by T. S. Ryder
“Pull the bed out away from the wall,” Michelle ordered and thankfully, Cain was able to follow simple instructions. Michelle poured a circle of salt around the bed and then stepped over the barrier. She wasn’t sure what being a conduit included, but she needed to be able to protect herself if it put her in a vulnerable state.
She put a cast iron pot on the floor within the circle and threw in a few ripped out pages from a paperback and lit them on fire.
“Sit,” she ordered Cain and he obliged.
She threw in the sage and myrrh, filling the air around them with a sweet and smoky smell. “I don’t know what to do, you have to guide me.”
“I’ve never...I’ve never done this before,” he said kneeling on the bed.
“Trusts your instincts, they’ll guide you,” Michelle said. She poured a glass of deep red wine and staring Cain in the eye she took a sip, she handed him the cup and he took a sip, after that they lifted Brock’s head and he sipped the wine down as well.
The smoke and herbs were swimming in the air around them. Even though it had only been one glass of wine, she felt a little tipsy. It was a strong wine, but even stronger was the magic she put into it.
She stared at Cain and his aura erupted around him as he squeezed her hand. Below them, Brock’s aura was an undulating white and green, both colors mixing together, but not blending. The green was slowly overtaking the white.
She took Brock’s hand in hers and kissed his knuckles, looking down at his shivering form. Still holding Brock’s hand with her right hand, she took Cain’s hand with her left hand next, and repeated the action, laying a series of kisses along his knuckles.
“Show us the way,” she whispered. “Save him. You know how to do it.”
He leaned forward and kissed her, his hands holding her by the neck and pulling her closer and closer. The herbs and smoke and wine were mingling and she felt that strange weightlessness that came from magic. Spells were otherworldly, they were something else. They didn’t follow the normal rules of the physical world.
She kissed him back as the smoke blossomed and grew. It was more smoke than her small fire could have made. The smoke was thick and swirling, but it wasn’t burning her lungs or her eyes. The smoke was like a hurricane. It was swirling all around them, obscuring everything else in the room. But they were in the eye, the small bed with the three of them was free of smoke, the air was clear.
Everything was clear. Everything was standing out in harsh light. The sensation of Cain’s hands on her body was intense. It was like electricity coursing through her veins, lighting along her skin. She felt charged. She gasped as Cain moved down to her neck, kissing and licking the sensitive skin there. She leaned into him, desperate for more. Her hands were tangling in his hair.
She looked up at him and saw not his crystal blue eyes, but the dark, yellow eyes of the dragon. She was not afraid. She reached up and caressed the skin of his cheek. He leaned into her touch as his hand moved down her neck and to her breasts.
She felt someone behind her. He touched her skin and his touch was fire. She cried out in pleasure, as he traced fire over her shoulders and neck. It was Brock. He was breathing deeply. It was the harsh ragged breath of the dragon. He pulled her back against him. She could feel his erection pushing against her back as his hands came up and captured her breasts.
Brock was laying kisses along the back of her neck and then Cain was in front of her, kissing her mouth, his tongue dancing with hers. The sensations were too much, she couldn’t tell who was touching what, but she wanted none of it to stop.
“Yes,” she cried out, throwing her head back. Cain took the opportunity to lean down and kiss her chest while Brock unzipped her dress. He traced kisses down her back as the zipper went lower and lower. Goosebumps erupted on her arms when Cain pulled the front of her dress down until she was in nothing but her bra and panties.
Brock unsnapped her bra and Cain pulled it off. He took her breast in his mouth. Cain licked her nipple and then bit down gently, making her shudder. She tried to pull away, but that only pushed her back into Brock. They were both so powerful and strong, all of their attention focused on her. Their hands and lips and tongues were moving over every inch of her skin teasing her and driving her wild.
She brought Cain’s head up from her breast and kissed him. The she looked behind her and kissed Brock. She looked between the two men and finally they looked at each other and then they were leaning in and kissing each other while their hands explored her.
It was the hottest thing she had ever seen. These two huge strong men in bed with her. Brocks’ hands pushed her down on the bed and her panties slid off of her.
“Undress each other,” she said quietly. She wanted to watch. She laid on her back and as Cain slipped Brock’s shirt over his head, Brock unbuttoned Cain’s pants. She was so turned on, her body physically ached from wanting them. She couldn't stand to just watch. She reached up to their strong shoulders and pulled both of them down onto bed with her.
They were a tangle of lips and hands and arms and legs. She didn’t know who was who or where they were. There was nothing but the inescapable pleasure of the three of them moving in bed together. She felt someone slip their fingers into her and she arched her back, clinging to someone’s hard shoulders as fingers spun within her. Strong fingers were gentle and teasing, caressing her most sensitive places.
Another set of hands massaged her breasts as a mouth came down to kiss her lips. She was awash in sensations, straining for their touch. Someone’s tongue circled the tip of her breast and she buried her hands in his hair urging him for more. She was writhing on the bed, unsure of where she was and what was happening. Michelle was overwhelmed with the dedicated attentions these two men were paying to her body. She never wanted it to stop.
