Shifter Wars Complete Series

by Sarah J. Stone

  "Stay out of the way," I said.

  "What?" Nadia stammered.

  I didn't bother to respond. Instead, I closed my eyes and shifted into my bear form, letting out a booming roar that seemed to shake the walls of the room. The men exchanged glances, as if realizing that it was going to be that kind of fight. They closed their eyes, and within seconds, they'd shifted into a pair of lean, sleek tigers, their orange and black stripes dim in the low light of the room.

  They split apart, attempting a flank. I realized that if I allowed them to move in on a pincer attack, I was as good as done for. I needed to make the first attack or I was fucked.

  Turning my attention to the tiger on the right, I reared back on my hind legs, let out another roar, and brought my weight down on him. He attempted to spring out of the way, but he wasn't fast enough. I slammed both paws down on his left rear leg, snapping it with a thick, wet crack that reverberated through my body.

  The tiger sounded a snarling roar as I smashed his leg, and threw out his paw in a wicked swipe that connected with my flank. His claws dug deep, but one of the advantages of being a bear is the thick layer of fat and fur that acts as an armor of sorts. The attack was extremely painful, but I could sense that he didn't do much damage. Holding the tiger in place, I returned the favor by bringing my free paw down onto his throat. The roar that he was in the process of sounding was cut short, and with another crack he was done.

  I turned to Nadia, who was shaking in fear, still in her human form.

  Shift, goddamnit. At least in her fox form she'd be a smaller target. Instead, she was frozen. A liability. No use in a fight.

  The remaining tiger sensed this, and turned his attention to Nadia. He must've realized that he might not be able to take me on, but at least he could kill one of us before I brought him down.

  But I wasn't going to let that happen.

  The tiger coiled his body like a spring and pounced, turning into an orange and black blur that flew through the air like a rocket. His arc was low and tight, and he would've connected right with Nadia's midsection had I not made a move, swatting him out of the air with a swipe of my paw. The impact of his body against my paw resonated through me like a punch to the solar plexus, and for a moment, I'd worried that he'd done some damage. But once I moved, I found that other than the superficial wound from the now-dead tiger, I was fine.

  The tiger, on the other hand, was cut and bleeding, the thick red blood matting his fur. He made a quick assessment of his wounds, seeing that he was cut deep. He rushed to the corner, preparing for one last, desperate attempt at a counter-attack.

  Remember what they say about cornered animals, I thought to myself as I moved in closer.

  Sure enough, right as I came within striking distance, the tiger lunged forward, his mouth wide opened as he snapped and snarled at me. I pulled back just in time for his jaw to clamp shut like a trap, biting down on nothing but air. This was his last gambit, and I could see that he there was nothing left to do but finish it. Standing up on my hind legs once again, I let out another roar as I came down hard on him, the tiger's body crunching under my paws.

  Stepping back, I saw that he, like the other tiger, was stone-still. The fight was over.

  Shifting back into my human form, I ran over to Nadia, who was still standing and shivering. I looked over her body to ensure that she was uninjured. Luckily, she was fine.

  "We have to see if we can track him down," I said. "Can you move?" My voice came out harsh and booming—the adrenaline was still rushing through my body and I felt like I could've punched a damn hole in the wall if I needed to. Nadia nodded timidly, but she was in no condition to do anything.

  "Get it together!" I said. "We've got a goddamn job to do!"

  She nodded again, and seemed to come to her senses. Grabbing her by the wrist, I pulled her toward the door that Emmanuel had left through. The door led out into the street, and as I looked down in both directions, I couldn't spot a single trace of Emmanuel.

  "Fuck!" I shouted, the bass from the club still thumping through the walls.

  "You're bleeding," Nadia said in a soft voice, pointing to the wound on my side.

  I reached under my shirt and felt around. The area was sticky with warm blood, and I winced as I ran my fingers over the slashes from the tiger's claw. It was painful, but not deep.

