by Bonnie Vanak
THE MATING HEAT
A BBW Romance
(Big, Beautiful Werewolf)
Prequel to the Werewolves of Montana series
Bonnie Vanak
Werewolf Kara Mitchell fled with her brother Aiden to Montana after their alpha father punished her for kissing sexy omega werewolf Ryder Carrington. Left scarred by her father’s cruelty, Kara believes no one can love her. After killing his alpha to save the pack, Ryder now rules, but needs a mate. His blood runs hot for Kara. Ryder will do anything to claim her, even risk an all-out pack war that could cost them everything…
Chapter 1
The Carrington pack ranch, Colorado, 2003
“You are not a Mitchell! Imposter! Usurp…”
The words died on the attacking male’s mouth as Ryder Carrington hit him square on the jaw. The blow sent the Lupine reeling backward into the oak bookcase. An iron bust of a wolf crashed over his head.
He collapsed to the floor.
“Busted,” Ryder murmured, flexing his sore knuckles.
The door burst open and his two lieutenants rushed inside. David and Marcus glanced at the crumbled Lupine on the Oriental rug.
“Another one. Punishment this time?” David asked.
Ryder sighed. As the pack’s new alpha wolf, he must maintain discipline, but damn, he hated this.
“Put him in one of the new cells. Let him cool off, then set him to work, supervised, mending the north fork fences. We need every available male working to repair the ranch.”
Marcus nodded and lifted the unconscious Lupine over one shoulder, carrying him out. Ryder sat in his predecessor’s leather chair behind a polished mahogany desk. Alastair Mitchell was dead and the pack had proclaimed Ryder their new leader after he’d defeated the alpha in a challenge eight weeks ago. Though Alastair had been cruel and unbalanced, a few loyal followers wanted no other leader but a Mitchell.
David remained standing. The young Lupine was a drifter who’d joined the pack shortly before Ryder assumed leadership, when everything was falling to pieces. He was stoic and formal, but an excellent assistant who’d already cultivated friendships among the pack’s old guard. “That’s the fourth one who tried to attack, sir. They’re getting bolder. They do not lower their gazes before you or bow their heads.”
“Fifth. And I’m Ryder, not sir. I don’t want bowed heads. I want a cohesive pack.”
“They think you did not win the pack challenge with Alastair fairly. The small band of his remaining supporters say you cheated and hit the alpha when he was already down.”
“And they want Alastair to rise from the dead and resume leadership.”
“No.” David shook his head. “No one says they want him back.”
“Do you know why?” he asked softly.
No answer. David did not know the pack’s past. Ryder steeped his fingers and stared at his lieutenant, who lowered his gaze.
“This pack has suffered more than you can imagine. Our former leader was cruel and neglected the people. Many still bear marks from his punishments.”
Old scar tissue pulled and stretched as Ryder moved a shoulder. He was among those Alastair had targeted. As the former pack omega, he’d endured many of the alpha’s reprimands.
“Begging your pardon, some in this pack still want a Mitchell. These followers say if you had a Mitchell here, even ruling at your side, they would readily accept you.”
He couldn’t afford any more divided loyalties. The pack had to work together or they might as well starve this winter. Ryder leaned back, thinking fast.
“Kara Mitchell,” he murmured.
David shook his head. “I thought she left the pack with her older brother, Aiden.”
“She did.”
But he’d never forgotten her.
He opened a drawer and withdrew a photograph of a smiling, lovely brunette with sparkling green eyes and skin soft and smooth as cream. When he was but a lowly omega, Kara had been the only spark of light in his life. Kara had been compassionate and kind, even sneaking him meals from the kitchen when he’d broken yet another rule and had been tossed into a cell as punishment.
Two years ago, he’d dared to steal an illicit kiss that left her weak and trembling, and left him hard as stone. Newly released from a month of solitary confinement, Ryder had been so lonely he ached for company. He’d been wandering the lodge, looking for anyone to say hello. Seeing no one, he’d hovered in the hallway, slumped against the wall and feeling like he wasn’t worth a shit just like Alastair had claimed.
