by Zoey Marcel
Would she become a werewolf—a killer like him? God forbid.
There was one other possibility that her mind refused to entertain. The place he’d bitten her might have been random because it was what was in front of him when he grabbed her, or there could have been a reason behind it. Had he claimed her as his blood mate? She knew most shifters generally bit their intended in that place, but wasn’t there usually sex involved?
Lucius hadn’t taken her, so perhaps his bite had no significance. He’d put his mark on her and sampled some of her blood before lowering her to the ground and then walking off while he left her bleeding in the alley. She’d pressed her hoodie against the bite mark and staggered back to her hotel in a daze. She would’ve gone to the hospital, but most of the bleeding had stopped by the time she reached her room.
Then Dawson had called her. His sweet, slightly nasal voice had been her calming ray of light in this hellish hour of darkness. Chanel couldn’t believe how open she’d been with him over the phone, but all her fears of Lucius and the potential repercussions of his biting her had moved her to share personal confessions with Dawson.
Chanel didn’t want to become a werewolf. She wanted to always be worthy of his love, though she knew she no longer was. She didn’t want to become the cold-blooded killer that Lucius was, nor did she want to pose a potential threat to any future children she might have.
Perhaps the villain had stolen that from her as well. He seemed hell-bent on controlling her life and wrecking her future. He’d done a fine job of it so far.
As she stepped out of the shower, she peeked at the bite mark in the somewhat fogged-up mirror. It wasn’t bleeding anymore, but it left a nasty little mark on her. It would take a bit to heal, but hopefully, it wouldn’t scar.
She knew the Taylor brothers would want to hear all about her trip once she got back to Temptation and she would be more than happy to tell them about her time alone on the road and the nice vacation she’d spent with her family in California. But not this part. No one must ever know about Lucius or this mysterious mark he put on her.
She’d heard it said that “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Not a bad idea. Nobody needed to know about this. She wanted to put this, her past, and Lucius behind her.
* * * *
Chanel felt her cares and worries evaporating behind her once she finally arrived in California. Her older sister, Jill, and her fiancé, Joe, had a house with an ocean view in Malibu. The house was a freaking mansion and Chanel could have easily fit a whole complex worth of her apartments in their residence.
Jill’s six-year-old daughter, Pasadena, and her four-year-old daughter, Coral lived there with them.
Going from the risqué, small town of Temptation, which was currently nestled in snow from mountains to valley, to the warm, lavish coastal city of Malibu was like stepping into another world for Chanel.
Seeing Jill again felt just like old times when they were giggly, bold teenagers. Joe seemed like a decent guy and Chanel was glad to see her sister so happy.
Pasadena and Coral seemed to really like him, too, and he treated them as though they were his own daughters. Chanel had no doubt they would make one happy family.
The wedding was set for next September, and the plans Jill told her about gave Chanel the impression that the event would be huge.
Jill was something of an icon here, though, as was Joe. She was a personal trainer and had her own gym and had put out several workout videos that went over rather well.
Joe was a bodybuilder and a personal trainer. He’d competed multiple times and had quite a few winnings under his belt and a pro card to his name. Together their success was irrefutable.
And Jill’s stupid ex-husband wanted to ruin all of that. Well, Ben Easton wasn’t her ex yet since they were still legally married, but he had to give in eventually. Maybe if he realized how rich and successful Jill was and could see how happy she was with her fiancé and her new life, he would give her the divorce she kept nagging him for.
Chanel sat in the hot tub with Jill, both wearing bikinis in December and sipping cold iced tea from tall, frosty glasses while they watched the waves roll along the sand from the breathtaking view on the deck.
“I can’t believe you get to live here. No wonder you don’t want to move back to Wyoming.”
Jill laughed lightly. “Wyoming has its good points, too, but I do love the beach.”
“If I had all this, I’d want a divorce, too.”
“Shh!”
“Sorry. Joe can’t hear us from miles away on the other side of your house,” Chanel teased. “He still doesn’t know you’re married?”