  "It's fine," I said. "We need to find Emmanuel. He knows we're onto him."

  "No," Nadia said.

  "What do you mean ‘no'?" I demanded, my anger fueled by the pain and adrenaline.

  "I mean, it won't do any good to go running blindly after him again. And you're bleeding. I know you're Mr. Tough Guy, but you need to at least patch yourself up."

  I hated to hear it, but I knew she was right. We needed a plan before we went after Emmanuel again. He might've known the Sapiens had been tracking him, but now he had faces to watch out for. And though I didn't want to admit it, the pain of my cuts was increasing as the adrenaline left my system. I'd need at least a quick bandaging.

  "Where do you live?" Nadia asked.

  "Midtown," I said, grunting from the pain.

  "Okay, then let's go. I'll drive."

  "No," I said. "I'm fine."

  No way was I letting this girl handle my ride. She protested, but I didn't relent. Once behind the wheel, I stuck my fingers under my shirt once again. Pulling my hand out, I saw that it was covered in blood.

  "That fucker really got me," I said.

  "Not too late for me to drive," Nadia said.

  "Not a chance," I said, gunning the engine and pulling out of the parking space.

  We drove in silence, arriving back at my apartment about twenty minutes later. By the time we went through my front door, I was sweating like a madman and my side throbbed in pain.

  "Nice place," Nadia said, glancing around as the lights flicked on.

  The city glittered outside the windows of my apartment. It was a nice night. Too bad about the bleeding injury and the near-death fight, I suppose.

  "Please," I said. "I bet this place is like a damn closet compared to what you're used to."

  "No more ‘rich girl' cracks—for now, at least," she said, leading me over to the couch.

  "Yeah, yeah," I said.

  As she sat me down on the couch, I realized that I needed a drink.

  "Where are your medical supplies?" Nadia asked, looking around the apartment.

  "First thing's first," I said.

  "Yeah?"

  "Go to the kitchen…"

  "Uh-huh."

  "Find the cabinet above the sink..."

  "Right…"

  "And get my whiskey. I think I'm in a Gentleman Jack kind of mood."

  Nadia let out a frustrated grunt as she stomped off.

  Hey, at least she knew better than to talk me out of it. "And grab the cheap vodka, too!" I shouted after her.

  She returned moments later with the two bottles in her hand and a small glass tucked under her armpit.

  "No need for that," I said, grabbing the whiskey, pulling the cork out with my mouth, and taking a long swig.

  "I hope you're not planning on taking shots from both of these," she said, slowly unscrewing the vodka cap.

  "We'll see how bad this hurts," I said.

  "Take off your, um," Nadia said, clearly uncomfortable with what she was about to ask me. "You know, um, remove your…"

  "Take my shirt off?" I asked.

  Her face flushed a warm red.

  "I just, I have to be able to see how bad it is."

  A smirk formed on my face as I pulled my shirt off over my head. Nadia's eyes fastened to the skin that I'd just exposed, and her mouth hung open slack a bit. My torso had more than a few scars on it from tussles in the field, and her eyes darted to each of them.

  "You okay?" I asked.

  "Um, yeah!" she said, her eyes moving to the cuts. "Just, uh, taking a closer look."

  "Clearly," I said.

  She ignored my comment and
moved closer to the wounds. "Not too bad," she said. "Superficial stuff. Nice thing about being a bear is you can take a lot of damage."

  "Too much," I said.

  "No kidding," Nadia responded. "You look like you've been to war."

  "Something like that."

  She placed a white rag on the end of the open vodka bottle, getting some liquor on the cloth. Then, she came toward me, her big green eyes looking up at me apprehensively. "This is probably going to hurt," she said.

  "Not the first time I've had to treat a wound," I said. "No ‘probably' about it."

  "Here we go…" she said, bringing the booze-soaked cloth toward the wound.

