by Ann Mayburn
“Well what do you want me to say?” he mumbled. “Talking to you about sex is like talking to the little sister I don’t have about doing the dirty deed. It’s weird as hell, but someone has to tell you about it or you could accidentally end up dead. I like you, Syn. I don’t wanna have your funeral anytime soon, ya’know? I’ve lost too many friends already to shifter bullshit, I don’t need you to be just another memory.”
Reaching out, I gave his thick arm a good squeeze. “Thanks, Jerry. If it makes you feel any better, this is totally uncomfortable for me as well. But getting ‘the talk’ from you is better than getting it from your mom.”
Jerry visibly shuddered so hard I could feel the vibration through my car seat. “Yeah, her sex talk was one of the most mentally scarring of my life. Though it could have been worse. At Levi’s mate’s bachelorette party my mom taught everyone how to deep throat using a banana as a visual tool.” He must have caught my horrified look because he gave a solemn nod. “Yep, Levi’s poor fiancée had to watch her future mother-in-law do a porn act with a banana before a cheering crowd of drunk women.”
My whole body seemed to heat with a blush as I nodded, then giggled as I said, “Oh Jerry, that’s terrible! Thankfully, I didn’t get banana tips whenever we’ve talked.”
“It was the worst,” he grumbled as we merged into slow moving traffic. “She tried to get me to eat a peach with her so she could explain how to orally pleasure my future mate.”
I laughed so hard, my eyes began to water as I smacked Jerry’s shoulder. “She didn’t.”
“Oh yeah, she totally did. Thankfully, my dad overhead us and rescued me. His version of the sex talk was, ‘watch some porn, and make sure she gets hers first before you stick your pecker in her.’”
I clutched my sides as I howled with laughter, then froze.
“Did I just howl?”
Now it was Jerry’s turn to laugh. “You totally did. A good one too.”
Clasping my hands over my face, I leaned forward so my hair covered me. “Oh my Goddess, I can’t believe I just howled!”
“It’s a hyena thing, howling with laughter. Just like grunting is a bear thing. It’s a natural expression for us, but you have to learn to control it around humans. At least you don’t roar in anger like a lion, or screech in warning like a raven. Those fuckers are loud.”
We rode in silence for a little bit after that as I tried to mentally ready myself for my return to work. Today I wasn’t actually working, instead I was going in to sign forms for my insurance claims and for my time off. Thankfully they’d held my job for me, and weren’t going to sue me over the damages done to the exhibit. In fact, my boss Dr. Greg and his wife had stopped by my house last week, bringing me enough frozen meals to feed an army and making sure I was okay.
Jerry dropped me off a couple blocks from work, then told me he’d be there to pick me up tonight, despite my reassurances that I could ride the Metro. Merging into the mass of humanity milling about, I started walking down the long, wide sidewalk leading to the museum complex. Even though it was a weekday, and cloudy, the National Mall was packed with visitors here to see the sights. Considering the pavement got as hot as an oven later in the day, coming in the morning was a good call.
I got stuck behind a pair of double strollers, and tried to find an opening in the crowd to dart around.
“Nice day,” a guy said from right next to me.
Startled, I looked up and found some frat bro I didn’t know wearing a Green Bay Packers t-shirt getting all up in my personal space. He stunk of alcohol, and something else. This close, I could scent something my mind identified as lust on him, and I sneezed. The scent was irritating, so I tried to distance myself from him, but the crowd wasn’t allowing it. I couldn’t exactly stampede my way through toddlers and small children. Instead, I stopped walking, hoping he’d take the hint, but he stopped with me. As he stared at my breasts my irritation with him increased, as did the scent of lust coming from him.
“So, what’s your name?”
“Sorry, not interested.”
He blinked, startled at my abrupt rejection. “I was just saying hi.”
“I have to go, I’m late for work.” I turned away from him, my irritation increasing by the second.
Clearly not getting the message, and with the belligerence only drunk guys can manage, he persisted. “Well what’re you doing after work? I’m here on vacation with my buddies, I got all the time in the world for you, hotness.”