And then he’d seen Kara, cheeks rosy from the cold, a spring in her step. Seeing him, she’d stopped, flung her arms around him and whispered, “Don’t let him break you. You’re important to us.”
Encouraged by her sweetness, he couldn’t resist touching his lips to hers. But denied contact with his pack for so long, Ryder’s wolf had surged, turning the kiss ferocious and bruising. She’d smelled fresh and achingly innocent, her fragrance triggering his wolf’s savage need. Kara responded eagerly to the increasing pressure of his mouth. She’d hooked one leg around his, and he’d shattered, grabbing a fistful of her long hair, tugging her head back to intensify the mating of their mouths.
Kara’s soft breasts had pressed against his chest, their nipples achingly hard. He’d reached down and cupped one, wild with frantic need to simply hold her close, taste her scent in his mouth…
Believe he was a male of worth who deserved more than a dark, dank cell.
Then Alastair discovered them, locked Kara away and had Ryder’s legs broken.
Shaking free the memory, Ryder made a decision. Mating with Kara would unite pack members still loyal to the Mitchells. However, Aiden would never allow his sister to return home. Word was he’d bought a decrepit cattle ranch in Montana, started a new pack and was doing business with Skins, the Lupine term for humans.
Setting down the picture frame, Ryder leaned forward, choosing his words with care.
“David, in your travels, have you heard the rumor about a cache of gold Alastair owned?”
“I did hear something about gold. If there is such a treasure, Alastair would have hidden it well. Perhaps in the Shadow Forest.”
“That forest is filled with trolls, who love gold.” Ryder considered. “What about the status of Aiden Mitchell’s ranch?”
“The bank is about to foreclose. He is in great need of money.”
He’d suspected as much. Perfect timing. “Set up perimeter alarms every 100 yards along our boundaries in the Shadow Forest. I want to know if anything Lupine enters those woods. Increase the patrols on our territory to every hour.”
“Ah, Sir Ryder, please forgive my curiosity but why the increased patrols? Do you anticipate trouble?”
“You don’t have to call me sir.” Ryder drummed his fingers on the desk. “I’m sending a letter to Aiden Mitchell, telling him I have found the gold. I will send him half in exchange for one thing.”
At David’s puzzled expression, he smiled. “He sends his sister here to spend one night in my bed.”
To his credit, his lieutenant didn’t even blink in surprise. “The young alpha will not like it, sir…ah, Ryder. He will see it as a grave insult.”
“I don’t care what Aiden thinks. I’m after Kara. She’ll come here because she cares about her brother and will do anything to help him.”
“But you don’t have the gold.” David frowned. “How can you promise something you do not have? What if Kara knows where the gold is and sneaks onto the property to find it for herself?”
Waiting patiently, he watched his lieutenant puzzle it out. Then the Lupine’s exp
ression smoothed. “Ah, that is why you want the perimeter alarms. To catch her.”
“Exactly. Get to work.”
“At once, sir…ah, Ryder.”
As the male started out the door, he called after him. “Oh and David? About those who accuse me of cheating in the challenge with Alastair?”
“Yes?”
Ryder flexed his sore knuckles. “They’re not lying.”
His lieutenant’s mouth gaped open. “But the ancient pack challenge is for honor!”
He gave a thin smile. “I don’t fight for honor, David. I fight for our people and to win. Always.”
Chapter 2
The Shadow Forest, Colorado, one week later
Kara Mitchell pushed her way through a thick forest of evergreen trees. A cold wind whistled through the low-hanging limbs, sending showers of needles down like stringy raindrops. Branches overhead creaked and groaned like an old woman’s bones. The wind cut through her frayed leather jacket, licked her ankles through her jeans, the denim now grubby with dirt and stains.
