He was hers forever.
* * *
Joss nipped at Hunter’s lips, giving as well as he gave. Anticipation raised goose bumps up and down her arms and legs. She tilted her head back and threaded her fingers through his hair. A growl vibrated through him, sending shockwaves of heat whipping through her.
Joss dragged her lips across his stubbled jaw as he pulled her knee up to his hip. The head of his cock prodded against her entrance. Joss bit down on her lower lip to hold back her cry.
Hunter leaned down and kissed her throat. “Don’t hold back… mate.”
Holy cannoli, that word. The word. The biggest, most important, looming large, written across the sky, word. Her badger bounced through her head, all memories of being a crouching, hissing menace vanished at letters put together in a magic order.
Mate.
Yeah. She’d be his mate. Just as he’d be hers.
Her moan rolled through her just as he sank down her body, letting her leg fall over his shoulder.
Tease. Tease!
Joss sucked in a gasp when Hunter’s tongue trailed a line of fire from one hip to the other. Strong hands held her steady even when she started to shake. Each trembling breath gulped down more of his scent. All the water in the world couldn’t wash away the fresh rain and leather that made up him. Nor could it hide the musky man scent that tightened her core. He wanted her. His words said for pretty reasons, but that delectable scent admitted something primal.
Her hands landed on his shoulders the moment he slid his fingers into her center. The slow pump of his fingers rattled a growl in her chest. She rocked her hips against him to urge more from him, eyes sliding shut. Every thrust pushed her closer to the edge of delirium.
Hunter smiled against her skin. Intoxicating man. Sexy man. Did he know what those hidden grins meant to her, or how they warmed her heart? They were his and his alone, not something he put on to make her feel better. They simply were.
He licked a circle around her clit and Joss forgot what words meant. Flicks and lapping, while his fingers mercilessly stroked, sent a tingling wave of awareness through her limbs. Water still raining down on her only intensified the sensations whipping through her body until the world melted away to nothing but Hunter. He was life. The rest of her life.
He was everything.
Joss struggled to catch her breath. She dug her nails into his shoulders and hair, anywhere she could reach, and threw her head back in a hoarse scream.
Hunter was on his feet in an instant. He picked her up like she weighed nothing, wrapping her legs around his waist and shoving the curtain aside. His mouth closed over hers just as he slung a towel over her back.
Hunter didn’t stop until he reached his bed. He sank to his knees and settled her, still wrapped in the towel, against the mattress.
“What I wouldn’t give to get this as a picture,” he drawled.
“I’m a mess,” she protested weakly.
His eyelids drooped, but didn’t hide the flash of fiery gold. That look consumed her. He didn’t see someone with an extra few pounds, or hair in knots, or at a crossroads in her life. He saw someone who survived everything tossed at her and came out on the other side.
She liked the person he made her feel she could be.
“Exactly. A beautiful mess.” He fell forward and slowly sipped her lips. “My mess.”
Warmth spread through her heart. “And you’re mine.”
He’d tried to tell her that same thing from the very beginning and she’d refused to hear it. Her bruised, broken heart erected a wall to protect her. It was time to follow through on the decision she made at the wedding. She picked him, and there was no more losing out on love.
Her badger rumbled agreement. Hunter belonged to them. They’d gone through the trials to prove it. Now they just needed the mark to prove to everyone else.
Hunter pressed forward, his weight settling against her. An inch, then more. The slow crawl of stretching and driving deep brought her breath in quick pants all over again. She butterflied her knees to cradle him closer, but it wasn’t enough. Wouldn’t be enough until—
Hunter retreated and pushed back with a groan.
His mouth crashed against hers, kisses going rough right along with his thrusts. Joss loved that about him, loved that he could be laughing and gentle one minute and claiming her thoroughly the very next. He was a tough, coarse gentleman at heart.
One hand wrapped around the back of her neck. His free hand gripped her breast, plucking and kneading until she writhed under him. Joss mewled into his kiss, feeling the edge of pleasure cutting through her.
Droplets of water from his hair hit her skin. Her own hair shifted and clung whenever they moved. The chill from the remnants of their shower contrasted deliciously with the heat flaming off their bodies. She was surprised they didn’t sizzle.
He surged forward, driving the pressure building inside her to new heights. His arms shook where he held himself above her, gold eyes watching her with intently and daring her to look away. She couldn’t. She didn’t dare. Even with her release bubbling through her, waiting for the final moment, she could hardly even blink. He held her in rapture.
He stayed deep, bucking shallow and hitting her clit.
“Hunter.”
The word sounded thick and inhuman. Needy. Demanding. Full of her badger.
A smug grin hitched his lips. “Do it, darlin’. Come for your mate.”
“Fuck,” she whimpered. The curse tasted right on her tongue.
She arched into him and felt his mouth on the base of her neck.
Yes. More.
Sharp pain eased with the blinding bliss of her release. At the same time, Joss turned her head and bit down.
A floodgate of ecstasy opened. This was what she was meant for. The love she thought she had was nothing in comparison to the bone-deep instincts that marked Hunter as the one and only. He filled the entirety of her heart.
