His Purrfect Mate (Mating Heat Book 2)

by Laurann Dohner

  Anton crowded him, enraged, and demanded, “Tell me what you think they’ll do to her. Don’t make me ask again.”

  * * * * *

  Shannon really wished she had remained unconscious as she assessed the dire situation she’d woken to. Seven male pride members stood around her in the woods. All of them were grim, scary guys ranging from their early twenties to early thirties. The two brothers who’d kidnapped her were among them.

  Mark appeared slightly older than his brother Adam. He spoke as though he were the one in charge as he argued with another male. “She’s too human for anyone to want to mate with.”

  “I’d take her,” a blond twenty-something male offered. “Our women are scarce.”

  “They won’t be if we were able to breed a lot more of our kind.” Mark shot a glare at Shannon where she’d been dumped on her ass in the grass with her hands secured behind her back. “She’s a rare find.”

  “Her scent trace isn’t known. Her blood parent wasn’t from our pride.” Adam moved next to his brother. “I’m with Mark on this. No mating this one. We know what needs to be done.”

  “I agree,” a tall brunette sighed. “Besides, no male could harm his mate the way she’ll suffer. She has no family in our pride to protest her treatment. She is a rare find that we must use to full advantage.”

  Shannon cleared her throat. “I’m no threat to you. Please just let me go. You’ll never see me again. I can promise you that. I’ve never told anyone what I am. You don’t have to kill me.”

  They ignored her. “I can’t get past the stink of her though,” one of the males whined, his voice grating. “She reeks of wolf.”

  “Hold your breath then.” Mark shot him glare. “I’ve decided.”

  The blond who’d offered to mate her cursed. “She doesn’t appear to be very sturdy.”

  “She’s blooded enough to go into heat,” Mark stated.

  “It’s very faint,” the whiner complained. “I can barely detect it over the horrible wolf stink.”

  “I know.” Mark reached behind him and drew out what looked like a plastic eyeglasses case. “I grabbed this on the way here.”

  “That will do it,” the oldest-looking male said. “Those hormones will jumpstart her into full-blown heat. It takes about twenty minutes to work from the testing I’ve done.”

  “Hormones will do that?” The whiner didn’t look convinced.

  “They were taken straight from other she-cats in full heat. We’ve tested it a few times and it’s worked every time.”

  “What are the chances of her dying?” Mark coldly glanced at Shannon. “I’d hate to take that risk. She’s partially in heat already.”

  “The hormones won’t kill her,” the older male proclaimed. “We’re just going to have to remember to be careful. She’s going to suffer, but no biting or clawing her up. Blood loss will kill her.”

  Shannon started to tremble. “What are you talking about? What do you plan to do to me?”

  Mark’s green eyes fixed on her and he sighed. “What do you know of us?”

  “You plan to kill me for being mostly human.”

  “Wrong.” He walked closer. “Here’s a little sex education for you. In skin, when we get females pregnant, they only have single births. One baby.”

  Dread filled Shannon. They were talking about sex, hormones, and her being in heat. She had a really bad feeling where this conversation was headed.

  “But we can impregnate females with litters if we’re shifted when it happens. They can carry anywhere from three to five babies. The thing is, though, when the female shifts back to skin it aborts the pregnancy. Our women don’t enjoy staying in animal form for months while their pregnancies gestate to full term. Even the ones willing to attempt it have accidentally shifted while they slept, without meaning to. It has greatly decreased our numbers. After we decided it was safer to mostly live in skin than remain in animal form, our low live-birth rate has greatly decreased our population.”

  Adam snorted. “Humans try to shoot us or give us to zoos when we run around shifted.”

  One of the men nodded. “I lost my first mate after humans killed her. Some fucking hunter shot her on private property. I killed him but she didn’t survive his bullet. They poach on our lands after hearing about sightings of us. Now we can only shift and run at night to avoid drawing more of them. We post guards to take out any trespassers. They’re easy to sneak up on using our night vision.”

