by E A Price
Kira’s family ran a pack owned horse stable; Kira grew up around horses and loved them. When she was younger, she shared one with her twin, they called it Thundercat. Gabe chuckled at that.
That day, Mari was rushing around visiting pack members, and doing last minute shopping, while Jesse ran the stables. A favorite Christmas gift was a certificate for horse riding lessons, so Christmas tended to be quite busy. Helpfully, or unhelpfully in Gabe’s opinion, Kira volunteered the two of them to assist her father. Hence, his current situation.
“Ugh, disgusting!” The horse licked him. His wolf yowled in disapproval.
Gabe huffed in annoyance; he saw that Kira was now rolling around on the ground laughing. Gabe grumbled as he led the overly friendly Lightning Bolt back to his stall.
Kira finished her riding lesson and watched gleefully as the little girl with pigtails ran back to her parents, squealing about how much she wanted a pony. Her wolf yipped. One day she and Gabe would have a pup like that, although she doubted Gabe would give in and get a horse for their little one.
Smiling, she walked back to the stables. Gabe scowled at her happy face.
She sauntered past him, patting his gorgeous ass. “Oh, buck up, Bambi, it’s just one day.”
“You wouldn’t be saying that if it was something you didn’t want to do. What if I insisted that we… umm… that we go white water rafting?”
Kira raised her eyebrows. “I’d be a little scared, but I’d do it anyway, because you wanted to do it.” A worried look flitted over her features. “We’re not really doing that though, are we?”
“Hell no, you wouldn’t catch me on a boat.”
Kira breathed a sigh of relief. “Where’s my dad?”
“Your mom called; she wanted him home for something. I said we could manage.”
Kira licked her lips. “So, we’re all alone then?”
Gabe snorted. “Yeah, just me, you and twenty horses.”
She put her hands on his shoulders; her lips curled up. “Making love in a stable is sexy, Kayleigh told me she has loads of fantasies about her and Don doing this.”
He groaned. “Great, now all I can think about is Don.”
Kira pulled him down for a passionate kiss, hungrily tasting her mate. She panted as she pulled away. “Yeah, you’re right. I’m not turned on at all either.”
Gabe growled throatily before scooping her up in his arms. Desire shot through his body, flowing into hers as his erection grew and strained against his jeans. She squealed as he strode to the nearest, unoccupied stall.
He sat her down on a hay bale and feverishly began kissing and licking her neck, sending warm jolts through her. Her wolf howled excitedly as he roared.
His hands traveled down her body, cupping and kneading her lush breasts before alighting on her jeans. The button and the zip were undone seconds before Gabe flipped her onto her stomach, leaning over the hay. She gasped as, with breathtaking speed, he pulled her jeans and panties down.
Kira cooed as she heard his zipper go, and felt his hot flesh press against her. He dipped his fingers through her folds and sought her wet channel. She pushed back as he thrust his fingers into her, twirling and stroking.
She mewled as he pulled away, but soon moaned as she felt the thick head of his cock nudge her entrance.
Gabe sunk his fingers into her hips. His eyes were amber with lust as his wolf howled at him to take her. “You ready, flower?”
“God, yessss….” she breathed.
With one hard plunge he took her to the hilt. Kira hissed as he mercilessly filled her. He held flush against her round, smooth ass for a few seconds, enjoying the tightness of her inner muscles, before pulling back and driving inside her.
Kira moaned as he forcefully thrust into her core again and again. Her fingers dug into the hay as Gabe took her with long, hard thrusts. She turned her head to watch him out of the corner of her eyes. With his dark, amber eyes, he looked so beautiful, yet powerful, towering over her. Her climax was tantalizingly within reach. She clenched her inner muscles, clutching at him as he dragged in and out of her.
Gabe growled and sped up his movements, crashing into her body like a wolf possessed. He reached under her and flicked her tender clit. Kira screamed as her orgasm flooded her body, and white, hot heat permeated every inch. She jerked underneath him, her inner walls suckling him, as she sent him her feelings of ecstasy through their bond. Her wolf roared in pleasure.