Cain and Brock were on the bed kissing and touching each other and her. She didn’t know where she ended and they begin. Her orgasm was building up inside of her, growing more powerful with every lick and touch. She arched her back and cried out the word YES! when Cain entered her. Her body strained to contain him. Fire coursed through her veins as he slid into her and began to move in and out in a heady rhythm that matched her heartbeat.
There was something else. She could feel the magic enter her and course through her veins. It was red and green and yellow and it was taking over her body as it moved into her. It felt wonderful and amazing, driving her wild from the inside out. She could do nothing but writhe underneath him and beg for more, her breath catching in her throat. Brock leaned over her and kissed her as Cain continued to thrust.
She slipped her tongue over Brock’s lip and felt the magic pass through her to him. He breathed in the scent of it and kissed her harder, desperate for more. His hands were on her shoulders and then her breasts. She was holding onto him as her orgasm built up inside of her.
A wave of pleasure was passing between them, growing with every second. Every touch and every movement sparking the shared fire within them. They were nothing but pleasure and sex and love and friendship and sweat, all moving together in a perfect rhythm. It was too much, too big for one person to contain. Her body tensed as the last of the dragon’s magic passed through her lips into Brocks’ and the wave of pleasure crested and crashed down on all three of them.
She was awash in pleasure, reaching out to hold onto both of them as her body moved out of control. The smoke around them swirled to a fever pitch. With a dragon’s scream, Cain finished and the spell was broken.
They flopped down in bed, a heap of tangled limbs as the smoke around them slowly dissipated. Brock was to her left, leaning on her bare shoulder and she saw that his fever had broken. He had stopped shaking and his skin was back to its healthy color. He looked normal again.
His aura was different. The bright, innocent human light was gone. Now it matched Cain’s. It was burning with yellows and angry reds that flickered and licked the air around him. They had saved him. Brock was no longer a normal human man. He
was a Dragon Shifter now.
*****
THE END
Paranormal Shifter Romance: The Wolf's Mate
Description
What do you do when your mate isn’t looking for a mate?
Bear shifter and virgin Iduna Hudson doesn’t want a mate. But she wants a baby. So she has herself artificially inseminated and is ready for life as a single mom. Who needs a man anyway?
Werewolf Stephen Jackson knows his one chance to have a family is to track down the woman who received his sperm. His wolf knows he’s found his mate the moment he sees her.
But love isn’t an option. Iduna is much younger than Stephen, and the relationship between wolves and bears is strained at the best of times. And these aren't the best of times.
Things turn deadly when Stephan and Iduna come face-to-face with anti-shifter zealots who are out to kill every shifter that crosses their path.
But Stephen has been searching for his mate for decades and isn’t going to give up when he’s finally found her. Even if it means fighting the fight of his life.
Can Stephan and Iduna escape their enemies? Can they save themselves and their baby? Will love conquer hate?
Chapter One – Iduna
It was a beautiful day in the southern interior of British Columbia. The mountains were dappled green-and-yellow, the contrast between the deciduous and coniferous trees painting a picture of the transition between summer and winter. Iduna Hudson sat on a bench just outside the library in a rare moment of enjoying the beauty around her, rather than keeping her nose in a book
It helped that there wasn't anyone around to try to draw her into conversation and then act like they didn't want to talk just as she was explaining why leaves turned color in the fall.
Her baby kicked her, making her wince, and the Bear put a hand over her belly. At eight months pregnant, she couldn't wait for the next month to pass by. She was tired of being pregnant. As much as she enjoyed the sensation of being a little person move inside her, the backaches and swollen feet and her body's refusal to get comfortable at night was wearing on her nerves.
But she didn't regret the decision to get pregnant. She wanted a baby, and she was going to have one.
Iduna inhaled the fresh air. Her small Bear Shifter community was fairly isolated, made up mostly of farmers and orchardists, and they preferred to go about their business on foot or with their Bears. Rarely did people around here use vehicles, even though everybody had a car. The result was that the air was clean and fresh, and the community cozy and quiet. It was one of the reasons why Iduna enjoyed living here so much. She could breathe without worrying about the effects of pollution on her lungs.
An unfamiliar scent caught her nose and she turned.
Her eyes widened and her heart rate spiked when she saw the man walking towards her. He wasn't a Bear. That was clear. He walked with a certain amount of dominance and grace, not the heavy-footed steps that she was accustomed to. His dark hair was just starting to gray at the ends, and crow's feet spread from the corner of his eyes. Iduna guessed he was around forty. His skin was a milky color, indicating he was more of an office worker than an outdoorsman.
And he was beautiful. Iduna willed her heart to slow down, a little concerned about her reaction. There were plenty of good-looking men in the community, so why were hormones flooding her system now? That in itself was odd. She could count on one hand the amount of times she had been sexually attracted to someone.
Well, it would be over soon enough. As soon as they started talking he'd start sounding like an idiot and her attraction would die as suddenly as it had blossomed.
"Hello," she said.
"Hello." He took off his ball cap. "Are you Iduna Hudson?"
Iduna blinked in surprise. "Do I know you?"
"No. I… this is weird, I know, and I apologize if I make you uncomfortable. But I'm the donor."
