by Cara Morgan
MAGGIE’S WOLVES
RED MOUNTAIN PACK: PART FOUR
Cara Morgan
Copyright 2015 Cara Morgan
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the author, except for the use of quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. All names, people, places and incidents are either used fictitiously or are products of the author’s imagination.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Excerpt: Part Five
About the Author
Copyright
Chapter One
Case nuzzled her neck, and Maggie lifted her chin to allow him better access. She could feel the weight of Eli’s gaze on her back, could scent his desire as strongly as she did Case’s. The leather crinkled as he shifted in his seat. This time she wanted Eli to watch. Case had given her so much last night—a safe space for her to explore her every desire, the bodies of his pack mates, his bed—and she wanted to give him something in return.
She didn’t think Case was as comfortable with sharing her as he’d have her believe. Maybe this was the way it’d always been—one female shifter taking multiple male mates—but that didn’t mean it was going to be easy for everyone involved. She’d been raised as a human in a society that would condemn such an arrangement. Case might have been raised by a pack to accept it. He’d urged her to accept it. But there was something in the way he watched her when she was with his pack mates that told her that acceptance didn’t always come easy. He was definitely the most possessive of her mates, and she’d have to respect that if they were all going to get along.
Case’s fingers slipped under the hem of her shirt, and her abdomen twitched at the gentle slide of his hand. He skimmed his open palms up her torso, tickling the edge of her ribs and then tracing the line of her bra with his thumbs. Stupid bra. She should have just left it off.
“The clasp is in the front,” she said.
“Hmm.” He caught the edge of her shirt in his teeth and pulled it up to expose her belly. When his mouth touched her skin, she moaned and arched her back, wanting more.
With a flick of his fingers, the bra fell open and her breasts spilled into warm, waiting hands. Case had hard hands, wide and roughly callused, but his touch was very careful. He massaged her gently, his thumbs stroking over her pebbled nipples and bringing them to painful attention. She wanted his mouth there. When she tangled her fingers in his hair to urge him closer, he lifted his face.
“These are magnificent, have I told you that?”
She squirmed on his lap, pressing herself against the solid ridge of his erection. “I think you have, actually.”
“Good. You should know how perfect you are.”
She wasn’t perfect. At least not out in the real world, she wasn’t. Out there she was too tall and too big. Too everything. It was only here that she fit in.
Case dipped his head to catch her nipple on his tongue. Closing his mouth over the tip, he sucked at her with a long, deep pull. Her hands fisted in his hair and he growled, a low, pleased sound that rumbled right through her, stirring the heat in her blood to a bright flame.
Case pushed her shirt up and she obediently lifted her arms so he could tug it over her head. His mouth returned to her breasts, licking and sucking at them until she thought she couldn’t stand it anymore. When she cried out and slipped her hand between her thighs to soothe the throbbing ache there, he gripped her hips and urged her to her feet.
“Take off your pants,” he said roughly. “Everything. You don’t need clothes while you’re here.”
She shrugged free of the bra that still hung from her arms and dropped it on the floor beside her shirt. Naked to the waist, she felt exposed. She glanced at the wall of windows and, as if he were able to read her mind, Case said, “No one will get close enough to see you. We’ll guard the property. We’ll guard you, with our lives if need be.”
“I don’t want that,” she said. “I wouldn’t want any of you to get hurt for my sake.”
That was at least part of the reason she’d come here willing to consider claiming strangers as her mates. Because she trusted Eli and Case and was already well on her way to loving them. She didn’t want them to get hurt, and casting anyone out of their pack would hurt them deeply. She definitely didn’t want anyone to lay down their life for her sake.
Case clearly wasn’t in a mood to argue about it. His hazel eyes glittered with wolflight as his gaze drifted down over her generous breasts and belly. He frowned when he reached her pants. “Take off your pants.”
Her wolf rose up with a growl and Maggie narrowed her eyes. She’d never responded well to orders. It was something that had driven her aunt to tears upon occasion. Willful, Tildy had called her. Ungrateful and half-wild. Maggie had done her best to repress those qualities, but for some reason—maybe because she knew Case would never actually hurt her—she didn’t feel the need to hide her true self any longer.
“You take your pants off,” she said. “I’m fine with being naked so long as I’m not the only one.”
“Maggie…” There was a note of warning in his voice, but his words faded when she crossed her arms over her chest.
Her breasts plumped beneath the pressure of her arms.
Case stared, and Eli swallowed a groan. She glanced over at Eli to give him a quick reassuring smile before turning back to face Case. She knew what she was doing. At least, she thought she knew what she was doing. Case had told her that they’d need to establish who was more dominant between them. She was just letting him know up front that she wasn’t folding without a fight.
A warning shot.
Case didn’t take it as a warning anything, or if he did, he wasn’t backing down either. He rose slowly to his feet and took a step toward her. She had to lock her muscles to keep from running. He wouldn’t hurt her, her human half said.
Her wolf wanted to run.
