Serving Sera

by Bonnie Rose Leigh

  For hours they shadowed her through the woods, showing themselves in order to have her switch directions and head in the direction they wanted—back toward her little cabin in the woods. The weather grew colder by the hour. A storm was brewing and they needed to get back before it reached them.

  They may be animals some of the time, but they weren’t beasts. They’d explain why they wanted to mark her now, despite their desire for a full mating, and let her make an educated decision. Hell, she didn’t even know they were seasoned Hunters for the Supernaturals Council of Justice. They could and would protect her—whatever her secret was, whatever had her looking over her shoulder and ready to flee. Once they talked, she’d have all the facts and could make an informed decision. It was the best he could offer her and more than his wolf preferred.

  Both the wolf and the man hoped that included a bit of biting and, if they were really lucky, a bit of fucking as well. He’d find out soon enough because he could see the Sera’s cabin in the distance. The next hours were crucial. Would she accept his and Noah’s help? Would she accept them? Goddess, he hoped so.

  * * * *

  Sera couldn’t believe it. Her wolf had fought her hard all day. Especially after getting a whiff of Chance Mercer. She’d noticed his companion, too, and her wolf had practically howled with joy, shouting mine, mine, mine! She wanted them both—her wolf wanted them both. The knowledge that a threesome relationship in Serenity wasn’t taboo made it difficult to remember that the very evil creature who would harm anyone near her, still hunted her. If she kept that thought steadily in the front of her mind, perhaps she could resist them. If only the treacherous wolf bitch sharing her skin, running through the woods scenting the air with her arousal would cooperate, they might all live long and healthy lives.

  The human part of her knew the odds of avoiding mating two men before she took out Grakis were slim, especially considering that she would soon—in a matter of days—go into heat. With her mates nearby, men who appeared fully capable of easing the burning need that worsened every year—an agonizing seventy-two hours that not even a dozen orgasms from her vibrator could sate. She feared that her wolf would force her to give in to the demands to fuck.

  No longer did she have the option to pick up a stranger in the city and burn off the excess energy until after the heat waned. She and her wolf would object to fucking anyone except her mates since she’d scented them.

  Lost in the quagmire of her circling thoughts, she hadn’t realized they’d herded her, leading her back to her den. She’d run for hours, letting the biting wind and icy snow pelt her. She’d noticed one or the other shadowing her at times. She’d quickly changed directions, running full out until the next sighting. They’d let her run, never trying to stop her, until exhaustion had pulled at her, her reaction time hampered by the frigid temperatures and punishing run. Well, if they thought she’d just roll over and expose her belly to them in submission, this sistah would set them straight, kicking their balls into their throats if she had to.

  Ignoring the males she could not only smell but feel at her back, she loped across the field toward her back door, entering through the large doggie door she’d installed the week she’d moved into the cozy cabin. She knew the men would follow and she needed to be ready for them when they did.

  As soon as she entered her home, she noticed the chill in the air where the fire she’d laid in the night had burned down to embers. She’d have to do something about that. She could feel the snowstorm heading this way and she wanted the house warm, the firewood stacked inside, and the generator refueled in case she lost power. All while trying to force the men her wolf had mentally claimed as hers off her property and out of her life—at least until she took care of Grakis.

  Closing her eyes, Sera pictured her human form. She envisioned the same dark skin of her mother, the long legs of her father and lush high breasts, curves a man could hold onto without being afraid he would break her. She had her mother’s full pouty lips and her father’s midnight black eyes. She had long legs, and an ass that begged a man to squeeze or so she’d been told more than once.

  She wasn’t egotistical; she knew men liked the look of her. Combined with the natural sensuality she’d inherited from her vampire mother, the aggressive take-no-shit attitude of her alpha wolf shifter father, and men had chased her for years. So far, she hadn’t let anyone catch her. If her wolf got her way, however, she’d be mounted and claimed by dawn. She couldn’t let that happen.

  Tingling started along her spine and quickly spread down her extremities and over her face, signaling the change. She embraced it, knowing the men would change forms and knock on her door any minute. Greeting them naked simply wouldn’t be prudent in discouraging them. Besides that, she had a shitload of crap to take care of before the storm rolled in. No sooner had she dragged on her ugliest, baggiest pair of ancient pajamas, someone knocked on her door. Not that she didn’t know exactly who stood on the other side.

  Steeling herself for the coming confrontation, she tossed back her hair and marched toward her front door. A powerful black woman, she knew her own strength. She could face down and turn away two curious males, despite the driving need to tackle them to the floor, or throw them up against the wall or on top of the kitchen table. Sera shook her head. Thinking like that wouldn’t make it any easier to deny herself with the she wolf growling inside her mind.

  Snatching open the door, she expected the men to look smug after driving her back to her place. However, smugness wasn’t the overriding emotion rolling off of them. Instead, she sensed a deep vulnerability and outright concern. Not something she’d expected these two wolves to willingly show her. She wasn’t often surprised by men. Yet here were two in the same day.

  Shaking her head at the direction of her thoughts, she pulled the door wider and gestured the men inside. “Don’t bother taking your coats off. If you insist on having this conversation now, you can do it while you work.”

