, then pushed Finley against the wall when they got there. He pinned Finley with his own body, grinding their hard cocks together. He caught Fin’s lips with his again, the kiss hot, wet, and full of so much need he could barely breathe.
Finley’s hands flew over Tanner’s body, cupping his ass and gripping his hair. He rocked into Tanner, meeting his movements. Tanner pulled back from the kiss, his gaze taking in the look of his mate: hair messy, lips wet and kiss-swollen, eyes bled black in arousal, teeth lowered. Tanner’s own vision had gone gray, eyes shifting because of his own need.
Tanner growled again, dove for Finley’s neck, and nipped his way along the skin. It took everything he had to keep his canines out of Finley’s neck. Instead, he sucked the skin in, biting with his human teeth, unable to resist leaving at least a minor mark.
His wolf didn’t like it, was pushing for Tanner to flip their mate over, yank the jeans out of the way, fuck him hard, and bite when he filled Finley’s ass with cum. When he realized he’d stepped back to do just that, he shook his head hard, grabbed Finley’s hand, and pulled. “Let’s get out of here,” he said, not bothering to raise his voice. He knew Finley could hear it quite clearly.
Finley raised his eyebrows in shock. “You’re taking me home?”
“To your parents’ house.”
The shock morphed to anger. “No,” Finley said, pulling his hand out of Tanner’s.
Tanner sighed. “Look. I’ve got a lot of work to do tomorrow. I don’t have time for this tonight.”
Fin shrugged a shoulder. “So go home. I don’t need you here.” He turned on his heel and started back onto the dance floor.
Tanner took a deep breath and immediately regretted it. He wrinkled his nose at the assault and grabbed for Finley again. “I’m not leaving you here. You’re coming with me.”
“Fuck you,” Finley replied too cheerfully and melted back into the crowd.
Tanner silently counted to ten before following. He didn’t even give Finley a chance to argue this time. He yanked Finley back against him, then lifted the man up and over one shoulder. It was a good thing he had the strength he did, because Finley wasn’t a small man. In fact, he only had about two inches and fifty pounds on Finley. He didn’t want to think about how they’d match when Finley finished filling out.
“Tanner!” Finley pounded on his back with both fists, but Tanner ignored it. “Put me down!”
“No.” The dancers parted for him, and his long legs ate up the distance to the door.
“Problem?” one of the bouncers asked, stepping in his way. The guy looked like he came by the muscles honestly—rather than at a gym—but he’d still be no match for preternatural strength.
“Just taking him home. Someone put something in his drink,” Tanner lied smoothly.
The bouncer raised an eyebrow and leaned around Tanner. “He telling the truth?”
Finley didn’t reply at first. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
That was apparently good enough. He stepped back and waved them through. Tanner was relieved Finley at least didn’t make a scene with the bouncer. He knew better than to bring any kind of authority down on them. They’d get out of it, but it’d be a mess and a half in the meantime.
Tanner set Finley down on the sidewalk and immediately swung him around to glare at him. “What the fuck?”
“What?” Finley bit off, crossing his arms.
Tanner realized Finley was furious. He blinked. “What do you mean, what?”
“What do you mean by ‘what the fuck’? It’s not like I can’t come down here if I want.”
“You’re not of age.”
Finley rolled his eyes. “I’m old enough for here. I turned eighteen two months ago, as you are well aware. You were at my fucking party.”
Tanner didn’t growl this time, but he wanted to. “Twenty-one, genius.”
Finley sighed and pointed with his thumb at a sign by the door: Under 21 Night. 18 to 21 Only.
Fuck. Tanner rubbed his face. He didn’t know how he got in, but he let it go and sighed. “Why?”
“Why not?”
Tanner scowled. “You know what? No. We’re not doing this. Let’s go.” He grabbed Finley’s wrist, but Finley twisted it out of his grip.
