Fated Attraction_Shifter Nation_Werebears Of The Everglades

by Meg Ripley

  “There’s no chain,” Mason said.

  “Small miracle,” Conner added.

  They dug at the ground, and in a few minutes, they had freed the trap from the hole.

  “Britt, just stay still,” Conner explained. “We’re going to lift the trap out of the hole so we can get it open.”

  She nodded once and I watched them as they struggled to pull the heavy trap from the small hole while trying to not hurt Britt, but she twitched and winced in pain.

  “Do you have other injuries?” I asked. “Something we can’t see?”

  She just looked up at me.

  “Please shift back. I don’t know what you’re saying. I need to be able to talk to you.” I felt the tears run down my cheeks as I pleaded with her.

  She closed her eyes, and I thought she was either passing out or falling asleep, but then, I saw her tail twitch and begin to shorten. Mason and Conner worked at the trap.

  Patches of her skin changed so she became splotchy with panther fur, skin and mud. Her skeleton seemed to change bone by bone, and I couldn’t imagine what pain it must have been causing her. Every shifter perfected the art of changing as fast as possible; that was the only way to keep the pain at a minimum. It got so I barely noticed it anymore. But shifting slowly would hurt like someone was twisting and wrenching each limb, forcing it to break and morph forms.

  “Just do it real fast and it’ll be over,” I said, rubbing her nose and head. I wished I could do it for her; wished I could give her my strength, my energy.

  It took time, but finally, she looked up at me with her human eyes. I kissed her and stroked her golden hair while they worked.

  “We need to get it flat on the ground to do it,” Mason said.

  Conner cursed and looked at me.

  “What?” I asked.

  “We have to move her so that her leg can bend. We have to be able to stand on these springs to get the trap to open,” Conner explained.

  They’d have to use a lot of weight to push down on the triangles, making them into flat pieces stacked on top of each other, so that the trap would release. With Britt lying down, the trap was on its side.

  “Okay,” I said, taking in a deep breath. I looked down at Britt. “Did you hear that? We have to turn you onto your back so your foot is flat on the ground. That’s the only way they can get it off.”

  She closed her eyes. With their help, we turned her as gently as possible. Once she was in position, it only took a minute for them to stand on the trap and get it to release.

  Her foot came free and fresh blood poured from the wound. Conner went to his pack and pulled out a roll of bandages, promptly applying pressure and wrapping the wound.

  “I think our best bet is to carry her out,” Conner said. “We’ll have the EMTs meet us wherever they can get to.”

  “We’re all going to walk out naked?” I asked.

  They exchanged looks.

  Mason said, “Actually, it might be better if we’re bears. We can lay her across our backs.”

  “Take my pack,” Conner said. “There are some clothes in there. Put whatever you can on her and you. We can get back to the car. We have more stuff there.”

  They shifted back as I grabbed the pack and slung it over my shoulder. In case any of us had to shift again, I’d wait to get us dressed. We couldn’t afford to lose these clothes and we wouldn’t have time to undress if something came at us.

  Mason and Conner stood side by side, and I squatted down and slid my arms under Britt. She was sturdy and muscular, but the adrenaline still pumped through me, giving me just enough of a boost to easily lift her.

  I set her carefully across their backs. “Try to hold on,” I told her.

  She dug her hands into their coats and they started moving, slowly at first, until they knew she wasn’t going to slide off. They picked up speed and I walked fast to keep up, watching to make sure she wouldn’t fall.

  As bears, it would have taken only a few minutes of running, but at human speed, it was taking much, much longer.

  “This is taking too long,” I said. “Put her on my back.”

  I shifted and held the pack in my mouth while Mason and Conner helped move Britt onto my back. She wrapped her arms tight around my throat. It almost choked me, but I welcomed the pain; it made me move faster.

  Once I was sure she was on securely, I took off running as fast as I could while carrying her, and Conner and Mason ran with me. It wasn’t as fast as my usual bear speed of course, but I could cover more ground a lot more quickly than I could on human legs.

  They’re here, Conner said. He showed me where the ambulance was parked. It had come as close as it could and the EMTs were standing by, waiting.

  Just before we got to them, I stopped and eased her to the ground.

  See you at the hospital, I told them before shifting to my human form.

  I hurried to get some clothes on us both, and once we were decent, I picked her up again and carried her out of the woods.

  I’m sure Conner could have explained exactly what happened at that point, but all I remember is that once they saw us, the EMTs swarmed. They took her from me and got her on a stretcher, then loaded her into the ambulance, where they got an IV line running, gave her oxygen and began cleaning her wounds.

  They asked her questions, but she couldn’t answer, so I gave them all the critical information I knew. They asked her more questions, and at first, I answered for her, but then the EMT looked up at me.

  “I need to assess her cognitive awareness.”

  “Sorry.” I shut up and just sat beside her, holding her hand.

  Just before they shut the ambulance doors, Conner hopped on. He got the report from one of the EMTs, then he did his own assessment and gave them more information as the ambulance took off.

  They could have been speaking another language, for all I knew.

  Conner told the driver, “Straight to the poison center.”