  Chance snickered and his companion raised a brow in question.

  “There’s a storm moving in and I need to bring in firewood so it stays dry and make sure the generator has fuel. Not to mention, I need to check that the insulation wrapped around the pipes in the basement is still intact before the temperatures drop farther.”

  “Fine, but first I think introductions are in order.”

  Sera glanced at the man with Chance, raised her brows at the demand in his voice, then snorted. “Whatevah,” she muttered. Blowing out a frustrated breath when the men just stood there, she pointed at her chest. “I’m Sera. You’re Chance,” she said pointing at the smirking, blond, All-American. After looking the other male up and down, she thought she’d try to shock him. “And you’re one hot brother. Now that that’s out of the way, ask your questions.”

  Striding past them, she didn’t look back to see if they followed. They would or they wouldn’t, but her wolf stretched inside her, content, positive the men were up to the challenge of mating with a strong alpha bitch. She shook her head wryly. If her mama could only see her now. She’d always told Sera to embrace both halves of her nature, that one day she would find a man strong enough to stand up to her, who wouldn’t be intimidated by her strength and independence. Somehow she didn’t think her mama would imagine her baby girl paired with two alpha wolves. She couldn’t imagine what her daddy would have to say about that. Only time would tell.

  When the wind shifted and the scent of her two men grew closer, she lifted her lips in a soft smile and kept walking toward the woodpile behind the shed. Her father was right too. Men wouldn’t back down from a challenge, especially an alpha wolf hunting female prey. The question was, was she up to the challenge?

  Chapter Six

  Noah watched the long-legged stride of his mate as she sashayed across the yard. He could watch her ass sway for hours, days. “Our mate has one sensual strut, my friend,” he whispered to Chance. “I can’t wait to feel those sleek muscles and luscious curves beneath my hands.�
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  Chance’s devilish grin had to match his own when he said, “Maybe we can question her long enough to get ourselves snowed in with her. Even sleeping on the sofa or the hard floor would be preferable to sleeping above The Howler, without her.”

  “I like the way you think,” Noah agreed. “Especially after what happened earlier tonight with those thugs.”

  Chance sighed, ran his hand through his tousled hair. “Until we know more about her, it’s best we stick close. I have a feeling this is where we need to be and not just because she’s our mate. Something is about to happen. Something big.”

  “My Hunter instincts are screaming at me as well.” As he watched the distance between them and their mate grow, Noah clapped a hand on Chance’s shoulder. “We better help her finish her chores. The storm will be here soon and I want to distract her with conversation before she realizes it and sends us on our way.”

  “Let’s do it,” Chance murmured as they both picked up their pace, following Sera around the side of the shed where they found her gathering wood.

  Moving beside her, Noah began gathering wood as well. With the three of them working, it should greatly reduce the amount of time it would normally take Sera to bring the wood inside. Watching her economical and no-nonsense movements, a surge of pride rushed through him. “The name is Noah Andrews, by the way,” he muttered, knowing that although she was doing her best to ignore them, she couldn’t avoid hearing him whether she wanted to or not. “Chance and I have been dreaming about you for years, using our position as Hunters to search for you.”

  When her eyes widened and her pulse sped up, a rush of adrenaline poured through him. What an interesting reaction. “Now that we’ve found you, we’ll retire from the Hunter Corps and join the department.”

  Her gaze skittered from him to Chance and back to the woodpile. She didn’t say anything for a moment, but, once her arms were full, she turned to head toward the cabin, and looked him straight in the eye. “There’s no sense in giving up your jobs. There can’t be anything between us.”

  Chance snorted, not bothering to hide his disbelief. “Keep thinking that and we’ll be sure to prove to you just how wrong you are.”

  Noah couldn’t agree more, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want answers, didn’t want to know why she adamantly refused to have anything to do with them. “Why, Sera? Why are you turning your mates away?” When she didn’t answer, but instead headed into the cabin with her armload of wood, he followed quietly behind. Only once she’d dropped her stack in the woodbin beside the fireplace and returned to the woodpile did he ask her the question uppermost in his mind. “Who are you running from?”

  Sera shook her head, once again making her way back toward the cabin with yet another armload of wood. "It's not that simple. It's not only who I'm running from that's the problem, but what I'm running from."

  Hell, Noah had no idea what she meant by that but, by the determined look in her face and the fear he could smell wafting from her, she truly did believe someone hunted her and she didn’t want to tell them who.

  Chance quirked his eyebrow in question, and Noah shook his head slightly. He had no idea who she feared, but he’d know before the night ended. He couldn’t protect her if he didn’t know what danger surrounded her. After dumping their own loads of wood in the woodbin, Chance and Noah followed Sera who veered into the shed this time. He watched as she competently filled the generator with fuel, then screwed the top back on the tank.

  Clearing his throat, Noah waited for her to acknowledge them again. When she didn’t respond, he rubbed his hand along his scalp, then down along his jaw. She was their mate. She shouldn’t be able to ignore them this easily. “What would you like us to do now?”