“No. I’m not going home. I’ll get a cab and go somewhere else, since you’ve ruined this place for me tonight.”
“No you are not!” Tanner roared.
Finley simply blinked at him, jaw working as he held in his own fury. Tanner knew the signs. Though Fin was usually a cheerful, easygoing person, he’d been known to get pissed now and again, and Tanner had seen it. “Are you quite through?” he asked, too calmly.
Tanner chose to ignore the fire spitting from Finley’s green eyes. “No. Can we not do this on the street?” He glanced around to see a few other club-goers staring at them.
“Sure. You go home and I’ll get a cab.”
“Do I need to pick you up again?”
This time Finley was the one who growled. He jabbed a finger hard into Tanner’s chest. “No. You’re not going to pick me up. You’re not going to take me home. I can do whatever the fuck I want. I’m an adult. I have permission from my legal shifter guardians. And until you claim me, you can’t do a fucking thing about it.” He stepped around Tanner and stalked away.
Despite his anger, despite his frustration, he couldn’t resist eyeing the smooth grace of Finley’s movements. Just like he couldn’t resist the dance. Every time he was in his mate’s company, his wolf surged forward, the mating instincts kicked in, and he had to wrestle them back into place. His cock, in fact, was still painfully hard.
He sighed and dropped his head. The most frustrating part of it was… Finley was right.
According to shifter law, once he’d claimed Finley—even underage, which shifter law said was twenty-one—Finley became his responsibility. But unless and until he did, Finley still answered to his parents, who Tanner thought were batshit insane.
Because they didn’t see a problem with him claiming their son. They seemed almost as upset by it as Finley was, though not because they wanted to get rid of him or anything. Because they loved him and saw how much Finley was frustrated. Or, at least, that’s what they claimed.
Tanner didn’t understand it. Finley was young—too young. He needed to finish growing, for fuck’s sake, much less finish school, go to college, experience things—nonsexual, thank you very much—before he mated. Never mind that, as the future alpha, there were certain semipublic events that happened when he claimed his mate. Finley was too fucking young for that. So Tanner was doing his damnedest to m
ake sure they waited.
And Finley was doing his damnedest to fight him every step of the way.
He’d never forget the night they met as long as he lived. They’d taken one look at each other and reacted almost violently, both of them partially shifting on the spot. There’d been no question in that moment: Finley was his destined mate. And the first part of their bond had already formed. He was so screwed—or not, in this case, as Finley was much too young for that.
Finding his or her destined mate wasn’t common, much less at that age. Destined mates weren’t exactly rare, but some shifters never managed it. Tanner had assumed, since he was gay, he didn’t have a destined mate. He was, as far as he knew, the first gay shifter in their pack. He was the first out gay shifter, anyway.
He’d listened to the lessons the pack teachers had given them about mates. It was one of the biggest parts of a shifter’s life, finding their mate. There were two types of mates in their world: destined and chosen. A shifter was supposed to be able to recognize a destined mate immediately—their wolves would recognize each other and their scents drove each other crazy. Simply meeting started the bonding process, which was finished through sexual intercourse and biting.
Chosen mates formed a similar bond, but only after the sex and bite. They didn’t have the same recognition as destined mates did, but they were usually still quite happy, their wolves happy, and their bond almost as strong.
His teacher, one of the pack elders, had described the bond like a thick vine made up of many twisted strands. Meeting Finley had connected them by those first strands, and their bond had begun to form already. If either experienced very strong emotion, the other could sense it. Protective and possessive instincts kicked in, and the urge to mate and claim usually happened fast.
Tanner had been fighting it for the last two years. Two years of being around his mate—two years of smelling him, two years of sharing strong emotions—and he still couldn’t claim the man, because he was just barely a man. His wolf thought he was being ridiculous, not that he would think quite that coherently, but Tanner got the message all the same. His wolf wanted their mate, period. He didn’t understand why Tanner was hesitating.
Devotion Page 1