Shifters in the Shadows: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Sexy Shifters, Dangerous Vamps, & Things That Go Bump in the Night

by J. K Harper

  “Do you know if she even has powers?”

  My father nodded. “We tested her. The strain of magic that runs in my family is in her veins. She’ll be a very powerful witch.”

  My father had never said anything like that to me. I felt like a magical dunce, since I seemed to be an eternal student, never learning enough to please him. Three hundred years of lessons, but I wasn’t a good enough witch for my dad.

  “You should take care with her,” the seer said. “She will have the power to leave you. You shouldn’t box her up.”

  I saw my father’s fists clench, but he said nothing. I knew that he would still box me up, despite her advice, and that keeping me in a box wouldn’t keep me from my destiny.

  The fire part was pretty scary, but it was clear that I was supposed to be with Viktor and Pyotr. It had been foretold at my birth.

  “I’m ready to go back,” I told her.

  “Good. I don’t know how long I can keep up this memory. It takes a tremendous amount of energy, you know.”

  Opening

  Nastia

  “What did you do to her?” I could hear Pyotr roaring. His mouth was very close to my ear. He must be holding me.

  I opened my eyes. My body limp, I was in Pyotr’s arms.

  “That was interesting,” I said dreamily.

  “Nastia!” His eyes were on my face as if he could tell how I felt just from looking at my face.

  “Pyotr, everything is fine. She just brought me into her memory to see the prophecy.”

  “And?”

  “It’s just as she said…she told you the same thing. She told Viktor the same thing. The three of us are meant to be together.”

  “So you believe it now?”

  “Of course she does. She has witch-sight.”

  “What does that even mean?” The normally cool-headed Pyotr seemed to be distressed.

  “Everything’s fine,” I told him.

  “Witch-sight means that she can see things that other people can’t. I am wearing a purple shawl,” she said deliberately.

  “You’re glowing red.”

  She smiled, very pleased. “Yes. You can spot lies.”

  I looked at Pyotr. “Say ‘We are meant to be together.’”

  After hesitating for a few seconds, Pyotr said, “We are meant to be together.”

  When he didn’t glow red, I knew that he truly thought that we should be together.

  Something eased in the center of my chest. I felt like I was full of glowing warmth.

  “Well, my work here is done, love bugs,” the seer said cheerfully. “I need to distract those soldiers that are trying to kidnap you to gain leverage to manipulate your father. They’re a fun challenge. Darling, when you’re ready to meet some local witches, just let me know! Scratch that, I’ll come to you.”

  She sailed out the door as easily as she’d come in.

  “How did she even get in here? Didn’t you use your thumb to operate the elevator?”

  “I’ve learned not to ask too many questions when it comes to the seer,” Pyotr told me. “How do you feel?”

  I realized that I was still in his arms, carried bridal style. It made me blush. I was feeling cared for and sort of pleasantly loose, as if I’d been drinking. I might have been kept inside, but we always kept a fully stocked liquor cabinet.

  “I’ve never been in someone else’s memories before. Witch-sight isn’t something that I’ve studied.”

  “You put your hand on that crystal ball and just collapsed.”

  “Really?”

  “That was your first time?”

  “Yes.”

  He was carrying me to the same bed that Viktor had been recuperating in earlier. Viktor was still sitting in it.

  I struggled in his arms. “You can put me down. I’m fine now.”

  Instead, Pyotr held me in his lap as he sat on the bed.

  “Don’t scare me like that again,” he commanded.

  “You’re so bossy.”

  His face came really close to mine. I didn’t know if he was trying to kiss me…

  I didn’t know how I felt about all of it. I knew with calm certainty that we were meant to be together, but that didn’t mean that we needed to get started right now.

  “I’m so glad that I found you before my death day.”

  “You have a death day?”

  “Yes. Halloween. It’s when I was bitten. My Maker saved me from certain death. If you hadn’t saved me from my second death, then I would turn to ash.”

  “When would your second death be?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  I yelped. “Tomorrow!”

  “Yeah. To be accurate, midnight.”

  “Talk about cutting it close. But now that you’ve found me, everything’s fine, right.”

  He looked away from me.

  “Sure.”

  I put my hand on his chin. I could be bossy right back. “What aren’t you telling me? And I can tell if you’re lying, so you better tell me the truth.”

  “I have to be mated before Halloween,” he confessed in a rush.

  “What does mating entail?”

  He squirmed a little bit, as if he was sitting on a tack.

  “I can tell you,” Viktor said. “It entails getting naked. I’m down for it.” He touched my hip.

  “And without it, you’ll turn to ash?”

  “Yes,” he hissed very softly, as if he were ashamed.

  “Well, let’s fix that right now.” I took off my shirt.

  Mating

  Pyotr

  I watched as both of them took off their clothing. I loved the way that her soft, smooth dark skin was revealed as her clothes fell to the floor.

  I got rid of my own clothes. Then I slowly tackled her onto the bed, putting my hands on her wrists as I pinned her lightly to the bed.

  I licked the side of her neck. She smelled so good — like the most decadent dessert imaginable. Smelling her was sweet torture. I wanted to bite her, but I knew that if I wanted to mate her, I had to do it at the right time.

