Shifters of the Wellsprings: The Complete Paranormal Collection

by Leela Ash

  Brawny arms closed around her, folding her into his passionate, unbreakable grip. Once more, she twined her arms around his neck and kissed him, her breasts pressed close to the wet curls of his chest. Beneath the water, she felt his manhood. Eager, aroused, nuzzling against her most private parts. Fire blazed through her at its insistent touch. A hunger, a yearning, like nothing she had ever felt.

  One hand slid down the soft, wet skin of her back. Caught in his arms, she felt a hand explore her body. The round curves of her buttocks. The flat lines of her thighs. Inquisitive fingers traced a path across them, kneading, massaging.

  His other hand joined the exploration. They paused, cupping the globes of her buttocks. Then, with a swift, fluid motion, he lifted her from her feet.

  Held, she floated. Free, yet somehow helpless, a delicious, intoxicating set of opposites. Paige surrendered herself to it. To his strength and power. To trust. As he pulled her near, she wrapped her long legs around his hips.

  Deep, shuddering breaths shook his broad chest as he fought to rein his passion in. The rock-like shaft of his manhood pressed between her legs, eager, no longer willing to be denied. Rex lifted her, staring up with adoration. Then slowly, gently, he lowered her onto himself.

  She felt him slide inside her. Filling her, taking her. More and more until she took the full length of his enormous cock.

  A moan escaped her, a primal sound of animal need and her legs tightened, pulling him deeper into her secrets.

  That cry unleashed his Bear.

  With a roar of delight, he threw control to the wind and surrendered to his passion.

  Hard, sure thrusts sent his cock gliding through her willing body. Each one stoked the fire blazing within her. Paige moaned, urging him on with her wordless, aching need. Blind with hunger, she clawed at his shoulders, his short hair. With each stroke, her legs squeezed tight, joining him in his fierce hunger.

  Tremors rippled through his muscled body as he fought to hold himself back from the edge, unwilling to surrender completely until he was sure that she had reached the pinnacle.

  When she did, she threw her head back and wailed, a cry of pure pleasure offered to the moon above. Hearing her, the last of his restraint shattered. Faster, harder, the thrusts came. Each lash drove her ecstasy higher, held it for yet one more second. She found herself floating in his arms, filled with him, feeling that moment of wordless delight linger on and on.

  With a rush, he came, filling her with his seed. A groan of fulfillment slipped from his lips. One moment longer, he held her. Sated at long last. Feeling beautiful, loved, fulfilled in a way that no lover had ever offered. Reveling in the fading touch of that ecstasy.

  Gently he pulled himself free. Paige found her footing again and glanced up at him, proud and dazed.

  Above them the moon gazed down, beaming its approval.

  Chapter 7.

  When Paige awoke the next morning, the bed was empty. Warmth lingered on the sheets where Rex had slept; he hadn’t been gone long. It was early. She stretched her hand out, fingers spread, enjoying the fading trace of his presence.

  How long had it been since she made love? Sure, she’d had sex with Leonard. But that wasn’t the same thing at all. ‘Love’ with Leonard meant waiting long hours, alone, unsure if he’d be able to make love when he got back from the bar… or if he’d be so drunk that he’d stagger to bed and pass out, face down in the pillows. If he did manage to stay awake, sex was quick and fumbling. A clumsy joining that satisfied his needs, yet left her aching and hungry.

  Last night, finally, that hunger was sated. That deserved the phrase ‘making love’. Passion, longing, desire. Raised to a fever pitch she’d never felt. Every promise fulfilled, utterly and completely. A lover who made her feel like a woman, a creature of beauty and mystery. Rex had adored her, devoured her with a hunger that matched her aching needs.

  Yet, as she reluctantly slipped out of bed and found yesterday’s clothes, doubts remained. Rex was her boss. That was kind of creepy. Paige wasn’t even sure she wanted to be in a relationship now, so soon after fleeing Leonard. And there were red flags too. The way Rex tossed back so much scotch without flinching. The realization that she was just a babysitter, not the type of woman that a millionaire developer fell for. The fact that Bears weren’t safe–as yesterday proved. Did she really want to expose her son to things like that blob?