  Mark took over the conversation again. “We can breed with you and create a litter. You can carry more babies than our females can.”

  Shannon whimpered. “I can’t shift, and I won’t do that. No!” Her frightened gaze darted among the seven men. She knew all the color drained from her face when she realized one of them planned to try to get her pregnant, and she pulled frantically at whatever held her wrists. “I won’t agree to it!”

  The oldest guy drew her attention by walking closer to peer down at her. “We’re not asking your permission. You’re not pride and your wishes are irrelevant. The fact that you can’t shift is why you’re perfect for what we need.” He glanced at Mark. “Should you tell her or should I?”

  “I will.” Mark’s green eyes seemed to gleam, his look of near amusement directed at Shannon. “Here’s how it is. You can’t shift, which means you can’t accidentally abort the litter you’ll carry.”

  She recoiled in revulsion. “But you said in skin, I’d only have one baby.”

  “You’ll be in skin—but we won’t.” A cold smile curved Mark’s lips. “We’re going to shift after our doctor there injects you with hormones to force you into full heat, your body will be primed to conceive, and between all of us, we’ll put a litter inside you.”

  Adam rubbed his hands together. “It’s going to feel great for us but…not for you. That’s why no male will fuck his mate the way we’re going to take you, and we don’t share our mates. Females are able to carry different babies from different fathers at the same time. Between the seven us, we’ll definitely make sure you have a litter. Human and puma bodies just don’t match up that well.” He smiled at the men around him. “We’ve all fantasized about it though.”

  The doctor chuckled. “I’ve done it once to test the hormones. It’s amazing. They’re much wetter in skin so you can fuck them deeper, but we should gag her. She’ll scream. It’s very painful for the female when we barb up and withdraw from her. We can’t wait until we soften to pull out after ejaculation, the way we do with our mates. We need to keep fucking her continuously because the hormones won’t last more than a few hours. It’s too risky to keep her in heat with her human blood for longer than that. Her heart probably couldn’t take the strain.”

  Shannon wanted to scream then. She resisted the urge as she fought her restraints and tried to get to her feet, but with her arms behind her back, she couldn’t.

  “Please don’t do this,” she begged.

  Mark tossed the plastic case to the doctor. “Inject her. We’ll prepare her while it starts to take effect. I’m not worried about her screaming. No one will hear her and we’ve posted a few guards.”

  The doctor caught the case, opened it, and withdrew a large syringe. Shannon threw her body to the side, tried to roll away, but he planted his loafer on her ass, pinned her to the ground, and tore up her shirt. Another male bent down to tear at the borrowed sweatpants she wore. He bared her left ass cheek.

  Shannon screamed when the big needle pierced her skin. It hurt a lot and seemed to take a long time for the doctor to inject the contents. Tears ran down her face when she stopped screaming after the needle jerked out of her ass. Two men gripped her upper arms to haul her painfully off the ground. They didn’t even let her feet touch the grass when they carried her toward a large fallen tree. Two other men rushed forward to help.

  She screamed and struggled but they forced her to her knees and bent her over the rough wood. Someone cut the restraints at her wrists but then her arms were yanked wide apart.
She turned her head to see rope being tied to branches still attached to the log, and then secured to her wrists to keep her arms spread open.

  “Don’t do this! Oh god. Please!” she sobbed.

  “Shut up.” Mark leapt over the log to face her from the other side. He picked up something that had been hidden from her view under the log—a chain with a thick leather collar. She tried to jerk away but the ropes held her firmly against the log. “This is to keep you in place. The less you fight, the less the risk of slicing you with our claws.”

  She tossed her head, tried to avoid his hands, but he managed to clamp the collar around her neck. It nearly choked her until he adjusted it. He bent, pulled on the chain, and it forced her head down until her chin brushed the log. She heard a click and when she tried to lift her head, there wasn’t any give. Mark winked at her.

  “I’m going first. You won’t be able to see which one of you is fucking you since you can’t turn your head but I wanted you to know that. Don’t worry though. I’m the biggest so I’ll hurt the most. The others will feel slightly less painful afterward. Strip her.”