Gabe bellowed her name, as he swelled and came inside his mate. His wolf roared as his seed exploded in her body and another smaller release cascaded through her. She cried out as her wolf yipped for their mate.
Their bodies trembled as they came down from the high of their orgasms. Gabe leaned over her back, lazily licking the bonding mark. Mate. Mine.
*
Gabe and Kira walked home from the stables hand in hand, stopping occasionally to kiss and pull a bit of hay out of their hair and clothes.
Nearing the house, Kira shivered. “Something’s wrong.”
She hurried to the house, pulling Gabe with her. They found Lilah crying, while her family argued.
“Hey!” yelled Kira. “What’s going on?”
Everyone quieted for a few seconds before all talking at once.
Gabe let out a whistle. “Alright, that’s enough.”
Her family was silent under Gabe’s commanding presence. Kira felt inordinately proud of her mate, trying to ignore the fluttering of her sex.
Gabe sat by Lilah, gently asking her what was happening.
Lilah sniffled. “It started a week ago… I started getting flowers and gifts. They came with these notes…”
Gabe shuffled through the various notes, invariably saying, ‘I’m thinking of you’, or ‘you grow more beautiful every time I see you.’ Lilah stiltedly explained she had freaked out, irrationally worrying that her abusive ex-husband was still alive. She had hidden it from her family, too afraid to admit what it might mean.
Her mom had taken a flower delivery for her earlier that day, and the truth had come out. Now the whole family was panicking.
Kira hugged her twin, soothing Lilah with her Omega abilities.
Gabe smiled at her kindly. “These aren’t from Joseph. He’s gone, I promise you that.”
Lilah nodded, wiping away a tear. “I know that, honestly I do… but I just… I was just scared. I mean, it’s not Joseph, but it could easily be one of his pack members.”
Gabe inspected the notes. It was of course a possibility that it was one of her old pack members, but why would they bother? After what happened in Rose, they were under scrutiny from the Council of Supernaturals, it seemed unlikely they would risk anything to send Lilah flowers.
Gabe showed Kira one of the notes, pointing to the logo. “Do you know what this means?”
Kira frowned. “It’s for a shop in town called Honey Blossoms, next to the Diner.”
“All the flowers were from there; I’m going to the shop to see if they remember who ordered the flowers.”
Gabe got up and strode to the front door with Kira hot on his heels. “I’m coming too.”
His wolf grumbled. If there was a chance this was dangerous, no way did he want his mate going with him. Gabe ran a thumb over her bonding mark. “No, flower, you stay here. You need to soothe your sister, and just in case someone is after her, she needs all the protection she can get.”
In truth, every instinct he had told him that this was the work of some love struck admirer. Not a stalker.
Kira pouted prettily. “What about you?”
He grinned widely. “I’m a police officer; trust me, I know what I’m doing.”
“You damn well better, Bambi.”
Gabe kissed the tip of her nose. “You just worry about your sister, I’ll be back soon.”
*
Gabe casually walked into Honey Blossoms. The place looked almost ravaged. Apparently flowers at Christmas were popular round there.
Gabe’s wolf
stilled as he scented bear.
“Hi, sorry, we’re closing.” A tall, broad bear shifter emerged from the tiny back room. His friendly grin faltered when he scented Gabe.
Gabe gave the bear his most dazzling smile. “Hi there, I’m Gabe North. Pleased to meet you.”
“Tommy Cole,” the bear grunted in response.
Gabe figured him to be a few years younger than him, maybe about Kira’s age. His eyes were shifting around the shop, and he was sweating lightly. Ever since Gabe became a Sheriff’s Deputy, he noticed people tended to be more nervous around him. Even when he didn’t identify himself as a cop, people seemed to sense it. Like they had cop radar - cop-dar!
Gabe tapped his fingers on the counter, eyeing the nervous, young bear dispassionately. “I was wondering if you could help me.”
Tommy folded his arms over an impressive chest. Gabe stood at six feet tall, but the bear had at least eight inches on him. Gabe guessed most people balked at the bear’s size; Gabe wasn’t most people.