Hunter groaned, the sound loud and low against her shoulder. He threw his head back, the sting immediately gone from her shoulder. His neck and shoulders tensed, muscles standing out against his skin, as his throbbed release filled her with warmth. His movement stuttered, slowed, then picked up again as he stretched her pleasure out until the last of their aftershocks faded.
He collapsed over her, then rolled to the side and brought her against him. She loved that, too. He didn’t push away and make some excuse to end their connection. He wanted more of it.
A proper mate.
Her badger twittered in her head and a tiny purr of pleasure entered the air.
Against her neck, she felt her mate—eek!—grin.
Hunter’s arms tightened around her.
“Never letting you go, crazy badger.”
“Good. Because there’s no going back now. You’re stuck,” she teased with a smile.
“Good.” He repeated and pressed his lips to the back of her neck. “There’s no one else I want.”
Joss’s heart swelled. She believed him.
Epilogue
Holy cannoli-macaroni-frijole.
Joss stared at the pregnancy test.
Son of a biscuit.
They’d decided to try, but she thought they’d have more time.
She should have suspected. Her sense of smell and taste had been off for days. Too many spices to one meal, much less in another… Luckily they weren’t due for guests and she’d only ruined her reputation with the rest of the clan, but that seemed large enough of a deal to start freaking out over her place on the ranch, in Bearden, and the general rest of the world.
Breathe, Joss.
There was nothing to worry about. So it was a bit earlier than expected, sure, but it’d make one heck of a groom’s gift.
Also, the Rhodes family could suck it, she was going to be a great mom.
A timid knock sounded on the door. “Joss? You ready?”
Right. She could gloat later. She had something to do first.
&n
bsp; She flounced out of the bathroom and across the room to fling open the door.
Tansey took a step back. “You look amazing.”
Joss gestured down at her dress. Beaded lace clung to her curves and the hem cut off just above her ankles. While the shirt swayed around her legs, it was nothing like the huge monstrosity she’d needed a bag to use the bathroom at her first wedding. She and Tansey had joked about pairing it with cowboy boots and a flannel shirt, but she’d opted instead for a simple updo and a pair of light blue flats.
“It’s not too much is it? It’s too much. I should have picked something else.”
“Stop. Stop! You look beautiful, and I’m sure he’ll think so, too.” Tansey shrugged. “And if he doesn’t, we can always kill him.”
A tiny growl trickled out of Joss’s throat. “You are not going to kill my mate.”
And father of her cubs.
“Just a suggestion.” Tansey raised her hands. She dropped them quickly and broke into a grin. “Your call here, boss. Everyone has taken their places.”
“Best not keep my admirers waiting.” She picked up her bouquet of wildflowers and gave herself one last check in the mirror.
It was time.
Outside, Ethan waited. His horse, Patches, was hitched to a wagon sometimes used for work on the ranch. Bales of hay lined the inside to form benches. Ethan straightened as soon as they appeared in the doorway and offered a hand to them both before hopping back into the driver’s seat.
It wasn’t a fairytale horse and carriage, but it was perfect.
Joss’s hands shook as the wagon bumped around the house. Hunter’s friends—hers now, too—waited under the big tree a distance from the main house. She recognized the firefighters from in town, as well as their mates, including one that she’d seen being dressed down the night of the big SEA raid. A couple of the local cops were there, too, and Gideon, the owner of The Roost. Even the lion pride from the next ranch over huddled near the back, looking less surly than usual.
Hunter’s biggest request was to hold the ceremony there, and after a quiet word with Ethan, he received his wish. It’d been late at night that he told Joss the significance of the spot. Ethan’s mother and father spent every evening decompressing from the day together under the tree, and since Tansey came into the picture, Ethan carried on the tradition with his mate. Since he’d given up his life in Texas and made a new one in Montana, Hunter wanted to honor those same traditions.
Noel stood under the tree with Hunter at his side. Both men were dressed in suits, the same they’d worn to the very first Black Claw wedding event. Joss sighed at how sharp they both looked, and thanked her lucky stars for the good genes Hunter had inherited.
With Ethan and Tansey’s help, she stepped off the back of the wagon.
“Are you ready for this?” Tansey asked in a whisper.
Joss stared straight ahead. Hunter ducked his face to hide a smile as big as hers felt. “When you know, you know.”
The biggest surprise came from seeing her mother striding up the aisle from her spot behind hulking figures in the first row.
Joss’s eyes widened, and she whipped her gaze to Hunter. A lazy smile lifted his lips, and he shrugged.
Ethan linked his arm with Tansey’s to lead her down the aisle. Tansey stepped to one side and Ethan the other to take their spots as the tiny bridal party.
Joss’s mother waited until the others were several steps away before she said anything. “Hi, honey.”
“What are you doing here?” Joss asked.
“Your mate called,” she didn’t even stumble over the word, “and explained everything. Why you came here, how you were working to figure out your inner animal, how you really stepped up to do what made you happy. Then he said he wouldn’t dare betray you by asking me for your hand, but he’d love if I’d come to witness your happiness.”