  “I’m under the protection of a werewolf,” she cried out when someone gripped the back of her shirt, jerking her body painfully, and material tore open to bare her skin. “He will kill you for doing this to me!”

  Mark brushed his fingertips over her cheek. She tried to jerk away but the collar choked her. It made him laugh but he pulled his hand away.

  “No werewolf is going to come after a she-cat. A dog will fuck anything, and I’m sure it was fun for him to screw the enemy in a literal sense. Now you’re home. This is your life from now on. You’ll breed us litters until you grow too old to have them anymore. You’ll be useless when you stop ovulating but if you help hike our numbers high enough, we won’t turn killing you into a fun sport. I’ll make it painless.” He winked again. “I’m a nice guy when motivated. Don’t forget that.”

  She sobbed, the action making her more aware of the rough bark through the thin material of her shirt. They bared her back and tore the sweats off her completely. She screamed when her thighs were pulled apart, spread wide, and ropes were wrapped painfully into her legs just above her knees so she couldn’t close them.

  “Don’t do that,” Mark crooned. “You don’t look as pretty with red eyes. Of course, I won’t be looking at your face.” He stood and moved out of her sight.

  She could hear them talking while she cried. Her body started to feel warm, then hot, as if she were running a fever. Painful cramps jolted through her belly and she sobbed when the agony increased. Wetness slipped down her thighs, coated them. She knew she hadn’t peed herself—the drugs were working.

  “Fuck,” someone snarled. “Smell her. Let’s start.”

  “Not yet,” the doctor ordered. “Soon. We want her in full ovulation. Let’s strip and change. What’s the order? We don’t want us fighting to determine whose turn it is.”

  “I go first.” Mark sounded as if he stood very close behind her. “Adam is next. The rest of you can decide the order. We’re all going to have her, so don’t snipe. We have hours with her. Whatever order you choose, keep it going. I figure we’ll each get her three times at least.”

  Shannon screamed again. The raw sound tore through the woods but she knew no help would come. They were going to shift into animals to gang rape her.

  Chapter Thirteen

  This can’t be happening. Shannon latched on to that thought with desperation. They can’t do this to me. It’s not real. I’m having a nightmare. Wake up! Oh god, wake up!

  A high-pitched, animalistic scream distracted her from the prayer she had started to mentally chant. She had no idea what had caused the startling noise.

  “What the hell?” Mark moved within sight in front of the log, glowering at the woods. “Was that one of ours?”

  “Shit,” Adam hissed. “I think word is out and we’re about to have more company. I told all of you not to share news of her with anyone. Who did you tell?”

  “No one,” the whiner answered.

  “I didn’t,” someone else protested.

  Mark turned and rage twisted his features in an ugly expression. “Damn it, you were the only ones we could trust not to tear her apart. If half the pride shows up to take turns with her she won’t survive.”

  Another strange scream tore through the woods. It seemed to come from a different direction…or maybe not. It was difficult for Shannon to distinguish.

  “They seem to be fighting already.” Mark muttered a string of curses as he walked out of her sight. “I’m going to have to challenge some of them now. I’ll tear out your throats if one of you mounts her while I’m dealing with the approaching males. Got me? I get her first. If some of them get around me, you make sure they don’t get to her. I’ll have all your asses if I’m not the first. I want to make sure at least one in the litter she’ll carry is mine.”

  The nightmare just grew worse for Shannon. Not only were seven of them planning to rape her, but now more of their pride seemed to want to join the torture. A new hell set in as her body further betrayed her. She could feel her sex swelling and her clit started to throb as though it had a heartbeat. The sensation grew painful and a new noise came from her mouth that she couldn’t hold back, a throaty cry.

  “She’s in full heat,” the doctor informed the group. “Look at her vulva. Pink and puffy and soaked. She’s ready to conceive.”

  “Damn it!” Mark roared, obviously in a full-blown rage now. “Who the hell told our males about this?”