The wolf wanted Case to chase her. She wanted to see if he had the strength and speed to catch her. Pin her down. Overpower her completely. The wolf wanted to know who would win.
“You’re playing with fire,” Case said, his voice smooth and low. “You want what I can give you. I know that you do. Just take off your clothes, bend over the sofa, and I’ll give you what you need.”
He was upping the stakes. Bend over the sofa… She licked her lips and his gaze dropped to her mouth. A growl rose in his throat.
Well, if that was how it was going to be.
Turning on her heel, she took off at a dead run. Case was right on her heels. She headed toward the back hall thinking to race outside where there would be more room to run. At the last moment, she remembered that while she couldn’t shift, Case could. She would be at a disadvantage outside. More of a disadvantage than she was inside.
Cutting to the right, she smiled when Case hit a chair as he tried to follow. She darted toward the stairs, knowing there wasn’t really any escape in that direction. There wasn’t any escape anywhere unless she jumped in a car. But then, she didn’t really want to escape. Her wolf wanted to test her mate, wanted to feel his strength and his power. And Maggie was having too much fun to rein her in.
Laughing, she glanced back as Case vaulted the sofa. Landing lightly on his feet, he angled toward the stairs to cut her off. She stopped and took a step backwards as he stalked forward.
“Where do you think yo
u’re going?” His expression was stern, but his eyes were bright with the thrill of the chase. He looked happy. The realization made her heart do a funny little skipping beat.
“You think I’ll tell you that?”
“You can’t run far enough that I couldn’t track you down. This won’t end anywhere but in my bed.”
“You think so?” She lifted her chin. “I thought you had your heart set on the sofa.”
He smiled, slow and wicked. Her pussy flooded with heat and moisture. Case clearly sensed that because his nostrils flared and his eyes glowed brighter with wolflight.
“The sofa. My bed. The floor. Maybe I’ll tie you to the dining room table and let the whole pack feast on you when I’m done. The further you push the wolf, the harder he’ll take you.”
If he meant to scare her into submission, he was doing a poor job of it. She turned, took one running step, and came up against a wall of very solid, very muscular flesh. Hands caught her arms preventing her from falling backwards. She looked up…and up…into the face of the wildest looking wolf she’d ever set eyes on.
Declan. This had to be Declan. The rogue who was one step from going feral.
He had a hard mouth, a cleft chin, high cheekbones and startlingly pale gray eyes. His hair was as messy as hers and a few days growth of beard dusted his jaw. He looked like he’d just survived an accident that’d left him stranded, like a shipwreck or a mine cave-in. Rough and unkempt and not remotely tame.
Before she could say or do anything, he hauled her against him and kissed her.
Hard.
Her lips pressed against her teeth and she gasped in surprise. Declan took that as an invitation, his tongue pushing into her mouth, slick and hot, demanding a response. Her wolf, already roused by the chase, gave him that response without thought. Her wolf liked this male. She liked the brutal simplicity of his offer and wanted to claim him immediately.
Case reached her then, catching her by the arm and pulling her roughly away. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
She wasn’t entirely sure if he was talking to her or Declan.
Declan slowly lowered his hands to his sides. His gaze remained on her for a long moment before turning to Case. “Why order me home if not to mate with her?”
“I told you to present yourself,” Case said coldly. “She didn’t invite you to touch her.”
Declan snorted. “She’s ready to mate. I can smell it all over her. I barely touched her and she already wants to take me.”
Case glanced at her and though Maggie didn’t think he meant to accuse her of any wrongdoing, there was no missing the flare of his nostrils as he scented her arousal. His mouth tightened as he recognized the truth of Declan’s words.
It wasn’t fair.
She couldn’t control her body’s reaction. The heat came. It kept coming, and every time she encountered a new unattached male, her wolf rose up to check him out. Maggie might not like being manhandled by a stranger, but her wolf didn’t seem to mind it at all.
Declan’s kiss had burned through her. She could still feel his hands on her arms. She wanted… No. Her wolf wanted to climb Declan like a tree. Her entire body trembled with the effort it took to pull her wolf under control.
Declan’s pale eyes met hers. “I’m ready to finish this now.”
“You’ll do this the right way,” Case snapped.
“And your way is the right way?” Declan raised a thick, straight eyebrow. “You’re losing touch with your wolf, Case. Soon you’ll be as broken as Jack.” His eyes locked with Maggie. “As broken as she is. Split inside.”
Case advanced a step. “There’s nothing wrong with her.”
“I imagine that’s easy to believe when you’re fucking her. Give me a chance at it. Maybe I’ll see the light. I’m willing to admit when I’m wrong. You should try it.”
Case swung at him. Case, calm and completely in control Case, punched one of his pack mates right in the face. Declan’s head jerked, and he stumbled back a step. He caught his balance just before Case fell on him.
Maggie cried out and stepped forward, intending to stop them.
Eli caught her arm. “You don’t want to get involved in this.”
“What do you mean I don’t want to get involved? They’re fighting because of me.”