I had the weirdest urge to show my teeth and snarl at the guy. He was close, too close, and he was triggering all these peculiar feelings in me. Snaps of anger shot through my muscles like a misfiring nerve, and I began to sweat as we stood in the bright sunlight. When he tried to move into my personal space, I backed away, but soon he had me pinned between a stainless-steel garbage can and a cement bench. Thankfully he didn’t try to touch me, just stood there, swaying with a dopey looking smile.
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I tried to find patience. “Dude, this is not the time or place for this. You’re drunk, at nine a.m., around a bunch of families with kids. Not cool. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to be late for my meeting.”
“Wait.” He grabbed my wrist, pulling me back towards him hard enough that I almost lost my balance. “I just want to talk to you. Gimme your number.”
A low, mean rumble started in the pit of my chest and I spun around, jerking my hand away, and glaring at him. “Don’t touch me.”
He licked his lips then took a step closer. “Come on, pretty lady. Why you gotta be so mean? I’m just tryin’ to talk to you. What? You too good for me? Think you all that? You’re not. You’re nothin’. You’re an ugly bitch and you have a fat ass. You should be happy I’m even talking to you.”
My heart began to race as the sounds faded around us. I focused on the man before me so intently I could see the pulse pounding in his neck. Some deep, instinctive part of me wanted to tear into him, to rip out his throat for daring to touch me. A sharp pain came from my mouth, from my gums, but I ignored it. My focus was that of a predator on its prey, and a little discomfort wouldn’t deter me.
But the scent that hit me next would.
A big, dark skinned, muscled arm draped across my shoulders and I gasped as the most delicious aroma hit me. It was like walking into an ice-cream parlor, the sweet sugary goodness assaulting your senses and making you crave a taste. But there was a hint of bitter to it as well, just the faintest scent of rich coffee mixing in with the sweet. I opened my mouth wider so I could capture more of that delicious taste on my tongue. My next inhale filled me with a smell so good my attention instantly shifted from the man/prey I’d been focused on to the guy standing at my side.
The deep, almost vibrating bass tone of a man’s voice washed over me, “I believe the lady asked you to leave her alone.”
Looking over, and above my shoulder, the drunk guy blinked hard. “You a professional wrestler? ‘Cause man, you’re fuckin’ huge.”
Chills raced through me, rendering me incapable of speech and movement. I was immersed in a feeling I’d never had before, a pleasure unlike anything I could even imagine. Warm chills seemed to radiate from my lower belly, sinking between my thighs and transforming to heat. I could actually feel my nipples harden, and I became hyper aware of the big, warm man standing behind me.
“It’s time for you to go find your friends and leave my lady alone,” the mystery man with his arm draped possessively around me growled. “I won’t tell you again.”
For a moment, I thought drunk guy was going to be smart, but instead he proved just how dangerous alcohol was. “What’re you gonna do? I ain’t afraid of you.”
“Last warning,” mystery man murmured, and I had to firm my knees against my body’s hot, melty reaction to the timber of his deep voice.
My hyena let out a yipping howl and I almost let the sound escape me. Instead it came out as a choked noise, and the man’s grip on me tightened. Drunk guy
frowned at me, weaving on his feet. There was a clear circle around us as people, sensing danger on some primitive level, kept a good distance away. A few people were filming us with their cellphones, but I was too far gone to care. I was living in the moment, trying to deal with the physical changes assaulting me by the second.
“What’s wrong with you?” drunk guy peered at me. “You high?”
“Nevoj,” a woman called from behind me. “We need to go, now.”
The man who was holding me pulled me closer to his side, and I looked up at him for the first time and lost myself completely.
“Just a minute, Nadia,” he murmured as I visually devoured him.
His eyes, his beautiful, beautiful eyes were filled with gold stars.
Set against his deep ebony skin, they were startling.
Entrancing.
His eyes were wide, but tilted at the corners, giving him an almost cat-like look. A wide nose balanced off his generous lips, and his head was shaved bald. It wasn’t a look I’d ever found flattering on a guy, but the instant I saw this man I thought it was the sexiest thing ever. Yes, the sexiest. I thought he was sexy. Like, just breathing next to him was so sensual I could barely function.