Jill shook her head, looking guilty. “No. Pasadena and Coral don’t know about Ben, either. I don’t want any of them to.”
“I understand.” Chanel used her straw to play with the ice in her glass. She liked the pink paper parasol that hung on the edge of the glass for decoration.
“That dumbass quit returning my calls and hasn’t mailed me back the divorce papers I sent for him to sign. He’s gravely mistaken if he thinks he can just ignore my requests until I give up. It’s not happening.”
“I know it’s annoying, but look on the bright side, Jill. You’re so unforgettable he wants to cling to you like a pesky tick.”
Jill rolled her eyes. “Yes, it’s very flattering to have your future put on hold and potentially ruined by a past lover.”
Chanel grimaced inside as her thoughts turned to Lucius. She shoved him from her mind. She would never see him again. He was probably long gone by now, and it relieved her to think of all the distance she had put between them since leaving Nevada.
Jill sipped her iced tea and gazed out over the sun setting along the coastal horizon. “I think Ben’s just being an asshole. He’s apparently still mad at me for leaving him seven years ago and wants to get back at me by robbing me of any future happiness. I’ll kick his stubborn ass the next time I see him.”
“You aren’t really going to come all the way to Wyoming just to talk him into giving you a divorce, are you?”
“What choice do I have? Nothing else I’ve tried has worked.”
“What are you going to tell Joe?”
She shrugged. “That I’m going to visit you and some friends. It’s not a lie since that is what I’ll be doing. I’ll have to wait until all the snow melts up there. Give me a call when spring officially comes to your land.”
Chanel smiled. “Will do. You should be sure and visit Neil Banks when you come. He’ll be thrilled to see you.”
Jill grinned. “Oh my god, I haven’t heard from him in years. How is he?”
“Still a comical womanizer. He still hangs out with Ben a lot.”
Jill, Ben, and Neil had been best friends since grade school and through the years had grown to be inseparable. When Ben and Jill had gotten married and moved from California to Temptation, Wyoming, Neil had quit his job and moved there to be near them, which they both found sweet, but Chanel had always considered a rather odd thing for a friend to do. Family often moved across several states to be nearer to their loved ones and she’d heard of lovers doing the same, but not friends.
Jill had a fond expression on her face as though she were reminiscing about the good old days. “Does he still hit on Ben?”
“I’m not sure. I don’t really spend any time with either of them.”
“I remember thinking he was gay back in high school,” Jill said with a smile.
“He did come onto Ben an awful lot,” Chanel agreed, “but he hit on you just as much. Don’t you remember all those times he tried to grab your boobs and all those innuendos he sent your way?”
“And by innuendos do you mean all those bold, blatant-as-hell lines he used on me? I remember that time he walked up to me after science class and said ‘we should fuck. We’ll get naked and have Ben join us and both make a life with you for our science project. Then through intelligent reasoning, we’ll hypothesize and use the process of elimi
nation to reach an acceptable conclusion as to whose child you’re carrying.’”
Chanel and Jill both burst into laughter, trying not to snort their iced tea in between giggles.
“Oh god, I’d forgotten how straightforward Neil was.” Chanel chuckled, wiping a tear from her eye. “I seriously doubt he was gay. If anything the man was bi.”
“I don’t think so. He never dated or flirted with any guys. He just liked to hit on Ben from time to time. I think Neil did it because they were best friends and he enjoyed freaking him out.”
“Maybe. I seem to recall you fantasizing about both of them an awful lot back then,” Chanel teased.
Jill used her foot to kick water at her younger sister. “Well, can you blame me? Neil was a blond-haired, blue-eyed hottie and Ben was all dark and brooding and sexy.”
“Neil was a hottie,” Chanel agreed, “and Ben has a nice face, but he was fat back then.”
“He wasn’t fat,” Jill said a little defensively. “He was stocky and manly.”
“He was a fatty. Let’s face it.”