  I couldn't help but take in a sharp breath as the cloth touched the wound. It didn’t matter how many times you've washed out a cut with alcohol, it never stopped being fucking painful. The cuts screamed out in sharp, clear agony, and all I could do to ignore it was to wince hard and press my tongue against the roof of my mouth as Nadia carefully dabbed the claw marks.

  "That bad?"

  "It's fine," I said, eager to have her hurry and finish.

  After another half minute of this, the pain began to ebb. She wiped the cuts down with another rag before wrapping a few long strips of gauze around my torso, getting the wound good and covered. A little tape to hold it all in place later and I was as good as new. "Done!" she said.

  I looked down at the bandaging. A little sloppy, but it'd have to be good enough.

  "Sorry if it's not very good," Nadia said. "It's the first time I've had to bandage a tiger-made wound.”

  "It's fine," I said.

  As I sat there, the adrenaline pumping through my body, I felt reckless, like I didn't have as much control over myself as I'd like. I turned to Nadia, who was still surveying her work, and felt a strange warmth from her body, one that I had the almost irresistible urge to be closer to.

  "Um, is there anything else I can do?" she asked, her gorgeous green eyes looking up at me expectantly.

  Then, as though I was possessed, I closed the distance between us and pulled her close. "Just one more thing," I said, my voice low. Bringing my lips to hers, I kissed her hard.

  CHAPTER 8

  NADIA

  My body tensed until it was spear-straight as Jack pressed his lips to mine. My mind ran wild with an opinion on what was currently happening, and the overall feeling was that I shouldn't be doing this.

  But, goddamn, did his kiss feel good.

  I'd been eating his body up with my eyes since he took off his shirt. When he laid his lips on mine, it was almost as though he was tapping into what I really wanted, just cutting through all the bullshit.

  Jack's hands moved to my hips, moving up and down my curves. His touch felt…incredible. It'd been so long since I'd been this close to a man that even though I knew that doing this with my new partner was a bad idea, I just couldn’t help it. My resistance faded with each second that his lips were on mine.

  "This is…" I said, the words slipping out of the side of my mouth as my hands moved to his narrow, hard waist.

  It was beyond silly—a protest squeaked out of my mouth but my body said the exact opposite. And Jack knew it. He continued to kiss me, as our lips were pressed together I became less someone who was being kissed and more of an…active participant. My hands moved up the hard lines of his torso, taking care to not touch his wound. Jack did the same, his large, strong hands traveling up my body, massaging my breasts through my shirt. A heat rushed through me, and I couldn't help but want more.

  "This is…" I said through the kisses. "This is a bad idea."

  But goddamn did it feel right.

  Jack slipped his tongue into my mouth and I was more than happy to accommodate him. Our kissing became more heated, more passionate by the moment. And by the time his hands slipped up into my shirt, I was ready for more. Jack's hands moved along my stomach, coming to a rest on the bare skin of my curves. Then, with a fluid motion, he pulled my shirt off and over my head.

  "I don't know if, um, if…"

  It was like the words were coming from some annoying little goody-goody inside of me. But then again, I couldn't help but think, maybe the goody-goody was the voice that should've been in control, and this strange, primal feeling that seemed to have overcome my body was the one I should've been fighting?

  But as soon as I'd lain eyes on Jack's chiseled, gorgeous body, I'd known what I really wanted.

  Jack's hands moved to my back, unclasping my bra quickly and removing it, leaving my breasts bare. Now, it was his turn to ogle me. He took in the sight of my breasts for a moment before dipping his head and bringing my right nipple into his mouth and lashing it with his tongue. I sighed long and hard as he licked me, the tingling pleasure almost too much to bear. Once Jack had his fun with my breasts, he placed his hand on the small of my back and guiding me onto the couch. After putting his lips on my breasts once again, he moved down, slowly, toward my belly. After spending some time there, he went to work on my pants, unfastening them and pulling them off as quickly as he could.

  Something about this all just felt…so right. My heart was racing, and there was a slight tremor to my hands. It had to be the adrenaline. I needed an outlet for the energy from the near-death experience that I'd just been through, and Jack clearly felt the same way. My thoughts were a wild blur of passion, and I surrendered myself more and more to Jack with each passing second.