  He leapt over the log into Shannon’s view again. The sight of his naked backside jolted terror through her. He’d been ready to shift and take her body. She struggled but couldn’t break free. Her gaze remained on Mark since, as long as he kept in front of her, she knew no one would touch her. He scanned the woods and then his body started to shift while he dropped to all fours.

  “Fuck!” he roared. “Prepare to fight.” His voice transformed from human to the scream of his animal.

  She gaped at the sight of his sleek animal body. He was terrifying. She’d been to zoos before but the large cats there didn’t seem as big to her as he did at that moment. Of course, they had been at a distance, not six feet away. She watched his ears pin back, his body tense, and he crouched.

  Something rustled in the bushes and her gaze jerked toward the noise.

  It wasn’t another puma that ran into the clearing. A big wolf barreled directly at Mark. Three more large wolves exploded into the clearing from different angles.

  The first wolf slammed into Mark.

  All hell broke loose. The wolves attacked the shifting men. Adam jumped over the log to try to help his brother, tried to shift, but another big wolf tackled him, took his body down, and he screamed as sharp teeth tore at him. Blood flew, splattering the ground. Behind her, she heard more fighting and snarls. Something splattered her bare foot, a warm, wet sensation that she guessed was blood.

  She couldn’t see what happened behind her but she couldn’t miss the fights in front of her between Mark in puma form and the big black wolf that had rushed out of the woods first. Mark swiped at the wolf but missed when it spun out of reach with mere inches to spare.

  The wolf charged, head lowered, and slammed into the puma with enough force to knock it into the grass. The black wolf clamped his big jaws into the equally large cat’s hind leg, shredding it. The cat screamed and tried to roll away.

  One of them has to be Anton! she realized. At least I hope so. She wanted to yell his name as her gaze darted between the two wolves attacking Mark and Adam. The wolf holding Adam on the ground won his bloody victory. Adam stopped fighting. A mat of thick hair coated his arms, and his ears extended longer than a human’s, but otherwise he appeared human. Bright red soaked his still form and she didn’t see his chest moving.

  The wolf who had killed him turned his head to stare at her with dark eyes.

  “Anton?” Her voice shook.

  He sudde
nly lunged forward but didn’t stop in front of her. Instead, he snarled and jumped the log. He missed her by inches as he launched through the air. In seconds, something large, heavy, and hairy slammed against the back of her thighs.

  She opened her mouth to scream but a snarl stopped her cold. It sounded more like a dog than anything. A vicious, pissed-off wolf. It pushed away from her and she heard a loud shriek, and more wetness splashed her leg. Then something hairy and thin slapped the back of her thigh. It did it again. She tried to turn her head but the collar prevented it. A few more swats and she realized it had to be a tail wagging against her.

  What the hell? Is that Anton trying to comfort me with his tail? Trying to let me know he’s there protecting my back?

  She focused on the fight in front of her. The cat and wolf still fought but the cat bled a lot. It tried to run away but the wolf took it down from behind, landing on it and lunging for the throat. The cat screamed and then thrashed under the powerful jaws gripping it, the wolf’s head shaking back and forth to cause more injury.

  Mark stilled under the wolf forever.

  The wolf released the dead carcass and turned. He met Shannon’s gaze and slowly inched closer. His head was tucked down a little, his jaws dripped blood but were closed now. He advanced until he stood mere feet from her. He collapsed and started to transform into skin.

  His side had been mauled by the cat’s claws. Red, bloody marks marred tan skin. He had more cuts and a bite on his thigh. She gasped when she realized who it was as he lifted his head.

  Anton’s brother, Rave, met her gaze and gave her a wink. “I’ll be okay. I’ll be healed from this in a matter of days.”

  The sounds of fighting ceased behind her and the tail stopped tapping her thigh. She gasped when something cold and wet suddenly nudged against her swollen pussy. She tried to fight when it pressed tighter, until it slid along the folds of her sex and she heard sniffing. She hated the way her body responded. Pleasure rolled through her at just the brush of something against her clit and she fought the urge to come that fast.