For the first time in my life I was attracted to a man, and I didn’t know what to do with myself.
Finally I understood what all those books and movies were trying to describe when they talked about the raw power of sexual attraction. Overwhelming desires swamped me, and I wondered if this was how a drug addict felt when taking their first hit. The euphoria, the almost giddy pleasure of his touch against my body was the best feeling ever. His lips parted as he stared down at me, and his wide shoulders twitched when I reached up and stroked his cheek. Feeling his body was unlike anything I’d ever experienced, and I marveled at how my fingers seemed to spark across his cheekbone. It was as if little flicks of energy danced beneath my fingertips, and the way he closed his eyes and leaned into my trailing caress made my racing heart flutter.
Another scent wove through the air now, mixing with the pure, sugary good ice cream sweetness. I caught a hint of blueberries, no, blueberry muffins. The kind that are fresh out of the oven and filled the whole house with their delicious aroma. The two delightful scents twined together and I licked my lips as I stared up at the man with the sparkling gold eyes.
I was knocked out of my admiration when a tall, pale woman with light blue eyes and short reddish blonde hair appeared next to us. She was dressed in dark clothing and wore no makeup or jewelry. Her cheeks flushed pink as she returned my gaze, and I realized the blueberry muffins smell was coming from her. Like the mystery man, she had golden sparkles in her eyes, but they shone against a backdrop of ice blue instead of warm brown. Her skin was so smooth and creamy, it practically glowed with good health and vitality. Without thinking, I reached out and touched her cheek, my breath coming out in a huff as electricity bombarded me.
“What the fuck,” drunk guy muttered. “You into that kinky shit?”
The mystery man lunged at the drunk, but the woman with him held him back, despite their size difference. “Nevoj, you can’t. Not here. We have to go, now.”
I wanted to reach out, to hold onto both of them, but the woman was dragging the man away, leaving me behind.
Chapter 5
Nevoj
It took every ounce of brutal training he’d ever endured to leave his Queen behind, and his animal spirit was beyond pissed they were walking away from the woman they’d both been born to love.
Nevoj tried to discreetly pull his shirt out of his pants to hide the bulge of his erection. The pound of his pulse seemed centered directly on his groin, and he was completely distracted by both his new dick, and the scent of Synthia still covering his hands. He thought his arousal had been hard to handle when he woke up with an aching cock and no Queen to mount. That craving for sex had been nothing compared to the soul searing compulsion to go back and grab Synthia then whisk her away, his greedy aunts and the world be damned.
Ignoring Nadia, he quickly walked over to an empty cement bench beneath some cherry trees and sat down. Mature branches spread out overhead, blocking out the hot sun, but doing nothing to cool his boiling blood. Before his transition to his true form, he’d tried to imagine what it would be like to be male, but he’d underestimated how different it would be. How intense his sex drive would become.
How strong his drive to protect his Queen would be.
Strong enough to obliterate any ounce of common sense his libido hadn’t smothered.
Still, even with his unstable emotions and lack of his usual iron self-control, he was happy.
Or, at least he would be once he was finally able to claim his place by his Queen’s side as her Alpha.
The thought of the drunk human putting his hands on Synthia made Nevoj see red, and his body responded to his anger. Standing at around six-foot three, he had testosterone fueled muscles that were big enough to protect his Queen. Having spent all his life as a female, and inherently smaller and weaker than other males of his mother’s court, he took great pride in his size. On the inside, in his heart and gut, he’d always felt like this was the body he belonged in, and he was right.
But now he was learning the price of being a man.
He was obsessed with his Queen.
As a woman, back when he was Joven, he’d thought a man’s lust would be strong and pleasurable, but he’d had no clue of the power behind his desire. It wasn’t just that he wanted to mate with his Queen, he was driven to seek her out. To prove he was her Alpha and protect her in every way. It wasn’t a conscious thought, but a compulsion. He’d been unable to stop himself from watching Synthia from a distance, and his spirit animal had taken him over completely when that asshole put his hands on Nevoj’s Queen. In a perfect world he would have been able to announce his intentions right then and there, but keeping Synthia safe meant denying himself the one thing his entire being screamed for.