Joss dabbed at her eyes. “He didn’t.”
“He did. I couldn’t miss my daughter’s real wedding.” Her mother’s eyes shined just as much and she nodded. “I’m so proud of you, Joss. Your dad would be, too. This is what you were meant for, not those stuffy old biscuits.”
Even though she could barely feel her badger in her current state, Joss felt a part of her settle like her fur was finally brushed down in the correct direction.
“Come on, my sweet girl. I’d be honored if you let me walk you down the aisle.”
Not trusting herself enough to answer, Joss nodded.
Her mother held out her arm formally and Joss took it. Her ears pounded with a rush of blood and she knew her cheeks were as red as fire. The day was even more special than she could have hoped.
At the end of the aisle, her mother left her in front of Noel with a final pat on the hand and Tansey stepped forward to take her bouquet.
“Do you like your surprise?” Hunter whispered.
“Love it.” She fought to keep the mischief off her face. “But I think I have you topped.”
His eyebrows shot up, but he didn’t get a chance to say anything. Noel gave them both stern looks. “Are you two ready?” he asked.
“Yes,” they answered together.
Their friends and family watched in rapt silence as Noel drew a braided cord from inside his jacket. He made a show of laying it over their hands and winding it around once.
“Hunter Shaw and Joclyn Warren, will you share in each other’s hardships and do all you can to support your partner?”
Joss couldn’t look away from her mate, and soon, her husband. They had so much to look forward to. So many happy moments, and sad ones, too. But she knew they would make it through each and every one, and come out better for it.
At the same moment they answered, “I will.”
The cord twisted around their hands again. “Will you share in each other’s laughter and do all you can to bring smiles to your lives?”
Smiles and laughter were easy. He’d even insisted on her sleeping in the main house the night before their wedding, just so he could throw rocks at the window and act like a sneaky teen when he climbed up to give her one last kiss as a single woman.
They answered again, “I will.”
“Will you use the heat of your anger to forge new strength in your union?”
They’d been tried and tested in their lives before they met, and again after. What didn’t kill them, only made them stronger. And ornerier, she could just imagine Hunter saying.
“I will,” they said.
“Will you honor each other from this day until your last?”
The answer was simple.
“I will,” Joss vowed.
“I will,” Hunter promised.
Noel’s eyes rimmed with tears and he cleared his throat. “Hunter Shaw and Joclyn Warren, I pronounce you married.”
Hunter pecked her lips once, twice. The teasing turned to sweet sips, moving slowly over her and melting her against him. He parted her with his tongue and turned a chaste show into something naughtier, something more them.
Polite claps devolved into cheers, then outright whoops and yells. Joss’s cheeks blazed by the time Hunter eased back from the kiss and smiled down at her.
“My wife. My mate,” he murmured.
“Husband,” she whispered back.
He grabbed her hand and turned them to face the crowd. Hunter bumped her shoulder with his own. “What surprise do you have for me?”
Joss drew his hand over her stomach. “This.”
Hunter’s eyes went wide, then gold, then back to his human green-brown. His mouth dropped open. “You’re serious?”
Joss nodded.
“You’re going to have our cub? Now?”
“Well, not now. There’s all the morning sickness and cravings to get through first, and don’t forget the back and foot rubs—”
“Joss!” Hunter wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off the ground. His lips crashed against hers again, rougher than before. He barked a laugh when he pulled away and settled her back on he
r feet. Finally, he let his hands fall gently over her stomach and stared with complete wonder shining in his eyes. “You’re going to be the best mother.”
“You’re going to make a great dad.”
She’d been lost when she set foot in the shifter town. With the help of a good man and the people he surrounded himself with, she found her footing. They weren’t opinions and ideas handed to her, but ones she found on her own. Hunter, and the rest of the Black Claw clan, propped her up when she needed it the most, and then let her walk on her own.
Hunter truly saw her, and still picked her. Joss forced her lungs to work and her heart to beat. Her body buzzed with the happiness reverberating through her.
Bearden was magic, and she’d claimed a piece of it for herself.
* * *
Thank you for reading Spurred Fate! I hope you loved Hunter and Joss!
The Black Claw clan will return with Breaking Fate!
Next in Series
Breaking Fate: Black Claw Ranch Book Three
Small towns aren't for her, but he could be.
Sloan Kent believes in justice, for all. Humans and shifters alike. But when she's assigned to a new, shifter-run, Supernatural Enforcement Agency squad, she's suddenly regretting being open minded. Small town drama runs wild in Bearden and she doesn't want any part of it. She's just there to do her job… until she meets Lorne Bennett, that is.
Hard muscles ripple underneath his button-up, and that cowboy hat doesn't hide his piercing dark eyes. She knows better than to get involved with a bear, but the heart wants what it wants. Even when the heart wants a broody shifter she knows is bad news bears, literally.
He likes his women feisty and wild.
Her having a gun is just a bonus.
Spurred Fate: Book Two: Black Claw Ranch Page 18