by Tasha Black
Crave This!
A 300 Moons Book
Tasha Black
13th Story Press
Copyright © 2018 by 13th Story Press All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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13th Story Press PO Box 506 Swarthmore, PA 19081
[email protected]
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Cover design 2018 by Sylvia Frost
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Contents
Tasha Black Starter Library
Crave This!
1. Introduction
2. Sarah
3. Max
4. Sarah
5. Max
6. Sarah
7. Sarah
8. Max
9. Sarah
10. Max
11. Sarah
12. Max
13. Sarah
14. Sarah
15. Max
16. Sarah
17. Max
18. Sarah
19. Sarah
20. Sarah
21. Max
22. Max
23. Sarah
24. Sarah
25. Sarah
26. Max
Charm This! (Sample)
1. Rachel
2. Jack
Tasha Black Starter Library
About the Author
Curse of the Alpha: The Complete Bundle
One Percent Club
Tasha Black Starter Library
Packed with steamy shifters, mischievous magic, billionaire superheroes, and plenty of HEAT, the Tasha Black Starter Library is the perfect way to dive into Tasha's unique brand of Romance with Bite!
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A craving greater than he can bear…
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Sarah Bennett has a little secret. Her single night of heaven with a luscious lumberjack last fall landed her more than just the great time she bargained for. Now Sarah’s life is filled with love and diapers and her beloved baby Orson. And Orson has a little secret of his own.
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When her baby boy decides to show off his very special ability Sarah realizes it’s time to learn more about his father, and the adventure begins. From the skyscrapers of Glacier City to the sleepy suburb of Tarker’s Hollow and the wilds of the Blue Ridge mountains Sarah will go to any lengths to offer Orson the future he deserves.
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Max Reynolds has it all: close family. good friends, and a burgeoning logging business. But the burly bear shifter still feels lonely. No matter how many local women express their interest he just can’t stop craving the curvy software developer who spent a night of ecstasy in his arms last year.
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When Sarah turns up out of nowhere it’s Max’s chance to show her she needs him too. If he can keep the bear from frightening her off with his need to claim her. And if they survive their inadvertent camping trip into the stormy woods...
Crave This!
1
Introduction
Things are changing this year at Harkness Farms…
Kate Harkness has always opened her home, and her heart, to troubled shifter children. Children who shifted early, or lacked the power to control their animal natures. Children who were born to unsuspecting normals, or who were too much for even some shifter parents to handle.
But not too much for Kate Harkness.
With some help from her friends, the children were each given the blessing of a spell to keep their animals in check for the span of 300 moons.
And so for these foundlings, life on Harkness Farms was about as normal as could be.
For a time.
When the first group of shifter children grew up and reached their 300th moons, forces of darkness attacked them - starving shadow demons chasing the vestiges of magic cast off as the spell that protected them wore away.
But recent events have rocked the nearby town of Tarker’s Hollow. And the repercussions are pulling back the veil between the ordinary and the supernatural. All over the world, magical abilities are being quietly awoken in regular people who never suspected their own hidden gifts. And the shadow demons have more magic to chase elsewhere.
With the demons otherwise occupied, Kate hopes that this next group of her foster children will make it through their 300th moons unscathed.
But some memories refuse to stay forgotten.
And some prices won’t remain unpaid.
2
Sarah
Sarah Bennett paced the floor of her office, the lush carpet swishing beneath her sensible heels with every step.
Outside the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, the skyscrapers of Glacier City sparkled in the late morning sun.
Baby Orson snuggled himself against her chest, a lock of her hair curled in his chubby fist. He loved being carried in his sling.
Sarah loved it too. She made it a point to never put him down for an instant on the evenings, weekends, and work-from-home Wednesdays they spent together.
And she had Linda, the best nanny in Glacier City for the other four weekdays.
At least she used to have the best nanny…
Orson had his first episode a week ago in the middle of the night. He’d been suffering with his first real cold and Sarah had barely slept in days.
He cried in the night for about the hundredth time.
Sarah launched herself out of bed to go get him. In the process, she smashed her shin on the dresser and yelped in pain and surprise.
Orson’s scream turned into a growl.
Half-blind with sleep, she’d hurried to his crib and lifted him out to hold him close.
Orson snuffled loudly and made a strange, piteous sound.
When she looked down she swore she saw a fur-covered thing in her arms instead of her baby.
“Orson?” she whispered.