  Viktor said, “Move over. I want to lick up her sweet cream.”

  I went to the side of her body while Viktor buried his face between her thighs, his hands pulling them apart and keeping them wide.

  He was really going for it, eating her like he was a starving man and she was a luxurious feast.

  Her hands clenched. Her eyes were closed while her face was full of ecstasy.

  I switched positions until I could lick the nipple of one full breast. Her nipples were hard. Her back kept coming off of the bed as she moaned and moaned even more. Viktor didn’t show any signs of stopping, but she opened her mouth wide to scream.

  That’s when I slid my cock inside of her mouth. Her eyes flew open in shock. She looked straight into my eyes as I straddled her face.

  Then she opened her jaw up a little more as I settled more deeply into her. My hands went to her hair as I controlled the motion of her mouth on my cock.

  I was careful to allow her to breathe, even though it was hard. I fought the urge to plunge into her with as much force as I could muster. As a human, she couldn’t take the power…at least not until the three of us were properly mated.

  I felt her jaw begin to close just the slightest bit and pulled out quickly. She clenched her jaw and whipped her head from side to side as she fought her way into her climax.

  Her face was one of the most beautiful things that I’d seen in my long life.

  She was panting hard when she said, “Wow. You weren’t kidding when you said that you’d be the best I ever had.”

  Viktor, wearing a smug grin, told her, “Baby, you haven’t seen anything yet.”

  “We’re just getting started,” I said.

  Viktor flipped her over so that she was on her hands and knees, her head hanging down.

  I watched as he put one long finger inside of her softness.

  “Wet,” he commented before audibly sucking her cream off of his finge
r.

  He pressed the tip of his cock against her entrance.

  “Ready?”

  She said, “Yes.”

  He pushed a little deeper inside of her. He motioned for me to take her mouth again.

  I put my hand in her hair and positioned her so that there was a perfect straight line for me.

  With one hand on her jaw, I urged her to open her mouth wide. When she did, I shoved myself inside.

  She had another moment of shock. I knew that I was big, and I got the feeling that she hadn’t taken anybody down her throat before.

  But after a split second of getting used to it, she relaxed her throat muscles enough for me to push a little further.

  Viktor took that moment to push forward. When he withdrew, he guided her hips backward a little bit.

  I enjoyed the motion of her mouth moving back and forth on me while Viktor drove inside of her core.

  Fire burned in my veins, more fire than I had felt since dying.

  When I felt as if I were on the verge of coming, I pulled out of her mouth.

  “Give it back,” she demanded, as if I had stolen something from her.

  “Time to mate,” I told her.

  Viktor pulled out of her and turned her on her side. I slid down the bed and pulled her top leg over my hip, so that I had easy access to her opening. She was wet and ready for me as I slid inside of her velvet tunnel.

  I couldn’t stop a groan from escaping as I felt her.

  “You are sheer perfection.” I hadn’t felt anybody as good as her. Her heat felt like it was enveloping me, almost as if I were alive again.

  I looked at her face, her eyes bugging out.

  I could see that Viktor pressed inside of her. He wasn’t very far in.

  “Breathe, sweetheart.” I stroked her cheek. “Just breathe.”

  She nodded and took a deep breath, which made her tighten around both of us. We groaned and both pushed inside of her.

  She bit her lip as if she were on the verge of pain.

  “I feel so full,” she whimpered.

  I pulled out a little bit, but her hand came sliding down to my butt to push me right back in.

  “More,” she demanded.

  “We can give you more,” Viktor said, and I could hear the smile in his voice.

  He began to push further inside of her back door. I could see from her face that it was very nearly painful.

  I began to stroke her clit, to speed her up while we thrust inside of her.

  Viktor and I fell into an easy rhythm, sharing her body. When I pushed in, he pulled out. When he thrust inside of her, I pulled out.

  We kept it up until we no longer could. I could feel the mating urge rising up inside of me. I was about the come.

  “Now,” I told Viktor.

  He bit her shoulder at the same instant that I bit her neck, tasting just a drop of her sweet blood for the first time.

  She screamed loud enough to wake the dead. I could feel her muscles contracting around me, tight enough to almost be painful.

  She went wild, slamming between us as if she couldn’t get enough.

  Her hand came to the back of my head as she brought my mouth to hers. Her tongue pushed inside of my mouth aggressively, as if she were fucking me just as fiercely as Viktor and I were fucking her.

  Viktor must have been feeling the same tightness, because he was groaning behind her as he released.

  And when both of them were in the midst of the purest ecstasy, I let go, filling her with my seed.

  In that moment, I felt energy swirl around the three of us. It was as if a spotlight had been pointed at the three of us. I felt as if I were bathed in light.

  I looked over at the other two to see if they could experience what I was experiencing. Maybe it was a vampire thing.

  Her face was alight with pure bliss.

  “Where’s the light coming from?” Viktor asked.

  The light diminished as it flowed into our bodies.