  I watched her carefully, hoping she’d just open her eyes and start talking to me and be fine. Conner sat beside me, still checking her vitals and doing things I didn’t understand.

  He put his hand on my shoulder. “You did good, man. I think you saved her life.”

  “You think?”

  “She’ll live. I don’t know what damage has been done, but she’ll live.”

  That was all I could ask for. I set my jaw and nodded.

  17

  Ezra

  When we got to the hospital, I had to sit in the waiting room. I still didn’t have my phone, so I couldn’t call anyone. But they all knew. In ones and twos, my clan trickled in.

  Mason told me, “The humans are under arrest in jail, and the body of the croc is being processed by our guys.”

  By “our guys” I assumed he meant shifters.

  When they finally let me in to see her, I refused to leave her side. I spent the night in the ICU with her, and in the morning, the doctor said she could be moved to a normal room. Progress. They kept her one more night for observation, then I was able to drive her home.

  “I don’t want you arguing with me,” I said as I helped her inside. “I’m staying here and taking care of you.”

  She hadn’t been speaking much over the last few days; she’d been in and out of consciousness as they worked to get the poison out of her system. Then she’d been groggy on pain killers. She’d finally started to seem more like herself on the ride home.

  “I want you to stay,” she said.

  I helped her to the couch and got her a glass of water so she could take her medication, then sat in a chair by her side.

  “You scared me to death,” I said. “Do you know that? I thought you were going to die.”

  “I thought I was going to die. When those assholes showed up…and that croc.” Her jaw tightened, and I put my hand on her shoulder.

  “Easy,” I said. “He’s dead now. You took a swipe out of him, and I finished him off. We killed him together.”

  She
pressed her lips together. “I know. I watched you do it. I was cheering you on in my mind.”

  “Thanks.” I chuckled.

  “No.” She shook her head. “I need to thank you.” She looked at me with tears in her eyes. “What you did for me, saving me and protecting me the way you did…no one’s ever done anything like that for me. I don’t even know if anyone would.”

  “I’m sure your clan would.”

  “I don’t know,” she admitted. “We keep to ourselves for a reason. If they saw I couldn’t get away and three guys came with guns, they might have taken off, thinking I was a lost cause.”

  “Well, those aren’t very good friends.”

  “We’re just not like you all. We’re together for convenience. I don’t doubt they’d try to help me, sure. But if it was me or them, I’d be dead right now.”

  “I could never treat you that way.”

  “I know.” She gave me a thin smile. “That’s what made me fall in love with you.”

  I sucked in a breath. “What?”

  “I…I love you, Ezra.”

  I eyed the bottle of pain pills. “I’ll believe that when you’re not high.”

  She slapped my arm. “I knew it before the attack, you damn idiot.”

  I laughed. “Britt, when I thought I’d lost you, it felt like my life was over. I can’t imagine my life without you. I love you, too.” I kissed her and smiled widely.

  “We don’t need to get all sentimental about it,” she said.

  “Then what should we do about it?”

  “There’s one thing I’ve been thinking of a lot.”

  She sat up and pulled off her shirt. She wasn’t wearing a bra and her bare breasts shown in the room’s dim light.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

  She pulled my head to hers, forcing me into a kiss. I didn’t fight back; I wanted her just as bad.

  I pulled my shirt over my head and climbed carefully on top of her. Her foot was in a huge cast, but she had it resting on the floor, out of the way.

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” I said.

  She huffed. “You really think you could?”

  I raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been in the hospital with severe injuries and poisoning. Yes, I think you’re maybe not quite 100% right now.”

  “Pfft.” She pushed down her shorts, trying to wiggle free, but my weight stopped her.

  I lifted myself and helped her get her bottoms off, pulling them awkwardly over her cast, then stepped out of my pants and resumed my position.

  I was careful to hold my weight off her, though I let my hot skin touch hers all over. We’d spent so much time together being naked, but this was for a different reason. Now, I took the time to caress her breast and suck her nipple, enjoying every inch of her body.

  I moved down slowly, kissing a trail to her stomach, then lower. I pushed her leg over to spread her wide, and when I slid my tongue between her folds, she let out a moan. I sucked at her clit, moving my tongue inside her, then back to her sensitive nub. She moaned and rocked her hips, then grabbed my hair and pulled my face closer. I almost couldn’t breathe, but I kept at it, sucking and flicking until she cried out and her body tensed with pleasure.

  I smiled up at her and she made a pleased murmur in response. I climbed back up, laying my head on her chest and listened to her breathing.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she asked.

  I picked up my head to look at her. “What do you mean?”

  “We’re not done.”

  “Oh.” I laughed. “I didn’t want to push you too hard.”

  She narrowed her eyes at me. “I want you inside me. Now.”

  My eyes widened and I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, yes ma’am.” I saluted her and started kissing her again.

  It didn’t take long for my cock to stiffen right up again; around her, it happened without me even trying. She had me hard all the time, my thoughts consumed with her and how to please her.

  I circled my fingers around her clit, making her moan more before I slipped my finger in and out of her, spreading her wetness around.

  “Come on,” she said.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Patience.”