Before her blinking eyes, he transformed back into her boy. The fur disappeared, the snout melted back into a button nose, all in an instant.
Shaken, she carried him over to the window, into the moonlight so she could see him better.
But he was her baby, nothing more - no fur, no strange sounds.
He sniffled again and whimpered a little.
She chalked it up to the dim lighting and lack of sleep.
Sarah curled up in the rocker and snuggled him back to sleep.
The next day, she called out of work and the nanny came to be with Orson for a few hours while Sarah slept. She pledged to take better care of herself from then on. After all, she had Orson to think of.
Sarah had never really thought of herself as a single mother in the classic sense. She had enough money to ensure that taking care of Orson was not a hardship. Between herself and her nanny, Orson had never wanted for a moment’s attention.
Until today.
She could still feel the panic from Linda’s call.
“You have to come home now,” Linda had yelled, her usually warm, motherly voice gone cold and frightened.
Sarah had run the four city blocks, too scared to wait for a car, cursing the elevator for taking too long to get up to the modified loft she and Orson called home.
When she reached her, Linda was shaking outside the door to Orson’s nursery.
“I didn’t leave,” she said. “I stayed until you got here.”
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“What happened?” Sarah asked, her hand already turning the handle of the door.
Linda just shook her head, eyes wide with terror, and ran out the door of the loft.
“Orson?�
�� Sarah whispered, entering the darkened room.
He had pulled himself up to standing in his crib. So he wasn’t hurt.
But something in her head told her that wasn’t right. Pulling to standing was a milestone for much older babies, wasn’t it? Orson wasn’t quite four months old.
But she could see him there - the small glow from underneath the room’s light-blocking curtain threw his tiny form into silhouette.
Orson cried out hoarsely.
He must have been so frightened if Linda had run away. His nanny was like a second mother to him.
“It’s okay, my love,” Sarah crooned. “Mama’s here.”
Some part of her must have known before she wrapped her hands around him and lifted him out, because when she felt the glossy fur under her fingertips she didn’t even hesitate, just brought him close, snuggled him in.
He made a contented sound and she felt that little snout rooting at her silk blouse.
She padded over to the lamp and turned it on.
Orson blinked his small black eyes and waved a fuzzy paw in front of his snout as if he were trying to swat the light away.
Sarah looked into the sweet furry face of her boy.
He was a bear cub. A glossy brown bear cub wearing an organic cotton onesie with a teddy bear embroidered on the chest. He smelled like baby shampoo.
I’ve had a full night’s sleep. I’m eating healthy and taking care of myself. I’m a happy, well-adjusted person.
She grabbed her phone to take a picture in case he changed back, but decided against it before she opened the camera app.
Orson was… different.
She didn’t necessarily want a paper trail on that.
He made a small grunting noise and she looked down at him again.
He was all peaches and cream now - no hair but his normal, wheat-colored fluff atop his head, no snout, no claws,
But he had been a bear. And this time there was a witness.
Sarah went into emergency mode - there was no time to panic.
She calmly gathered up everything Orson needed for the day, calling Linda as she packed.
The nanny didn’t pick up, but her voicemail did.
“Linda, it’s Sarah,” she said. “I know you had a hard morning. You’ve been so good to Orson and me that I’d like to offer you some time off. Let’s say a year with pay, and a generous bonus we can hammer out together if you’re willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement. I’ll have my attorney send you the details. No deal without the NDA though.”
That ought to keep the rumor mill quiet. Even Glacier City’s best nanny had a price. Everyone did. It was just a matter of finding out what it was.
After the call, she’d brought Orson into the office with her - there was no other option. All she had to do was keep him calm until she could reach the head of the company to have him sign off on a leave of absence for her. She’d hoped they would be in and out in half an hour and then she could go…
Where?
A children’s hospital?
A Halloween store?
What was happening to her son?
There was a knock on the door and she startled, banging her hip on the desk.
“Come in,” she barked.
Kurt Engle, one of the company accountants, stepped inside.
“Hey, Sarah,” he said. “I know I’m early for our meeting, but West wanted me to…”
He was staring at Orson.
“Sorry, my nanny was under the weather,” Sarah said, glancing down at the baby.
But he was a bear again. She must have startled him.
His slender brown muzzle peeked out of the sling inquisitively.
Without thinking about it, Sarah stroked his furry jaw.
Under her finger, the fur gave way to a soft chubby cheek. Orson gave her a gummy grin, a tiny dimple appearing above his right cheek.
