A Mating of Convenience

by Elyce de Reefe

  A MATING OF CONVENIENCE

  Book IV

  The Rabbit River Saga

  - A Rabbit River Novella -

  By Elyce de Reefe

  Copyright © 2019 by Elyce de Reefe

  First electronic publication: November 2019

  Elyce de Reefe

  www.elycedereefe.com

  All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to my wonderful family which has been enormously encouraging and supportive throughout this process, and never once said, “What do you mean— you’re going to write a book?”

  To my favorite youngest child for always being ready to help me work through any plot difficulties I might have, especially the action scenes. And for your eager assistance with the naming of my characters – Jesse Wayne, for example. Even if it is because you think The Rabbit River Pack is a terrible name for werewolves. Your aid and genuine interest mean so much. Thank you.

  To my favorite oldest child, for listening to me talk endlessly about marketing and promotional strategies, always with helpful and encouraging comments such as “That sounds really cool, Mom. Good job.” And for listening to my stories of woe when the computer crashes, and pitching in when Photoshop just won’t do what I want. It really means a lot. Thank you.

  And to my darling husband for bringing me coffee and helping me figure out some of the finer details of the plot, such as just what the villains might be guilty of. And for reading my werewolf romance with an open mind, even though it’s about as far from your usual spy thrillers as one can get. And then proclaiming it “a real page turner!” High praise indeed. But most of all, for your love and support. Thank you.

  Chapter 1

  Nina stared up at the dark ceiling, wondering how her life had taken such a crazy turn. Her pulse had stopped racing, but it started up again every time she thought about just how precarious her situation was. Things were bad enough when she’d only been trying to develop some kind of experimental fertility drug and dealing with the types of people that brought her in contact with. But now—

  Now she was dealing with a whole different class of people. More dangerous, much more dangerous, than anything she’d encountered before. She peered through the darkened room, trying to make out the shape that lurked there. Him. Her captor. Boaz.

  What kind of name was Boaz, anyway? The rest of them had normal-sounding names. Lucas. Jesse. Dean. But Boaz? And the man was huge. Actually, they were all large. Dean was probably the smallest, at, she would guesstimate, just over six feet. And she was a doctor, so she was pretty good at guesstimating. Then there was Jesse, who was taller, probably about six-two, but leaner. And then there was Lucas, who was closer to six-four and broad. And then there was Boaz.

  Not that the man was superhuman—at least she didn’t think so—but he had to be at least six-five and probably two hundred and fifty pounds. Well-developed muscle over a large frame. It was more than intimidating. Especially since—

  Nina blew out a silent breath. She was not going to think about that. It was impossible. And she had yet to actually see it with her own eyes, so…

  You knew there was something radically different about their DNA. Don’t pretend otherwise. And you didn’t let that bother you when you were using it to create your serums.

  Of course, that was before she was trapped here in the same bedroom with one. Before another one had pointed a gun at her and threatened to kill her for knowing too much. It was almost like a bad gangster movie. Except not.

  The joke was that she knew nothing about them. And didn’t care to, either. She just needed the enzymes she could create with their DNA. The idea that those who possessed said DNA would take exception to her research had never crossed her mind. Marten had asked for her help, after all.

  And he had been only too happy to see she had a steady supply of the necessary DNA, provided she didn’t ask too many questions. And she was fine with that. She didn’t need to know the answers. Like how they could even exist. You don’t know it’s true, Nina. You don’t actually have proof. But the evidence was pretty damning. She had operated on a wolf today. That one of them had insisted was his sister.

  Her heart started racing again as the idea tried to form in her mind—and she did her best to reject it—again. But really, what were the other possibilities? What other explanation could there be?

  I have to get out of here.

  The noises in the house had ceased some time ago. Nina cautiously pushed back the covers and slid her feet to the floor. She tried in vain to make out the black hulking shape on the couch. She should have worn clothes to bed instead of these pajamas, but unfortunately, that had not been an option. He would have been suspicious of that for certain. The man didn’t say much, but he watched her like a hawk. So when she’d gone into the bathroom earlier to get ready for bed, she’d settled on these.

  She made a face. She wished she had something darker than this light-blue cotton tank and matching pants. The pants had little white dogs on them. Noiselessly, she stood and began creeping across the floor toward the closet. Her heart rate sped up, drumming in her ears as she padded barefoot over the carpet. She snagged her sneakers and the pair of socks she’d set out earlier and turned to head back across the room without putting them on. She was halfway to the door when the dark lump on the couch shifted, coming upright.

  Nina’s heart nearly stopped. She froze. He just sat there unmoving. Watching her. She imagined she could see the glitter of his eyes in the darkness. They stayed like that for one long, silent moment. It reminded her of the way he’d demanded she hand over her phone earlier that morning. He’d just stood there like some kind of giant immovable object, bent on bending her to his will. The brief confrontation flashed through her mind, making her stomach clench tighter.

  “Phone,” he said, holding out his hand. The one word was clearly meant to be an order.

  “No,” she said, trying to keep the quaver from her voice.