  Only one thing was clear to her.

  I can’t laugh at Judy for running off to Denver with some guy from a party! I’m as hopeless as she is.

  Time to stop over-thinking this. Paige stepped out of the bedroom to see what the day would bring.

  Rex lounged in his study scanning email, a steaming mug of coffee beside him. Morning sunlight cast a golden glow across his brown hair, raising an echo of last night’s desire. But as he glanced up at her, the coolness in his face chilled her.

  “Good morning Miss Hall.”

  So that was how it was. “Good morning Mr. Fairburn.”

  Immediately, he shook his head. “Paige. Sorry, we’re a bit beyond titles now.”

  “We are.” She smiled softly, hoping that she would break the sheen of frost that cooled the room.

  Rex only grew more distant. “Look, I’m sorry about last night. I took advantage of you and I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “No, you didn’t.” A dull grief settled over her as she felt the night’s silly dream die. “I wanted it too.”

  “You need to know that I’m not looking for a relationship.”

  “Neither am I,” she assured him. She wasn’t sure that that was true, but saying it made it feel right.

  The chill in the room faded as he sighed with relief. “Good. I’m relieved that we’re on the same page. I just didn’t want any misunderstandings.”

  “Last night was fun.” What a shallow, trivial way to describe the most ecstatic night of her life! Yet Paige forced the words out. “I know it’s not going to happen again, though.”

  Rex nodded. For one moment, they stood, wrapped in an awkward silence. Finally, he cleared his throat and asked, “Would you like some coffee?”

  “Yes, please.”

  And with that dull, boring question, life fell back into its depressing rut. Time to face facts. No millionaire lover would sweep her off her feet. She was a house cleaner and a babysitter. No more Shifters and magic for her.

  And no more danger. Remember that. You have to think of Jake.

  Caffeine helped her mind throw off the last mists of sleep and ridiculous dreams. As she sipped, Rex explained the day’s plan. They’d meet Danielle and the Donnellys out by Sweetwater and head to the ruins. At the first sign of danger, the Dragon would get her out to safety.

  “That’s fine.” Danger wasn’t as scary when it was aimed at her, rather than her son.

  The kids would stay here, under the care of Mrs. Gordon.

  Her supervisor? That felt like biting tin foil.

  When she winced, Rex shrugged. “Sorry. I really am hard up for decent sitters. She’s the only person I could get on short notice.”

  Great. Now everyone at Ancient Ways would know she’d slept with the boss. Sadly, she didn’t have any other suggestions. Judy was still in Denver and she didn’t know many people here.

  “There’s one other thing.” Rex pulled a thick envelop out of his desk and handed it to her.

  Inside were hundred dollar bills. Twenty or thirty of them.

  Nausea twisted Paige’s guts. She flung the envelope back onto his desk, cheeks blazing. “I don’t want your money.”

  “Don’t be silly,” the Bear growled. He retrieved the envelope and held it out once more. “You need this.”

  Paige back away. “I told you that I wanted last night too. You don’t need to pay me.”

  His eyes widened in horror, a look of shock so profound that it dulled the sharp edge of her outrage. “No! That’s not what this is! I didn’t mean… I’m not trying to pay you for… for anything. But you mentione
d that you were having money troubles and I want to help.”

  She folded her arms across her chest. “I prefer to earn my money.”

  And still he stood there, waving that wad of cash at her. “Dammit, woman, don’t be so proud.”

  All that did was make her chin rise. “When you’re poor, pride and honor are all you’ve got. I’m not giving them up.”

  “I know. I wasn’t born rich.” His arm fell to his side, but he didn’t let go of the envelope. “I started out working at a food cart when I was a teen. Saved up enough to buy my own cart… then a restaurant… then a rental property. And, well, it went from there.” Calm and level, he met her gaze. “But I’m no stranger to hard work and the strength it takes to pull yourself up by your bootstraps.”

  “Then you know why I can’t accept that.”

  “I won’t try to force you to take it,” he said. Ignoring the fact that that was exactly what he was doing! “But look at this from my point of view. I know you’re struggling. I know I can help you without any effort—this money doesn’t mean anything to me. Yet you won’t let me help.”