The Mother Goddess respected sacrifices, and he hoped that by keeping his distance he would give both himself and his Queen the time they so desperately needed.
Only he’d potentially blown that by physically protecting her in the middle of the day, in front of a large crowd.
Just as he got himself under control, he brushed his mouth with his hand then inhaled, and all his efforts to soften his erection were ruined as he smelled Synthia again. With a groan, he tried to think unappealing thoughts. Unfortunately, the more he thought about his dick, the more difficult it was get himself out of this rutting beast mode he seemed stuck in. He wanted to fist his erection, to squeeze it hard and pump it fast, to find a way to relieve the pressure growing in his balls. Speaking of which, his sack had somehow become more sensitive, and he had a fantasy about Synthia suckling on the tender skin, her plump lips pressed tight. That raunchy mental fantasy sent another hard ache of desire through him and he shifted, his shoulders twitching with the need to give himself relief.
“Here,” Nadia handed Nevoj a wet wipe from her pocket. “Wash her off your hands. I can barely fuckin’ think with her smell surrounding you. She smells like…cinnamon rolls and fall leaves in the mountains.” The hint of Texas in her accent deepened as she whispered, “I could almost taste her, fresh as the cold water from a clear mountain stream.”
Synthia did indeed smell like cinnamon rolls and fall leaves, an intriguing scent that he wanted to spend the rest of his life exploring.
“Mother’s generous ass, snap out of it, Nevoj,” Nadia hissed. “You know you can’t appear too interested in Syn. And you’re leavin’ tomorrow to attend that meeting out in Thailand with Banríon Liu. Now is not the time to lose your shit. Wipe your hands off, stand up, and get yourself under control.”
If he hadn’t been so fond of his adopted sister, he would have snapped Nadia’s neck for the tone she used. The dominant, Alpha beast inside of him didn’t like a lesser hyena addressing him in such a berating way. That beast was also pissed because Nevoj re
fused to go after Synthia. The man inside of him understood the things his spirit animal couldn’t comprehend, so he forced his spirit animal into the background. At first his hyena struggled, howling for their Queen, but Nevoj was nothing if not stubborn. After a few minutes of deep breathing, he had complete control of himself again.
Standing, he tossed the damp cloth into a nearby waste bin, his hands now smelling like alcohol and lemons. Shifters often carried around special wipes to remove any trace of scent whenever they went out in public. Over time the scents on their skin built up until it became too much for a sensitive shifter nose. Still, he hated having to remove his Queen from his skin.
Soon, he promised himself, soon.
“What were you thinking?” Anger singed his nose as Nadia glared at him. “I knew this was a bad idea, but you just had to see her. I can’t believe you approached her, touched her! Do you have any idea what you’ve done? She’ll start going into heat now, and it will be painful and confusing for her because you will not be there to ease her. And you’re leaving me behind to watch her suffer.”
“I’m leaving you behind to guard her, Beta.”
Nadia hated being called that, he could easily see it in every line of her body. Even though they grew up in separate states with separate families, they’d known each other for a long time, and there had always been an issue of dominance between them. It was as if they’d somehow known that eventually they would be competing for the top spot in their Queen’s harem. Hell, he had only himself to blame for making Nadia aware that Synthia was her Queen. Nadia had come with him when he’d visited Synthia in the hospital when he was still Joven. Nadia had been one of his guards on that night at the museum and wanted to pay her respects to the girl they’d failed to protect. At the time he’d thought nothing of it, Nadia was an honorable person and that was just the kind of thing she did. It was one of the reasons he’d asked her to work for him guarding the exhibit.
That fateful evening at the hospital, Synthia’s mother had gone home for the night, and Ted had allowed Joven and Nadia to sit with her. By then was obvious by that Synthia had transformed into a hyena, and it was just as clear to Joven that this incredibly young former human was her Queen. Unfortunately, it had been equally obvious that Synthia was Nadia’s Queen as well. Nadia had begun to give off a pheromone that immediately identified her as a fellow mate to Joven. Nadia had been the one to watch over Joven as she’d been buried in the earth, emerging three days later to start his new life as Nevoj, Alpha to Queen Synthia Rowley.