  When she looked at him in surprise, he could tell that she’d assumed he’d continue questioning her about her problems. He would. Later. Once they were settled inside the cabin while the storm raged around them. There would be plenty of time to get his answers then. But would the question come before or after he claimed her? He had no doubt in his mind that, before they left the cabin, the three of them would be bound as mates. He could smell her approaching heat and every minute in their presence made it grew closer. His cock was full, harder than he could ever remember.

  His wolf couldn’t wait to mount her, to lock his jaws on her shoulder and bite down as he entered her from behind. He could envision her, on all fours in front of her raging fire. A raw growl filled his chest. He didn’t know how he’d hold back if she outright refused them once her heat arrived if even now, hours or days beforehand, it took all his control not to demand her submission.

  Sera quirked her brows. “Really? You want to help me, huh? Why?”

  Noah could hear the doubt in her voice and he vowed to prove to her she could count on him, not only as a protector of the Supernatural but as a man, as her mate. If that meant being at her beck and call, so be it. Sera cocked her head to the side, nibbling her bottom lip as she considered his words. After a few moments, she met Chance’s gaze. “You feel the same?”

  Chance held his hands out by his sides, palms up. “Put us to work. It’s the least we can do to help since we barged in on you after telling us you weren’t up for company.”

  Noah scowled at Chance. He didn’t have to remind her of that. What was he thinking?

  When Sera smirked and a devilish glint entered her eyes, he was torn between wariness at what she planned and fascination at her quick change in attitude. Apparently, reminding Sera that they’d barged in on her run had been a wise decision after all.

  “I still need to check the pipes in the basement and fill some jugs of water in case we lose power and the well pump doesn’t work.”

  Noah reached for her hand. After giving it a light squeeze, he dropped it then clapped Chance on the back. “Well, you heard the lady. While Sera relaxes in the cabin, we’ll get to work. It shouldn’t take long at all.”

  “Sounds good,” Chance murmured. Turning to Sera, he reached out and tucked a few loose braids behind her ear. The wind had picked up and was whipping her hair in all directions. “While you’re resting, if you think of anything else that needs doing, let us know.”

  When Sera pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and slowly nodded, confusion evident in her eyes, Noah wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort her. Had no one taken care of her before? From her reaction, he’d have to say no. Well, she’d soon learn that he and Chance would do anything for her, anything at all. She’d only need ask.

  * * * *

  Chance watched Sera’s every expression as they chased across her face. In minutes, he witnessed a wide range of emotions from surprise to wariness, defiance to fierce interest. He could spend hours, days even, just watching her face. Her eyes had lit up when he’d reminded her they’d joined her run uninvited. For a split second, he could practically feel her mind churning with possibilities. He’d be worried if he didn’t believe in his gut that she wasn’t normally a vindictive person.

  “The door to the basement is in the kitchen.”

  “That’s fine. Go put your feet up. We’ll take care of things.” Chance could see the exhaustion lining her face. She’d worked the late shift last night, then ran through the woods until dawn. She looked dead on her feet. Not that he was stupid enough to tell her that.

  She looked like she was about to protest, then she must have changed her mind because she shrugged before heading back to the house. She never looked back.

  Once she closed the door behind her, Chance raised his gaze toward the sky. Despite the fact that dawn had long since passed, dark clouds billowed above their head. He could taste the snow on the wind, knew they were in for more than a simple winter storm.

  “Looks like the storm is just about on top of us,” Noah pointed out.

  “Do you think she’ll kick us out into the storm after we finish the chores she’s given us?”

  Noah shrugged, then slowly headed toward the cabin. “No idea. Before we go
in there, did you notice anything different about Sera’s scent?”

  Smiling, Chance let out a gusty sigh. “Oh, yeah. The longer we spoke with her, the richer her scent grew. It wasn’t just arousal. I bet money she is due to go into heat soon.”

  “That’s what I thought,” Noah agreed. “I don’t know if she’s ready for cubs yet, but the thought of her round with our litter made my dick hard enough to pound nails.”

  Chance wiped his suddenly sweaty palms on his jeans. Swallowing past the lump in his throat, Chance followed Noah into Sera’s den. “Let’s do this. The sooner she knows and understands she can depend on us, the sooner she’ll begin to trust us.”

  Automatically scanning the cabin for their mate, Chance smiled when he spotted her. Sitting at the table, her chin resting on her palm, Sera had fallen asleep.

  He’d known she was exhausted, but he hadn’t expected her to fall asleep so damn quickly. Nodding off while they stood outside showed an intrinsic level of trust that Chance hadn’t expected—not yet anyway.

  Noah snickered. “She can’t kick us out if she’s sound asleep.”

  Chance smiled. “I suggest we put her to bed and see what we can do to prepare for the storm.”

  Noah turned around and headed back outside. Lowering his voice to a mere whisper, he said, “I’m going to call the sheriff’s office while you carry her to bed. I won’t rest easy until I know why those men were after her.”

  “Good idea.” While Noah went out to place his call, Chance made his way to Sera’s side. After ensuring she’d fallen into a deep sleep, he carefully lifted her into his arms, doing his best not to jostle her. When her unbound breasts pressed against his chest, he had to fight not to groan. If he didn’t put her down now, he wouldn’t be able to let her go.