What donor? Iduna gasped as her baby kicked again, eyes going wide. Of course. "You mean the sperm donor that I chose when I was artificially impregnated?"
"Yeah. I'm that donor."
"I see." She peered at him closely and nodded once. He was just as she had been assured of at the clinic. "How did you find me?"
"You signed some papers that let the clinic tell me how to contact you. May I sit?"
Iduna nodded, shifting to give him room. The man sat. Now that he was closer, the Bear could smell ink toner and a spicy scent to him. She leaned forward unconsciously, sniffing. Her heart rate picked up again and she felt her hands start to tremble. Her reaction surprised her and frightened her a little bit.
She had ultimately decided to go ahead with AI at her young age because she wanted to be able to do the things with her baby that her parents had never been able to do with her. Everybody had asked why she chose AI instead of finding her mate. The answer was simple. She had met every Bear shifter for miles around, and quite a few humans, too. None of them were for her. None of them had her blood roaring like this man.
And she didn't even know what his name was.
"You're a Wolf!" she cried in surprise, detecting the distinctive scent of dog around him. "Or you live with one."
"I'm a Wolf," he confirmed. "Didn't the clinic tell you?"
She shook her head. She had requested a Bear Shifter's donation, but apparently either the sperm samples had gotten mixed up, or they didn't care. Given the way she was treated after revealing she was a Bear herself, the latter wouldn't surprise Iduna. Anti-Shifter tensions were high around here.
"So." Iduna looked at him. "Who are you?"
"I'm sorry. My name is Stephen Jackson."
"Stephen. It means crown, honor. A kingly title. It's Greek."
"Is it? I never knew." Stephen's smile was relaxed. "I don't think I have any Greek ancestry, but my grandfather's name was Stephen. Strange, come to think of it. The way names end up so far from their origins."
Iduna nodded. "Yeah, it’s strange how names can spread through cultures. But why are you here? All your donation records were sealed. I thought it meant you didn't want to be contacted."
"I didn't. When I made the donation I was feeling… frustrated. I don't have a mate, and the idea of having a child anyway was appealing to me."
"And why look me up now?"
Stephen looked away. "I was in an accident recently. It left me infertile."
"Oh." Iduna clasped her hands on her knees. A rush of sympathy went through her, mixed with some disappointment as well. But what did she have to be disappointed about? "Just infertile or impotent as well?"
Stephen's jaw dropped. "What?"
"Are you still able to have sex?"
Iduna's brow furrowed. It was a simple, straightforward question, wasn't it? Why was he shocked? Sometimes people baffled her.
"I, uh…"
"I said something wrong, didn't I?" Iduna bit her lip. "I'm always doing this. Mommy says I don't have a filter."
"Mommy? How old are you?"
"Twenty-five. I like the phonetics of Mommy better than other maternal nicknames."
"I… see." Stephen ran a hand through his dark, graying hair. "Well, to answer your question… I can't have children anymore. And that's why I sought you out. I was hoping that I could be part of this baby's life somehow. I always wanted kids, and this is my only chance now."
Iduna bit on her lip, stopping herself from blurting out an immediate yes. She couldn't just answer based on the sexual attraction she felt towards him. A commitment based on hormones was not a chance worth taking.
"We need to get to know each other better first," she decided. "If you are going to be a part of the baby's life, you'll be a part of my life as well, and I want to make sure that our personalities are compatible before any decision is made."
"Fair enough," Stephen said. " I mean, I understand if you don't want to. You must have a reason why you chose to go with AI rather than with your mate…"
A scowl crossed her face. Her parents had made her wait two years after sh
e decided to go with AI to make sure that she was certain she didn't want to wait for her mate. The fact was that everybody else she knew already had found their mates by the time they were her age. Twenty-five wasn't old by any means, but she had her life planned out and it didn't involve pining around for somebody she didn't even know. The chances that there was even a mate out there for her were slim to none.
Besides, she didn't like to be around people. She would want to share everything with him, and she'd drive him crazy like she drove everybody crazy. A mate would only be one more person who didn't really understand her.
"I don't have a mate and I'm not looking for one," she replied, a little more harshly than necessary. "I was just heading home. You can come meet my parents."
Stephen had the familiar surprised look that people had after talking with her for a little while, but he smiled at her invitation.
"Good." Iduna nodded. "Let's go, then."
***
The Hudson home was in the middle of town. Well, the residential area of town, at least. It was only a ten-minute walk from the grocery store, fifteen minutes from Main Street, twenty to Iduna's favorite restaurant, and forty from the library. Sixty-five if Mrs. Hart saw her walking and decided to demand to know every little detail of how her father's business was going.
Stephen insisted that he drive her, even though Iduna had told him that exercise was vital to a healthy pregnancy and that she was far enough along that if labor was induced the baby would still be plenty developed. For some reason, that didn't change his mind at all.
Her parents were working in the greenhouse garden like they did every day since the two of them retired as teachers at the local high school and started a flower nursery. Both her parents looked alarmed when Iduna introduced Stephen to them and told them who he was and why he was there. Her mother, Charity, shook her head when Iduna was finished.