“They’re not,” Eli said, watching the two men square off. “This has been building for a long time. Declan is strong, maybe as strong as Case. Declan’s been poking at him lately, trying to force this. You’re just the stick that finally broke Case’s skin.”
Case took another swing at Declan, this time missing as the larger man dodged. Catching Case’s wrist as he overbalanced, Declan pulled hard, shifting his weight to send Case flying into an end table. The table shattered.
Blood.
She scented the blood before she saw it. Case rolled to his feet, a gash in his side. A line of blood trickled down his side to fall in fat drops to the carpet.
Declan smiled despite his split lip. “One kiss and she was ready to spread her legs for me. Is that what bothers you? Did you have to work for it? Is that why you were chasing her?”
Stalking toward Declan, Case yanked a long splinter of wood from his side and cast it onto the rug.
Declan stood his ground. “Did you like the idea of me down on my knees begging for a taste of pussy? I don’t kneel, alpha. Not for you. Not for her.”
Case swung again. Declan tried to dodge the blow, but he misjudged the angle. Case’s fist connected with the side of Declan’s head, causing him to stagger back several feet. Case didn’t let up. Another blow smashed into Declan’s side. His ribs cracked with an audible snap. Declan gasped for air. He wrapped his big muscular arms around Case’s body and twisted. Both men fell to the floor. Case landed on the bottom. Declan’s shoulder drove the breath from his lungs in an explosive rush.
This was ridiculous. Shifters might be more resilient than the average human, but there were limits to what they could handle. Someone was going to get hurt. Carson and Jack stood at the edge of the room, tensely watching the fight. Neither of them looked like they were even thinking about intervening.
Shaking off Eli’s grip, Maggie stepped forward as the men rolled closer. Case cursed when he saw her and pulled a punch, grabbing Declan instead and wrapping him up.
She fisted a hand in Declan’s hair, pulling his head back until he looked her in the eyes. She could see his wolf there, ascendant. She’d never seen that before—the wolf so clearly in charge of the man.
“Stop this.”
He actually growled at her.
She growled back.
“Even if you kill him, it won’t make you alpha. You can’t take control of this pack. It’s my pack. I get to choose who stays in it.”
For a moment, she thought Declan would shake off her hand. He was far stronger than she was. His powerful muscles were locked now, but she could feel them tremble. Feel the effort it took him to restrain himself, to keep from pulling her into the fight and hurting her too. He was allowing her to handle him now.
After a tense pause, Declan released Case. At first she felt nothing but relief, but then Declan pushed himself to his feet. He towered over her. Two hundred and something pounds of angry shifter. She took a step back. His eyes flared with triumph, and she realized her mistake.
Planting her feet, she set her hands on her hips. “Hurt any of them and I will never choose you.”
His mouth twisted. “You really think you have a choice?”
“I have a choice.”
He caught her chin and tipped her face up. “The wolf chooses, not you. If you think otherwise, you’re fooling yourself.”
“I control the wolf, not the other way around.”
A slow smile spread across his face. “Is that right?”
She nodded.
“Where on earth did you come from? What pack would teach such a ridiculous thing?”
She didn’t answer. She wasn’t sharing anything a
s personal as her past with him until he quit being such an asshole.
He leaned down, bringing his face close enough that she could feel the heat of his breath feather across her skin. Holding her gaze with his unnaturally pale eyes, he said, “I could always kill you. That would solve any number of problems.”
Case climbed to his feet. “But you won’t. If you hurt a hair on her head, you won’t leave this territory alive.”
Declan turned his head to look at Case. “That’s how it is?”
“That’s how it has to be. You know that. Don’t pretend otherwise,” Case said. Somehow he managed to keep his voice calm and steady. “No one is trying to push you out. If I’d wanted you out, I wouldn’t have tracked you down. If I’d wanted you out, I’d have killed you sooner.”
Declan went very still. His fingers tightened on her chin, and she jerked away. The motion seemed to surprise him. He glanced at her apologetically and then turned back to Case. “I don’t know why you expected me to see this as anything but a betrayal.”
Case made an exasperated sound. “Because I expected you to trust me, not jump to the worst interpretation of things. She was alone in a tiny cabin near the property Eli went to look at. She was already in heat and had no idea what it meant. This wasn’t something we negotiated behind your back. It just…happened, and we’re all dealing with it as best we can.”
Declan shook his head. “You keep dealing with it. I want no part.”
Case paled.
As Declan moved to leave the room, Eli caught his arm. In a low voice, he said, “Give it two days. You owe us that much. None of us wants you to leave.”
Dec smiled grimly and tilted his head toward Maggie. “Except her. She’s already made her decision.”
Case’s brows lifted. “Can you blame her with the way you reacted? We know the reason behind it, but all she sees is a shifter who attacked her mate. How else would you want her to respond?”
Declan looked at her, his eyes cool and assessing. It wasn’t a friendly expression, but he didn’t seem angry at her.