“He was a little chubby, but I liked it. Besides, you were sweet on Dawson Taylor and he had plenty of chubs on him.”
“Hey, Dawson is a sweetheart and a hunk. He carries his weight well.”
“Well, so did Ben.” Jill shook her head. “Look at us squabbling over ex-lovers. Let’s just admit they were both gorgeous mistakes and we’re better off now.”
“You think marrying Ben was a mistake?”
Jill was quiet for a moment before she shrugged. “I don’t know. Sometimes the man makes me so mad I want to deck him in the face. But we had some really good times together. Maybe we never should’ve gotten married, or maybe we were meant to. Who knows? I only know he’s my favorite mistake.”
Chanel was surprised by the fond light that shimmered in her sister’s eyes before Jill snapped out of whatever memory she entertained.
“So tell me about your love life.”
“Dawson kind of asked me out recently.”
“That’s great if that’s what you want. Did you say yes?”
“Well, I did until he told me his brothers would be coming with us to the party.”
“Why would he bring chaperones? That’s not very romantic. Oh god, are those three Taylor freaks still trying to start a foursome with you?”
Chanel nodded, hoping the steamy memory of their night together didn’t stain her cheeks with color.
“What’s wrong with the men in that crazy town?”
“There are some triads with one man and multiple women, too.”
“Crazy women. Why would anyone want to share their man with another woman? I’d kill any woman who touched my man.”
Chanel shrugged. “Who knows? I noticed you and Joe are living together now.”
“Yeah, we moved in together after we got engaged.”
“So have you...”
Jill’s head lowered somberly. “No. Joe really wants to and I do, too, but I feel guilty at the thought of screwing him while I’m still married to Ben. I wish the dickhead would just give me a divorce already so I can quit living this double life. He’s going to ruin everything I’ve worked so hard for.”
Chanel suddenly had an epiphany. She’d always thought of Ben as a selfish asshole for denying Jill the divorce she sought, but now Chanel wondered if perhaps he still had feelings for Jill. Perhaps in spite of his tough exterior, deep down he still loved Jill and viewed her fiancé with the very words she had just used—“He’s going to ruin everything I’ve worked so hard for.”
Chapter Eight:
Second Chances
As much fun as she had during her two-week vacation visiting with her family, Chanel couldn’t wait to get back home to Temptation. Back to the men who loved her. She’d missed them so badly during her trip she thought she would lose her mind. She knew she couldn’t hope for a future with them with all her fears and doubts, but why not enjoy them for a little while as long as they wanted her?
She was grateful Lucius hadn’t killed her, but he could have and she never would’ve seen her men again.
Thoughts of that strange, fleeting warmth in Jill’s eyes when she talked about Ben and the hard coldness the sheriff surrounded himself in got her thinking. Did Jill sometimes wish she’d stayed with him? Did Ben use that tough-as-nails persona to hide the fact that he was dying inside?
Chanel didn’t want to end up like them. If only for a little while, she wanted to be with the Taylors.
She felt jitters of excitement when she was two days late for her period and bought a pregnancy test, anxious to see the results as soon as possible. She parked and got out of the car, shaking all over. She was almost home and in a few minutes she would know.
“Cookie dough!”
Chanel spun around and crammed the bag containing the pregnancy test into her purse so he wouldn’t see it. “Hi, Cory. What are you doing here?”
Cory ran at her and caught her in his arms. He tipped her as a prince would a maiden and planted a big, wet kiss on her mouth. The kiss was phenomenal, evoking delightful sensations that were sure to send her guard tumbling to the ground. Why was resistance so hard and laughable around her three dashing cowboys?
His sounds didn’t make staying in control any easier. His frenzied grunts and the mad depth with which he ravaged her mouth blew her mind. Her nipples tightened to near breaking point over the sinful touch of his palm groping her breasts. She felt her panties dampen when he hitched her leg up over his hip and ground his erection against her V right there in the open parking lot of her apartment complex.