  He waited, not moving, for several long moments.

  “We can wrestle for it,” he offered finally.

  Nina handed over her phone. Thank God it was password protected and he couldn’t read the text she’d been trying to send.

  “Going somewhere?” he asked now.

  She fought a shiver at his deep voice coming out of the darkness at her. “Bathroom,” she said. This time her voice did shake, just slightly.

  “Through there.” He pointed at the door that led to the en suite. Back the way she’d come, next to the closet.

  Which she knew. And clearly he was aware of that, since he’d directed her there to shower earlier today after the surgery, and again later this evening, to prepare for bed. But she just nodded and switched directions. Her hands shook as she slipped inside and depressed the lock on the door.

  I have to get out of here!

  He was just too alert. Too big and silent—and scary—to face. Although, he’d been nothing but gentle with her so far. Careful, even, in the way he handled her. Putting her in the car, he’d easily contained her struggles, but ensured she didn’t hit her head. Then shepherding her to her apartment so she could pack a bag. She’d given up struggling by then, so he’d just kept one hand wrapped around her upper arm. She’d been surprised that they would let her do that, but it had been Boaz’s idea. She’d packed three bags, actually. Boaz had insisted. Still, there was no getting around the fact that he was one hundred percent in charge. And that he considered her his.

  “I claim her,” had been his exact words, in that deep grav
elly voice of his, before he stepped in front of the gun pointed at her chest and coaxed her into his arms. At the time, it had seemed like the safest place to be. Now? Now she wasn’t so sure about that. Because she had a pretty good idea what he expected of her. Not that he’d pushed her. Not yet. But it was coming. And there was no way she would even contemplate that. Whatever kind of creature he turned out to be.

  Nina ran the water in the sink and tried to think. Obviously there was nothing she could do tonight. She’d have to bide her time. Pretend to play along. Be fine with this whole charade. Because she was pretty sure that that Lucas fellow was more than willing to put a bullet in her if she gave him the least excuse. And he still had her gun.

  She turned off the faucet and tiptoed back to the bed. Boaz still hadn’t moved. “Goodnight,” she called softly, trying to pretend she was in control of this situation.

  “Night,” he answered.

  She settled under the covers and forced herself to close her eyes. You can do this. She had to. Her sister needed her. She willed herself to relax. She would need to be well-rested if she wanted any hope of escape. But it was a long time before sleep found her.

  Boaz stared through the darkness at the blanket shrouded form of Dr. Evans—Nina—and listened to her breathing settle back to more normal rhythms. She smelled of fear and determination. And… paradise. She smelled of that most of all.

  The determination he could appreciate; he was feeling pretty determined himself. The fear, not so much. It was completely understandable given the circumstances, but that didn’t mean he liked it. But a healthy dose of fear might keep her from doing something foolish. Dangerous. Like trying to escape. He was pretty sure it wouldn’t take much more than that for Lucas to decide that she was just too much of a threat.

  He’d have to stay close, make sure she never got the opportunity to get into trouble. Because he had no illusions that she had accepted her fate. She hadn’t. The whole sneaking through the room carrying her shoes was proof enough. But that was only natural. She was human after all. It would take time. He could wait. For someone who smelled like that? Yeah, he could wait.

  He settled back down onto the couch and listened to her soft breaths. It took a while, but eventually she drifted off to sleep. Boaz knew a thing or two about determination. For most of his adult life, he’d been resigned to the fact that he’d never find a mate. Not with the current birthrate problem. There just weren’t enough females. It took his older brother Aaron actually mating a witch—a human witch—to get Boaz to re-evaluate things. He had to admit it had taken him a while to wrap his mind around it, but seeing his brother so happy…

  It had gotten him thinking about humans in a whole new light. And his brother wasn’t the only one. Cray also had a human mate.

  Not that just any human would work. And no one could say for sure whether the bond would take. But you could tell which ones might. So he’d decided if one should happen to come along, well, he didn’t intend to hang back.

  And Maiden’s own, had she ever. Nina. Even her name was beautiful. Boaz was not the kind of man to spurn such a gift. Her scent alone had been driving him crazy for over a week now. Sweet, tangy orange and cinnamon spice. He’d been drawn to her from the beginning. He’d known. And that was before he laid eyes on her.

  Boaz shifted on the couch, remembering. Last night, that first sight of her had taken his breath away. Her scent had changed by then, too. Become more powerful—more fertile. So fertile, it was a little hard to concentrate on anything else.

  And she was beautiful. Tall and striking, with glossy dark hair and creamy skin. And her eyes. They were the deepest emerald green he’d ever seen. They’d been opened as wide as saucers behind her dark-rimmed glasses. In terror. It had taken all his powers of persuasion to get her to come to him. But she had. And she would accept him as her mate too. In time. It wasn’t like anything could happen until the new moon anyway.

  He settled more deeply into the couch. The first step was to earn her trust. He just wasn’t quite sure how he was going to do that. Boaz didn’t have a lot of experience with humans.