  “I’ve been waiting weeks. I can’t wait any longer.”

  “No?”

  I kissed along her neck, and when she reached down to stroke my shaft, I pulled my hips back, out of her reach. I kissed down her stomach, gave her a few flicks with my tongue, then kissed my way back up.

  “Ezra!”

  I gave her a wicked smile. “You’ll have to be nice if you want me to give you what you want.”

  “I don’t do nice.”

  I kissed her breasts and pinched her nipples, and she tugged on my hair to bring my face back to hers. She kissed me hard, biting at my earlobe and neck, like she was going to tame me into submission with her tongue and teeth.

  I was going to draw this out and tease her as long as I could. After a lot of kissing, I rubbed the tip of my cock against her clit, slipping in the wetness. She tried to buck her hips to guide me inside, but I didn’t let her.

  She grabbed my hair and pulled my face close to hers. She breathed, “I need to feel you inside me. Right now.”

  I almost obeyed her, moving the tip down to her opening. She shot her hips down, but I only allowed the head to slip in.

  She cried out in frustration. “Ezra!”

  This was too good to rush, though, so I pushed in slowly. Before I was fully inside her, I pulled back out. She tried to reach down to grab my ass, but the couch wasn’t the place for that sort of thing. She did not have the advantage, and her cast made her even more at my mercy. That probably pissed her off the most.

  If we were in her bed, she would have flipped me over, tackled me, and sat on me to get what she wanted. This might be the only time I could tease her, and I was going to make her work for it.

  “What do you want, Britt?” I cooed in her ear. “It’s right there.” I pressed in again a little, then pulled it back out.

  “Ezra,” she whined. “Please.”

  “Oh, I like it when you beg.” I smirked.

  “Please,” she said.

  I pushed in halfway, then stopped.

  “Please,” she moaned, “You’re killing me.”

  When those words left her lips, I closed my eyes and slid in all the way. I wanted to give her everything she wanted.

  “Is that what you want?” I asked.

  “Yes!” She managed to get one hand on my ass and gripped my cheek to pull me closer.

  Her free leg wrapped around my waist and she bucked her hips as I moved slowly in and out. I still didn’t want to rush things; I didn’t want that lust-filled sex we’d had before.

  But as I moved in and out of her, I couldn’t hold back. My own hormones kicked in and my body yelled at me for being a fool. I sped up, thrusting in harder, and each time she moaned, it sent a shot of pleasure through me that made me move faster and faster.

  “Yes, yes!” she shouted. “Harder!”

  I pumped into her as fast as I could, my ass muscles squeezing and working. I slammed her hard, making her breasts jump and her face twist in pleasure.

  “Yes!” She grabbed my ass and wrapped me tighter and snapped her hips into me as she tightened around my cock. Her squeezing and throbbing as she came pulled the pleasure out of me, and I thrust hard a few last times as I came.

  “Asshole,” she muttered as we lay still.

  “Oh, you love it,” I said, breathing hard and enjoying the feeling of our sweat-covered bodies sticking together.

  She sighed. “Yeah, I do. But next time, don’t you keep me waiting like that. If you don’t think there’ll be payback, you’re dumber than I thought.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  “The thing is…” I lifted my head to look in her eyes. “I was smart enough to pick you.”

  She pressed her lips together. “Fine. You’re smart as
a damn whip.” She paused, then said, “Whip. Hmm. That could be fun. Maybe I might just cuff you to the bed and whip you, see how you like to be tortured.”

  “I might like that very much,” I said.

  “Yeah, yeah, Mr. I Love Life And Everything About It.”

  “I love everything about you.” I kissed her. “And I will make you love life like you never knew you could if it’s the last thing I do.”

  18

  Britt

  One Year Later

  I came up to the cabin, dragging a croc carcass behind me as I approached the door. I’d made a point of hunting more crocs since my quite unpleasant experience with the one who tried to kill me and had killed two of my kind.

  Something wasn’t right, though. The door was open a crack and lights were on inside. I’d left in the middle of the day, so there was no way I’d left any on. Ezra was working and wouldn’t be over until much later.

  My heart raced and I started my sniffing investigation. This felt too familiar. Was someone in my place? After me or panthers again?

  I pulled my handgun from my side holster and pulled back the slide to load a bullet in the chamber. If someone was in there, I wasn’t going to wait for them to explain.

  I crept up the porch, my gun at the ready, and aimed in front of me. I kicked the door open wider as I jumped back, out of sight in case someone was right there. When I leaned my head forward slightly to see inside, I dropped my gun and rolled my eyes.

  “What the hell?”

  In the center of my living room sat a trap. It looked a little like the one I’d nearly lost my foot in a year before. That one, though, happened to be covered in pink fur, and rose petals were strewn around it. The trap was only plastic. A toy.

  A note sat beside it that read, “You’ve trapped my heart.”

  “This is the worst damn joke I’ve ever seen,” I called out. He was there somewhere. I walked over and shut the door, then locked it.

  Candles formed a circle around the trap, flickering in the gentle breeze. The candles formed a trail that I guessed I was meant to follow, so I walked back to the bedroom.