  Cleaning Up

  Nastia

  I felt as if I were full of starlight. I knew that I was pregnant from our mating, even though it was far too early to actually know if I was going to have our baby. I had a good feeling, though. Women’s intuition or witch-sight, I didn’t know which one it was, but I felt sure of it in my bones.

  “That was wonderful,” I told the two of them.

  “The most magical experience of my life.” Pyotr came and kissed my forehead.

  I wasn’t afraid that my dad would get involved and try to tear me from my mates. I knew that our newly created bond was unbreakable. The three of us would be bound together for life.

  I rolled over a bit, wincing as I felt the soreness between my legs.

  “Are you okay?” Viktor stroked my hair. “Were we too rough?”

  “No, no, you were perfect.” I leaned forward and kissed him. I meant for the kiss to be soft and tender, but somehow his arms were around me. His tongue pushed into my mouth, gauging my reaction. What started as a light, reassuring kiss threw gasoline on the embers of my first orgasm.

  Pyotr must have moved, because his hand found its way between my legs and gently petted my clit.

  My kiss with Viktor went on and on while Pyotr blew my mind by simply rubbing my most sensitive area.

  My body was filled with white fire. I didn’t know if I came again and again or just experienced multiple back-to-back orgasms. I only knew that Viktor and Pyotr were the best lovers imaginable.

  “I want to stay in this bed forever,” I told them.

  Viktor’s hand traveled down the center of my back before he cupped one of my cheeks.

  “Good idea.” He kissed my cheek.

  Pyotr pulled me away from Viktor.

  “Hey!” Viktor protested. I could see that he was getting ready to go again.

  “We’re going to be late to the Samhain ceremony if we don’t start getting ready now.”

  I looked down at my naked body.

  “Uh…I’m not dressed for a Samhain party.”

  “We can fix that, but we have to move fast.”

  “Why can’t we just stay here?” Viktor asked. He licked his lips while he looked at my breasts.

  “Because we can be hand-fasted without any troubles by jumping over the fire tonight.”

  It sounded like a good reason to me.

  “Okay…but you’re going to have to figure out something appropriate for me to wear.”

  “I like what you’re wearing now,” Viktor said, desire making his voice a little deeper than usual.

  “I’m not going to a Samhain celebration skyclad!”

  I jumped out of the bed and looked at myself in the mirror. My hair was an absolute mess.

  “I need to go shopping,” I told him. “I’m going to shower and clean up…”

  I didn’t think that I had time to make my hair behave. I was just going to have to use a scarf or something.

  “I think that you’re more beautiful than ever.”

  Viktor leaned out of the bed to plant a kiss on the top of one of my full breasts.

  I pulled away and went into the shower to wash all of the stickiness off of me. I was careful not to get my hair wet. It was already a mess; it wasn’t as if I wanted to make it worse.

  When I got out of the shower and dried off, I made a beeline for my clothes, which were in a heap on the floor.

  “I’ll give you the keys to my car. The nearest town is about 30 minutes away, but the road is a little rough. Be home in an hour, okay?”

  “Gotcha,” I said.

  Pyotr walked with me to get his keys from a countertop.

  He kissed me softly and slowly when he put the keys into my hand.

  “Be back soon,” he told me, his eyes burning a little bit.

  “I promise.”

  I walked out of the door, feeling his gaze on me. It was crazy to be mated to two men, but it was one of the best kinds of crazy ever. I needed to buy a dress that would be good enough for our hand-fas
ting.

  Samhain

  Pyotr

  TWO HOURS LATER

  I got out of the car, and when Nastia got out too, she looked every inch a witch. She was wearing something sparkly and black. It emphasized her curves and the reflective parts of the dress caught the glow of the many bonfires that were lit tonight.

  Viktor came out of the car. He was only wearing a pair of running shorts. I’d talked him into wearing clothing on the off chance that somebody with a delicate nature wanted to attend a collection of the people who went bump in the night.

  The three of us walked towards the collection of bonfires lighting up the night.

  We went walking past the crowded bonfires which were near the parking lot. I’d rather stick by a less populated one.

  When Nastia walked towards a bonfire, I pulled her back with a light hand on her shoulder.

  “Why don’t we walk a little further?”

  “Okay.”

  Viktor was down for whatever, so we kept walking until we were at the fire.

  Only one person was there.

  It was the fairy seer. The half-fairy.

  “So I see that the three of you found each other.” She took a drink from a thermos full of what smelled like coffee.

  “Yes.” I nodded at her.

  “Good. And you’re here for your official mating? I can see that you’ve already…”

  Nastia blushed furiously now.

  “We’re here to hand-fast ourselves by jumping over the bonfire.”

  “Good idea. Skips over the muddle of planning a full wedding.”

  She backed away from the fire.

  “If you want to be married, all three of you have jump over the fire at once.”

  Maybe humans wouldn’t recognize our ceremony, but we knew that we would be married in our hearts, which was where it mattered.

  “Ready?” I asked the other two.

  Viktor was already ready.

  Nastia held onto me pretty tightly. I could see that Viktor had her other hand.

  “On three…one…two…three.”

  The three of us leapt over the fire, the fire burning away the past and any bad luck.