“You a new member of the pack?” asked Tommy gruffly.
Gabe considered it couldn’t hurt to tell him the truth. “Actually, I’m mated to a former member of the pack; we’re visiting her family for Christmas. Kira, Kira Norton. Do you know her?”
Tommy blushed a deep crimson. “Yes, I umm, I used to date her sister.”
Gabe cocked his head on one side. “Lilah?”
Tommy chewed on his cheek but didn’t say anything.
Gabe tried to hide his smile; everything fell into place. He cleared his throat and tried to be severe with the young bear.
“Lilah’s has been receiving threats…”
“What?!” the bear yelled, eyes popping in fury. “Who? Who has been threatening her?” he demanded irately.
Gabe held out his hands. “I don’t know, but whoever it is has been sending her flowers from here.”
“No, no that can’t be. I’d have known; the only person who has sent her anything from here is…” Tommy’s eyes widened, and he spluttered.
Gabe arched an eyebrow. “You?”
Tommy looked guilty, and Gabe nodded.
“So, you’ve been sending Lilah flowers and gifts, thinking that it’s romantic, and Lilah has been getting flowers and gifts, and thinking they’re from a stalker.”
“That wasn’t… I mean, I didn’t… I didn’t mean to scare her. I heard about everything she went through, and I just wanted to let her know how I felt without pressuring her.”
The wolf snorted. Silly bear. “Why didn’t you just sign your name then?”
If possible, Tommy looked even guiltier.
“What is it?” asked Gabe impatiently.
“It was when I went to college; I had a football scholarship, and I was kind of a big deal… I sort of… well…”
“You let it go to your head, and you dumped Lilah so you could be a big man on campus. Am I right?”
The bear muttered that he was.
“And now that you’ve come home you’ve decided you want your old girlfriend back, because you couldn’t find anyone better…”
The bear roared at him. “She’s my mate!”
Gabe blinked at him, ignoring his wolf’s tenseness at the bear’s outburst.
Tommy calmed a little. “She’s my mate. I was 18 when I left for college; I didn’t know who she was to me.”
Gabe put his hands on his hips. “So now you know, suddenly you realize what an asshole you’ve been.”
Tommy’s muscles were rigid as he tried to maintain an even temper. “I was going to apologize even before I knew who she was. The whole time I was away from home all I thought about was Lilah. I’ve loved her since I was 16 and I always will! I was devastated when I found out she got married, but when I found out what happened I was… well I was livid that bastard laid a finger on her! But I hoped that maybe I still had a shot with her, and then when I realized she was my mate, it just felt so right.”
Tommy breathed deeply after his outburst, massive chest heaving up and down.
“Dude, seriously, why didn’t you just put your name on the flowers you sent her?”
Tommy shook his head sadly. “I was… I was afraid she’d just throw them out, I thought she might be mad at me.”
Gabe scoffed. “So, you decided to scare the crap out of her?!”
The bear howled, banging his fists on the counter. “I didn’t mean to! I love her, damnit! I want to be with her.”
Gabe studied the seething bear; he was sure Tommy was telling the truth. “Okay, but I think we can both agree that your approach isn’t working.”
Grudgingly, the bear had to agree. “What do you suggest?”
“Something radical - honesty.”
*
Gabe pulled up to the house. Kira eagerly ran out to meet him, throwing her arms round him as her wolf danced around.
“What happened? What’s going on? Did you find the asshole doing this? Did you beat him?”
Gabe held up his hands in surrender. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Okay, one question at a time. Not much, you’ll see, yes I did and no beating was necessary.”
Kira sniffed the air. “Who’s that in the truck?”
Lilah and the rest of her family came out onto the porch, all craning their necks to see what was happening.
Gabe nodded in the direction of the truck, and with an effort the large bear unloaded himself and shuffled over to them, carrying a bunch of tulips. Lilah’s favorite.
Lilah gasped. “Tommy! Is that you?”
Tommy kicked the ground; he looked like an overgrown 4-year-old. “Hey, Lilah I…”
“What’s he doing here?” interrupted Kira, her wolf snarled at the male.