Taking a short rest break, she leaned against the trunk of a pine tree, inhaling the sharp fragrance. She adored the scent of fresh evergreen. It reminded her of hot chocolate sipped before a roaring fire and a certain handsome Lupine sitting next to her, his wicked smile filled with promise.
Ryder Carrington.
The lands here now belonged to Ryder, the new alpha of her former pack. Her father, gods damn his evil soul, was dead. Ryder probably hated her family for the cruel abuse he’d suffered at her father’s hands.
And now he’d chosen to exact his revenge, demanding Kara as his virgin sacrifice.
“I want to finish what I started with your sister, Aiden. If she’s still untouched, send Kara to me and after one night in my bed, I’ll return her with half the gold,” he’d written.
Aiden had crushed the letter and cursed Ryder. Other males had sniggered as if they couldn’t believe anyone desired her. Darius, her brother’s beta, had shown them the business side of his fists and put them in their place. Darius was as protective of her as her own brother.
She closed her eyes, remembering Ryder’s quick, ready smile and bold attitude. Ryder walked alone, but with a confident air belying his status as omega.
She and Ryder had shared a mutual attraction as strong as the mating bond could get between Lupines. But her father had caught them kissing and punished Ryder severely.
And me…An icy chill raced down her spine.
Ryder had no idea what her father had done. Kara touched her left cheek. If he saw her, his desire would melt like sugar dumped into boiling water. She must find the gold and smuggle it back as quickly as possible.
Shadows danced within the vast tangle of oak and pine trees. The Shadow Forest seemed to whisper and the whispers were dark and cold, like death. But the entrance to the tunnel where Alastair secured the gold was in these woods.
The only other entrance was in the pack lodge.
A rustling sounded in the holly bushes to her left. Kara went still, her Lupine senses searching out the intruder. She smelled evergreen, decaying earth and the freshness of the nearby stream wending through the forest.
And the sharp, bitter scent of sweat, moss and something…nasty and dark.
Troll.
You can do this. You can do this. Even if there are trolls here, you’re a Lupine with fangs and claws. Kara headed for the secret entrance to the tunnel. The woods seemed sinister and so very old, filled with a dark magick.
Branches and dry leaves crackled beneath her worn leather boots.
A branch cracked to her right.
She set down her pack, every hair on her nape saluting the air.
“I see you, fat girl,” said a high-pitched voice.
A giggle sounded, playful as a child, but lurking beneath was something dark and nasty.
“I smell you, troll.” She held her nose, satisfied to hear an angry hiss of breath.
A rustle of leaves to her right. Kara peered at the undergrowth. Stray sunlight caught a glint of steel in the shadows. The troll stepped forward into the light, a small knife clutched in one hand. Warts dotted his purpled body and his pubic hair was forest green. Shining in greed and spite, the troll’s gaze focused on her rucksack.
Then he looked at her and recoiled, nearly dropping his dagger. “What happened to your face? Did an ogre mistake you for kindling?”
Kara ignored the insult. She’d been mocked by experts. “Let me pass.”
The troll tapped his chin with the blade. “I have seen you before. You are Kara Mitchell, daughter of Alastair. You seek the gold he hid.”
“I came back because I forgot my toothbrush. Now let me pass.”
“Show us the gold and you will live,” the troll hissed.
“Let me pass or you will die.”
He grinned, showing green, pointed teeth. “You’re but an ugly, fat female who can’t even outrun us. You have no power here.”
More rustling from the undergrowth. Armed with stubby, sharp blades, three more trolls surrounded her. They eyed her pack and then her, making the same looks of horrified incredulity.
Kara fought a surge of fresh panic. Four trolls against one Lupine. I’ve come too far to let them win.
Trolls were stupid and blinded by greed. She knelt and unzipped her rucksack, withdrawing the gold key to the vault. “Want this?”
Greed shone in their eyes. “Give us the key,” one demanded.
Kara dropped the key back into her bag and zipped it up. “Come and get it, boys!”