  “Do you hand out thousands of dollars to every poor stranger you meet?”

  “You’re not a stranger.” A heat entered his words, a distant echo of last night’s passion. “I admit I don’t want a girlfriend. I don’t even know you well. But I do care for you.”

  One word, one tiny confession of feelings, and her traitorous heart melted.

  “What I saw yesterday told me everything I need to know about you. You’re brave and smart. You’re a fantastic mother, a woman who would die to save innocent children. You have the soul of a mother Bear, even if you aren’t a Shifter. I admire you, and I would consider it an honor if you would let me help you.”

  Kind words didn’t change anything; charity was still a hand-out. Yet looking at him, seeing the kindness and affection in his eyes, Paige felt her resistance crumble. “Well it… it would help, I admit. Moving was expensive. And we had to leave without most of our things, so…”

  Rex held the envelope out again. This time she took it. “Someday I’m going to ask you what happened. Why you had to flee your last home. But,” he sighed, “we’ve got enough on our plate today. Let’s take care of them first, shall we?”

  When Mrs. Gordon arrived to watch the kids, her supervisor was every bit as shocked and titillated as she’d feared. To add to her anguish, Jake hated to be left with strangers and promptly melted down. His teary eyes followed her as they drove away, filling Paige with guilt.

  If there was any chance of meeting another blob, though, she was keeping her son far away.

  The Donnellys waited at the Sweetwater trailhead, sipping coffee and munching on donuts. With everyone here, the group headed out across the desert. The trail ended at the little swimming hole. Sometime during the night, raccoons had discovered the remains of their picnic lunch. Plastic plates and bits of birthday cake lay scattered about.

  Paige’s nose wrinkled. Good thing she hadn’t wanted any leftovers! Yesterday’s ‘monster attack’ might have erased the memory of Jake’s terrible ‘party’… but it certainly didn’t improve the day!

  As Finn collected the basket and blanket, Paige surveyed the countryside to get her bearings. “Ridge with a funny rock… gully to the left… okay, this way guys!”

  With that, she headed out into the trackless wilderness.

  The look of shock on Rex’s face almost made her laugh. “Uh, where’s the trail?”

  “There isn’t one.”

  “Then how do you know where to go?”

  “Jake and I visited it a couple times.”

  Bree and Finn seemed as puzzled as the Bear. “How could you even know it’s out here?” the Hare asked.

  “That’s what our family does for fun: we look for old ruins.”

  “You wander around the desert. With your son.” Rex clearly doubted her sanity.

  “With my son. And topo maps, GPS, a compass, and tons of water. Mostly, we follow gullies like this one. They’re signs that there used to be water here. And where there’s water, there’s life. All Ancestral Puebloan sites were near water.”

  “So, you’re an archeologist?” Bree asked.

  “Not a real one, no. I never went to college. But I’ve always adored Puebloan ruins. That’s why Jake and I moved out here. My parents took me to Mesa Verde when I was a kid and I’ve loved them ever since.”

  The route up the gully was filled with rocks and gravel, making the footing treacherous. Silence fell as people minded their feet. A few minutes later, Paige pointed at a small landslide marked with footprints. “That’s how we get up.”

  A quick scramble brought them to a small plateau. Low stone walls, the remains of a little village, lay scattered about. “Not very impressive, but this is it.”

  Bree glanced about. “Is there a kiva here?”

  “Yup.” Once more, Rex seemed surprised by her knowledge. As if she wouldn’t know what an Ancestral Puebloan holy site looked like! “Over here.”

  When the Hare spotted the circular walls, her eyes lit up. “Ahah! This is an old one!”

  Paige started to step carefully over the walls when Rex caught her arm. “Keep back. If that thing came from here, it could be dangerous.”

  Oh, right. Reality came crashing back. They weren’t out on a weekend stroll. They were hunting monsters. And Bree and Danielle immediately confirmed Rex’s worries. “Magic,” both Hares blurted out, in unison. “Strong.”

  Mouth dry, Paige retreated to a rock and sat down.