Chanel gasped when he slammed her down on the hood of someone’s car and continued to assault her mouth with deep, violent kisses. She really hoped no one was sitting in this car watching them make out all over it.
It sounded like a truck door slammed and boots made contact with the blacktop. “You’re both under arrest.”
She screamed in Cory’s mouth and he pulled away and spun around in a panic.
Brad came toward them with a humored grin.
Cory rolled his eyes. “Shit, Brad, you scared me! I thought you were the sheriff.”
Brad laughed. “Ben is a hard one, but he wouldn’t arrest you for a simple make out in public.”
Cory grinned. “Yeah, but he totally would if he knew what we plan on doing to Chanel in the truck on the way home.”
Chanel’s heart skipped a beat. “What are you going to do to me?”
Brad’s dark eyes twinkled with decadent mysteries. “You’ll see.”
“How was your trip, sugar?” Cory asked.
“It was very good. Thank you. How was Christmas with your parents?”
“Oh, it was great as always. We took the tree and decorations down already. Sorry you missed it,” Cory told her, “but we got you a Christmas gift.”
“How sweet. I didn’t know we were exchanging gifts. I didn’t get you guys anything.”
“That’s all right. Just let us have fun with you tonight and that will be Christmas enough.”
She tried not to smile at his proposal, but her lips refused to cooperate with her reserve.
Brad’s brown eyes simmered with lust as he looked her over head to toe. “Get in the truck.”
“Make me.”
“You know I will.”
“I have to go inside for a minute.”
“No, you don’t.” He took her suitcase and secured it in the truck bed before holding open the door to the passenger’s side for her. “Dawson’s making dinner and it should be ready by the time we get there. You’re having dinner with us at our place.”
“Oh, I am, am I?” Chanel had to smile. She generally didn’t take any crap from bossy men, but tonight she could think of nowhere else she’d rather be than dining with her cowboys.
Cory was grinning like an idiot. “Yep, and then you’re gonna have sex with all of us in the big old bed we had made for you.”
This time, she blushed. “You don’t
beat around the bush, do you, Cory?”
He chuckled. “Nope. I don’t believe in it. I’d rather just say it like it is. You’re gonna be fucked senseless tonight.”
“Shh! Someone might hear you.”
“Let ’em hear me. I’ll shout it at the top of my lungs and hang a big-ass banner at the bar so everybody knows it,” he teased.
She was mortified. “Don’t you dare.”
“Get in the truck, Chanel,” Brad ordered.
Chanel climbed into the truck and sat in between them. Cory drove and Brad sat in the passenger’s seat. She felt like the luckiest woman in the world sitting between two heartthrobs. She couldn’t wait to see Dawson again, too.
Brad wore his trademark black Stetson and Cory had on a brown one. Both sported long-sleeved shirts that buttoned in front, Wranglers, and cowboy boots. She tried to make small talk and focus on the passing landscape through the windshield to keep from drooling over her dream men.
“Dawson tells me you spent the night in Vegas on your way to California,” Brad said in a displeased tone.
Her pulse skittered when Chanel recalled how she’d shot Lucius in that alley and it had no effect on him. She was suddenly very aware of the mark he’d left on her shoulder. At least her hoodie covered it. That and she wore her hair down today and had applied a generous amount of concealer and foundation over the bite mark to keep it from being seen just in case one of the Taylor brothers happened to lovingly assault her when she got back into town. In retrospect, she was more than grateful for her foresight.
“Yes, I did. Is that a problem?”
“That depends on what you were doing there,” Brad replied suspiciously.
“It’s none of your business what I was doing there.”
“As your mate I have a right to know.”
“You’re not my mate. I belong to no one.”
Cory made a tsking sound. “Still ornery as ever. We were worried about you, baby. You didn’t call us like you were supposed to and then you spent the night in Sin City and Dawson said you sounded real upset over the phone. Did something happen while you were in Vegas?”