  Chapter 2

  Nina woke to the smell of coffee. She opened her eyes and for one disorienting moment wasn’t sure where she was. Then it all came back. Marten’s phone call warning her that he thought his rivals might be planning an attack on her lab. Her newly-outfitted—by the skin of her teeth—lab, since the last one had burned to the ground with all its expensive equipment. There was no way in hell she could afford for anything to happen to the new one, so she’d set off to defend it, with her father’s chrome-plated six shooter, if need be. She never expected to actually have to use it.

  And she’d been sitting there trying to stay awake, going over her notes again, hoping to figure out what she was doing wrong, when she heard it. The soft click of the back door opening. It was almost three in the morning. A sudden jolt of fear flooded her. They were coming.

  She pulled the heavy gun from her purse. Her heart pounded in her ears, drowning out any noise the thieves might be making. She sucked in a deep breath and crept across the room as quietly as possible. Standing just behind the door, she held completely still. She listened intently but couldn’t hear anything above the sound of her harsh breathing. The beating of her heart. Could they hear it?

  The seconds seemed to tick on like hours. She tried her best to slow her breathing, but it felt like she was running a marathon. And then, slowly, the door began to swing open.

  Nina thought she might have a stroke. Her blood was pumping so hard she couldn’t believe she wasn’t dead on the floor. But this was her one chance. Go, Nina! Go!

  She jumped out from behind the door with both feet, bringing the gun up to point at the intruder. She had a momentary flash of a tall, lanky man with tawny, shoulder-length hair. She was just getting the gun centered on his chest when his hand whipped up and knocked it right out of her hand. It was laughably easy.

  And just like that, her grand defense of her laboratory was over.

  Nina stood there in shock, trying not to hyperventilate. The man seemed to sway towards her. Her stomach clenched and she braced herself for what was coming, but he shifted his weight and took a quick step back. Almost like he was afraid of her. She was still blinking in surprise when a second man entered the room. Before she could even get her brain working again, he leaned down and scooped up the gun.

  He seemed impossibly tall, towering over her with unruly dark hair and imposing broad shoulders. He might have been almost handsome if he didn’t look like he was ready to tear her limb from limb. He held the gun casually, pointed toward the floor. It looked almost small in his hand.

  “Dr. Evans,” he growled.

  A chill went straight through her. Somehow his slight French accent made the statement more sinister. The fact that he knew her name was bad enough, but combined with the deep guttural tone of his voice—

  What do they want from me? Could these people really be corporate raiders? Her research was valuable enough, if anyone had gotten wind of it. She knew pharmaceutical companies didn’t necessarily play by the rules, but…

  “H-how did you know my name?” she stammered.

  Out of the corner of her eye she saw a third man enter the room, but her attention was riveted on the man holding her gun. She took a tiny step back and then another, trying to get as far from that gun as possible.

  “I know all about you,” the dark-haired man said, the threat in his voice freezing her in place. He cocked the gun with a click of finality. Nina’s heart almost stopped. “Unfortunately, you know all about us too. Which is a problem.”

  Nina’s mind raced. Wait. This was about them?

  “I don’t know what you mean…” she stammered. “I don’t even know who you are.”

  “And yet, here you are, waiting for us. With this.” He gestured toward her with the gun. His quiet menace was more bone chilling than if he were shouting. “Do you care to tell me how that is?”


  “I—I…” She swallowed, trying desperately to think of something to say. “My—” What could she call Marten? Her source? “Um… associate called and said there might be trouble.” She glanced quickly around, wondering if she could make a run for it, or at least try to dive behind one of the lab tables, but they were too far away.

  “My last lab burned to the ground. I… couldn’t take the chance…” She trailed off as the obvious implications popped into her mind. Her eyes swept the three of them, the lean dark-blond who’d knocked the gun from her hand, the tall, broad one with darker hair, who’d picked it up. And the third man.

  Her eyes opened in surprise, taking him in for the first time. He was— big. Massive. Taller and broader than both men. And blonder. Golden blond.

  She blinked, trying to focus, her glance sweeping over the three of them once more. “That was you guys?” It was barely a whisper. The horror of the realization was clear in her voice.

  “Unfortunately, your knowledge of our People, of our genetics, is forbidden.”

  Nina’s mind spun. Their genetics? They were Marten’s rivals. Did that mean they had the same pre-human DNA she had been working with? Thoughts chased themselves through her brain, trying to rearrange her understanding of the situation. Then he raised the gun—pointing it straight at her. Everything else flew right out of her head.

  “You’re— you’re going to kill me?” Her voice was shrill. Almost unrecognizable.

  “Lucas,” the third man said, his voice a low, disapproving growl. The man with the gun shifted his gaze to the speaker but didn’t lower the gun.

  “I claim her,” the blond man continued, his deep voice heavy with conviction.

  A shiver went through her. She watched, transfixed, as he stepped in front of the gun.

  “Come here, honey. Nobody wants to kill you.” The timbre of his voice was deep and soothing. Coaxing even. Nina felt tears prick her eyes. What is happening?