  The four Shifters went to work. The Hares inched closer, staring and sniffing before each step. Dragon and Bear hovered a short distance behind, alert for any danger. A half hour passed before they crossed twenty feet, and the sun grew hot overhead.

  Finally, Bree gave the okay sign. “All clear. I don’t think it’s dangerous.”

  Curious, Paige drifted closer. The others clustered around something. Probably the sipapu, if she remembered the ruin right.

  “So, ladies, what are we looking at?” Finn glanced at the two Hares.

  “A gate,” Danielle replied. “A door to the Other Side.”

  Rex whistled. “So, sipapus are Wellsprings!” Paige wasn’t sure what that meant, but this didn’t seem like the time to ask.

  Bree shook her head. “Not exactly. Wellsprings allow magic to flow through. This thing doesn’t. In fact, there’s a faint flow into it.”

  “And those markings?” The Bear pointed down.

  The Hares traded glances then shrugged. “I don’t know,” Bree confessed. “I’m going to take some pictures and ask a friend who specializes in the archeology of magic. She may be able to decipher them.”

  As she did that, Rex waved Paige over. “Were these things here the last time you visited?”

  Stepping to his side, she glanced down at the sipapu, the ritual pit found in most kivas. Her stomach flopped when she said that no, it had been vandalized. Someone had scratched a rectangle on its bottom. Runes ringed it, and the sides of the box were slashed with dozens of short, straight lines.

  Worst of all was the color. “Is that blood?” she whispered.

  “I think so.”

  “No, none of this was here. This was just a hole two weeks ago.”

  “So, let me get this straight,” Rex said, his face grim. “Some time in the last two weeks, someone hiked out to an unknown Puebloan ruin. They carved this crap on it, reddened it with blood, and… what? Summoned a demon?”

  “A spirit,” Danielle corrected him. “Something from the Other Side.”

  The five of them stared at the defiled kiva until Finn cleared his throat. “Are there a lot of these ruins in the Four Corners region?”

  “Hundreds,” Rex said. “Maybe thousands.”

  The Dragon grimaced. “Most of them are known, though, right?”

  Paige shook her head sadly. “Nope. Very few, actually. The majority are just out there, somewhere.”

  “
Ah hell,” Finn groaned. “This is going to be a crap-ton of work.”

  Chapter 8.

  Rex and the Shifters might have a ton of work before them–but so did Paige. And it was crappy, soul-killing work.

  Despite the unnerving events of the weekend, Monday morning began like every other workday. Get up early and make breakfast for herself and a subdued, quiet Jake. Drop her son off with Judy (who gulped coffee at a tremendous rate and babbled endlessly about Denver). Then coax her battered Hyundai back onto the road, praying it wouldn’t be the car’s last trip.

  She parked in the back lot at Ancient Ways, in a distant corner where no wealthy patron would be affronted by the sight of her derelict car. Slipped in the rear door and checked in with housekeeping.

  As she’d feared, Mrs. Gordon waited for her. Lips pinched. Disapproval radiating from every line of her wrinkled face. “Miss Hall. You’re on time. How surprising. I feared your ‘big weekend’ might wear you out.”

  “No ma’am.” The insult stung, but Paige didn’t rise to the bait. Meek and quiet, she took her room assignments and headed out, pushing her cleaning cart before her.

  The morning passed slowly as she worked her way through an endless string of dirty rooms. Beds to make. Toilets to clean. Rugs to vacuum. Again and again, each room exactly like the other. Except for the handful that weren’t, where some guest had made a truly disgusting mess. Which she had to clean up.

  Room 415 was one of those rooms. The earthy scent of pot hit Paige as soon as she opened the door–onto a scene of devastation. Bottles lay scattered everywhere. Several had tipped over on the bureau, dribbling beer and whiskey down its side. Garbage and the remains of room service lay scattered about. Worst of all, a glance at the bathroom revealed that at least one person had missed the toilet entirely.

  Welcome to my life.

  Opening a window, Paige gritted her teeth and got to work. 415 was a horror and would throw her schedule completely off. But standing here gagging didn’t help.