Tommy started growling lightly, before a warning look from Gabe quieted him.
Gabe slipped an arm around Kira’s waist. “Tommy has something he wants to say.” Gabe nodded encouragement at the young bear.
Tommy gulped and started talking in a rush, his eyes flicking toward Lilah. “It was me who sent you those gifts and those flowers… I umm… I was trying to do something nice for you, I wanted to show how sorry I was for the way I treated you, and because I… I umm, I think you’re my mate.”
“What?!” squawked Kira.
Gabe kept hold of the struggling Kira, who was eager to storm over to the bear and give him a piece of her mind.
Lilah slowly walked down the steps; her face deliberately impassive. “You do?”
Tommy nodded sheepishly. “I caught your scent a week ago at the grocery store; I was too embarrassed to say hello.”
Kira harrumphed. “So you thought stalking was the better option?”
“I wasn’t stalking!” hissed Tommy. “I was just trying… I was…”
He hushed as Lilah came to stand in front of him. She leaned toward him and sniffed; moaning slightly, her eyes flashed to warm amber.
“Are those for me?” Lilah asked quietly.
Tommy gazed adoringly at her. “Huh?”
She smiled slightly and inclined her head to the tulips.
“Oh, right, yes they are.” Tommy thrust them at her. “I remembered you like them.”
“They’re beautiful, thank you. Why don’t we go for a walk? So that we can talk.”
Tommy breathed a huge sigh of relief. “Yeah, yeah I’d like that.”
Lilah passed a dumbfounded Kira her flowers, before walking away with a beaming Tommy.
The rest of the family seemed satisfied and went back in the house chuckling. There was only one person who wasn’t altogether happy.
Kira scowled. “What the hell?!”
Gabe kissed her temple. “What?
“He’s such an asshole! He doesn’t deserve her, he…”
Gabe silenced her with a lengthy kiss, leaving her wolf virtually purring. “You’re right, but I guess he has the rest of his life to make it up to her.”
“But…”
“No buts, flower. I know you want to protect your sister, but I don’t think she
needs it from him.”
Kira huffed. “I just don’t want to see her get hurt.”
“I know you’ve got a big heart, flower. It’s one of the many reasons I love you.”
Kira fidgeted in his arms. “Well, you’ve got me there.”
He chuckled. “Come on, crisis averted, everyone’s happy. Let’s just relax and enjoy Christmas.”
Kira smiled naughtily. “Hmmm, how about we head on back to the stables?”
Gabe paled. “Not to ride the horses, right?”
“No, to pick up where we left off earlier.” She stood on her tiptoes and nipped his ear.
“Now you’re talking!”
Mine.
Adam & Rosalee – Spa Day
30th December
Rosalee smoothed a hand over her husband’s cute butt. Her husband! Yep, that was definitely taking some getting used to.
She and her mate, Adam Grey, hot, sexy, Alpha of the Grey wolf pack, married on 23rd December, scooted up to Niagara Falls for a short honeymoon and were now on their way back to Rose for New Year’s Eve.
After spending the honeymoon in a rented holiday home, which they barely left, Rosalee suggested, or rather insisted, they spend one night in a luxury hotel before returning home. She wanted pampering, just for one night at least.
Adam grouched and said he pampered her all the time. Rosalee pointed out that at a hotel you could order breakfast in bed, him bringing her Pop Tarts, and a carton of orange juice to bed in the morning wasn’t quite the same. And he only did that because he didn’t want her to get out of bed, if he had his way she’d barely ever leave their bed. Not that she was complaining.
“Mrs. Grey? Mrs. Grey?” The friendly looking receptionist smiled patiently.
Rosalee flustered. “Oh yeah, that’s me! Sorry, I keep forgetting.”
Adam raised an eyebrow and snorted, earning him a pinch on his aforementioned cute butt.
During their honeymoon, spent almost entirely naked, Adam had repeatedly called her Mrs. Grey. He delighted in the sound of it; however she still couldn’t get used to it.