As they rushed her, waddling like chubby puppies, she clasped her heavy rucksack and then swung it around. Who you calling fat now, asswipes?
Whack! The pack brained all four. They fell like bowling pins, surprised looks on their faces.
“Strike,” she murmured. And then she glanced up.
Hellfire and brimstone. Three more trolls emerged from the dark, shadowy trees. Her heart leapt into her throat. Kara dropped her pack and reached for the dagger sheathed at her leather belt.
Trolls were clumsy and slow, and their shorter height placed them at a disadvantage. She could take them.
As the first troll rushed forward, raising his blade to slash at her legs, she kicked him in the stomach, sending him rolling like a green beach ball. Another rushed her from the left, howling, but she sank her dagger deep into his throat.
Kara pivoted on her heels and saw another troll running for her, a knife extended.
She slashed it in the face. The troll howled with pain and retreated.
The trolls she knocked out with her rucksack regained consciousness and slowly staggered to their feet. She was cornered. No way could she take all of them.
Loud growls suddenly filled the air. Kara’s Lupine senses automatically urged her to shift. She dropped the dagger and called upon her magick. Bones and muscles lengthened, and sleek gray fur covered her body.
Nine timber wolves emerged from the shadows. All males, their balls swaying heavily as they advanced, their sharp teeth bared in wolven snarls.
She watched them with great wariness, unsure if these strangers wanted to tear the trolls to pieces.
Or her.
Things could be worse. Fur ruffled, she stood her ground against either comer.
And then from the shadows came an enormous gray wolf, his muscles moving with fluid power. Black fur streaked its muzzle. Kara’s muscles tensed. Ryder.
The wolves attacked, chasing after the trolls who squealed and fled into the woods. Ryder targeted the troll closest to her, baring his fangs and pursuing the troll into the woods. High-pitched howls of fear abruptly cut off. Wet, ripping sounds followed. A shaky sense of relief filled her.
The wolves returned to the clearing and loped over to the stream. They drank and washed the blood off their muzzles. Still in wolf form, she eyed the path ahead. Maybe she could make a run for it…
But then they turned and started toward her. Inching backward, she retreated
to hide among the shadowy trees. A burst of sunlight dappled the pine boughs and spilled onto the forest floor like a spotlight. She moved away from it.
Ryder turned and stared into the trees as if trying to sense her hiding place. Mild speculation fast turned to male Lupine appraisal. He’d caught the scent of her approaching heat.
Oh yeah, things could always get worse.
Kara had nearly forgotten how intimidating Ryder was in wolf form. Muscular, weighing probably over 200 pounds, he had thick gray and black fur that rippled in the wind. His piercing blue gaze glittered like sunlit sapphires.
Then he nodded. The wolves shifted into their Skin form and clothed themselves by magick. She did not recognize any of them from her former pack.
Ryder shifted into his Skin form. Virile and strong, he stood well over six feet, with well-defined legs and arms, and a flat abdomen rippling with muscle. His tousled brown hair looked thick and silky, cut shorter than before. Kara’s heart constricted as she remembered running her fingers through the strands as he’d kissed her.
Hunger and weakness from the long journey had proven too taxing to hold onto her wolf form. Kara shifted back, clothed herself by magick and hovered in the shadows.
He stood naked and confident, his stride silent as he neared her hiding place. In wolf form, he could rip out an enemy’s throat in a heartbeat. In human form he was equally dangerous.
“Come out, Kara. We will not harm you.”
“Put your pants on and maybe I’ll believe it.”
A small, amused grin touched his handsome face. Ryder waved a hand and clothed himself by magick.
“Kara, come out. You cannot run from me any longer, sweeting. I promise, I will not hurt you.”
Stepping out from the dark shadows was the hardest thing she’d ever done, even harder than summoning the courage to return for her father’s gold. She had not willingly shown her scarred face to a male since the day Aiden spirited her away, half-dead and bleeding, to save her from their father’s wrath.