Kurt was silent.
Sarah looked up at him, wondering if there was any chance he might think he was seeing things.
“You need to talk to Derek Harkness,” Kurt said kindly.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Your baby,” Kurt said. “Derek will know exactly what to do.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Sarah said. Derek Harkness was the billionaire CEO of the company. He would hardly know what to do about a baby, let alone one that kept turning into a bear.
But Kurt slipped out and was gone before she had time to ask what he was talking about.
When he left, she tucked Orson a bit further into the sling, so that if anyone else stopped in they’d be unlikely to see anything untoward. It wasn’t Orson’s fault he was different. And it wasn’t anyone else’s business.
Half an hour and a few phone calls later, there was another knock on the door.
“Come in,” she called out, after ascertaining that Orson was still himself inside the sling.
Derek Harkness stepped in, resplendent in his bespoke suit and tie. Sarah stared silently for a few seconds. She wasn’t the type to be easily intimidated by anyone, but something about Derek’s rugged good looks and the raw power he exuded had always left her a little off balance.
“I don’t know what Kurt told you,” she began, regaining her composure.
Derek didn’t respond. He closed the door behind him, put down his briefcase, then stepped toward her.
Sarah took a step back, instinctively.
Something about Derek was… different.
His piercing blue eyes flashed golden and he lunged forward, landing on all fours.
Except that by the time he hit the ground, he wasn’t Derek anymore.
An enormous bear stood in her office, on top of the shredded remains of a very expensive suit.
3
Max
Max Reynolds was not himself today.
It had all begun with the birthday card.
It wasn’t even his birthday.
The return address was in Pennsylvania. And the letter tucked inside the card was obviously nonsense, but it gave him the creeps.
Dear Maxwell,
It has been so many years since we met you at the farm, and you were such a little fellow then.
Your mom and dad were lovely people. Many of the children I meet wind up staying on the farm, since their families can’t accommodate their special gifts, but your parents were determined to do whatever it took to keep you.
I wrote to your mother a few months ago, but my letter was returned. And when I took the liberty of asking one of the kids to “google” you, they came up with the address I’m writing to now. I suspect your parents decided to move your family away from the city to live, after that first visit with us here.
At any rate, I’m sure you know that the coming moon is the 300th , and that you are also aware that my friend Gloria put a staying spell on your bear to help curb your shifting until you were old enough to control it.
I’m writing to warn you that as the spell wears off, it can release a bit of magic with it.
And magic can attract danger.
I’m sorry to say that several of the kids have had to fight off shadow demons during their 300th moons, and chances are that you may have to as well. Though things have changed in the magical world this year…
Although you probably don’t remember me, I’ll tell you the same thing I’ve told my other children: I hope you’ll come home to Harkness Farms for your 300th moon, and bring anyone you care about with you. We can help you face whatever you’re up against here at the farm.
And selfishly, I’d just love to see you again, Maxwell.
With love,
Kate Harkness
Max read it twice.
It wasn’t the shifter part. Max had always known about his ability to turn into a bear. He just didn’t think anyone else knew. And he certainly didn’t know anything about magic spells and shadow demons.
A normal person would have dismissed it as the ramblings of someone who had a few screws loose. But when you
could transform into a giant bear, it was easier to suspend your disbelief about other things.
He picked up the phone to call his mom, and then put it down again when he heard the footsteps approaching.
That was fine. He could ask his mother about the weird letter anytime.
Right now he had work to do. They were on a deadline to make a decision about whether or not his company would be logging for the Rattle brothers. That decision had to be made today.
There was a light knock on his office door.
“Come in,” he said, shoving the card into his desk drawer.
“Hey, Max.”
His business partner, Angela, came in and sat across from him, tossing her long brown ponytail over her shoulder.
“Hey, Angela,” he replied. “Any thoughts on what we should do here?”
“The Rattle brothers have a good sized piece of land and there’s potentially a lot of money in it,” Angela said. “But the trees aren’t fully mature, and frankly, neither are the brothers. I don’t think it’s worth the headache, Max. What do you think?”
Damn, he loved that he had an investor who understood the community, the people, the trees.
He’d needed money for his parent’s bills during the long year his poor dad had spent going through cancer treatments. And lucky for Max, Angela was interested in his logging company and convinced her own father to help her buy a forty percent stake. He suspected they’d overpaid, but he was grateful and determined that he’d make that share worth far more than she’d put in.