  I opened my eyes to the sight of Jack pulling my pants and underwear down along my legs. Now I was totally nude, and my first instinct was to cross one leg over the other in some strange attempt at modesty. But as soon as Jack placed his hand on my inner thigh, I tossed those feelings away. His touch was wonderful, warm and just rough enough. Moving up, he pulled my thighs apart. His cock strained against his jeans, and the mere sight of the hint of his manhood stirred up passions in me that I hadn't felt in years.

  Almost frantically, I reached down and went to work on Jack's belt and buttons. Thankfully, he helped me out, and soon, he was wearing nothing but a pair of black boxer-briefs that fit skin-tight on his thick, muscular thighs. His body was just incredible—like a swimmer's with a little more bulk. I wanted it on top of me right at that moment, and that cock to no longer be hidden behind that thin layer of fabric.

  I shoved my hands straight down, pulling off his briefs. His cock sprang out, now pointing straight out from his body.

  I gasped when I laid eyes on it.

  Jack's prick was easily the biggest cock that I'd seen in person—though I hadn't seen many before. It was thick and long, and the sight of it inflamed an almost crazed need to have it shoved into my body right at that moment.

  But first, I reached down and wrapped my fingers around him, taking hold of Jack's cock and stroking it. This was out of both a desire to please him…and to see if I was imagining things. This was no trick of the eyes—his cock was really that big. It hung tantalizingly over my sex, and I was ready for him right then and there.

  "This…can't be a good idea…" I said, that stupid goody-goody voice slipping out yet again.

  I wished I could smack some sense into her. Yeah, this was probably a bad idea, but Jack was so goddamn sexy, and as he looked down at me with that sly little smile, his blue eyes like beautiful sapphires, I was ready to do this, bad idea or no. And despite my pathetic little protestations, I had no doubt he knew what I really wanted.

  Jack reached down and, taking his cock by its base, placed the tip against the opening of my sex. Then, with a slow, fluid motion, he entered me. I couldn't help but let out a little shriek as he slid into me, inch by inch. I was wet and ready, but still—he was just so goddamn big. I could tell that he was used to girls needed a minute to get used to his size. He moved into me a bit at a time, and when he was fully sheathed into me he held still, letting me have time to accommodate him. It took a few moments, but when I finally did, it was like heaven. Especially once he started thrusting.

  Jack moved in and out of me at a
steady pace, slowly enough that I could each thick inch penetrate into me, filling me, splitting me in half. I don't know if it was the adrenaline, Jack's skill as a lover, or the fact that I hadn't gotten down and dirty in a really, really long time, but goddamn, it was like nothing I'd ever felt before.

  His pace increased, and he began thrusting into me at a deep, steady rhythm, shoving his whole length into me over and over.

  "Fuck," I said, the goody-goody voice now totally silenced, "that feels…so good."

  I ran my hands over his body, taking sensual pleasure in the feeling of his muscles underneath my fingertips. And his scent…it was strange. Like a man's musk mixed with a smell that reminded me of the forest.

  Must be a bear thing, I thought.

  But Jack's pace increased, and soon, I was barely able to hold a thought in my head. His thrusting became to a steady pounding, and I ran my hands over his body then mine, taking my breasts into my palms and squeezing them in an erotic delight that no man had ever made me feel. I wrapped my legs around Jack's slim pelvis, moans and sighs escaping my lips and grunts tumbling from his. A thin sheen of sweat formed on his back as he bucked into me, and the first yearnings of my orgasm built.

  "Oh-my-God, oh-my-God," I said, the words coming out like a strange, erotic chant.

  In the midst of it, I couldn't help noticing that I'd gone from scared girl to eager minx in record time. Something about Jack was just irresistible.

  My orgasm built higher, and soon, as his thrusting reached a steady but wild pitch, I came. It was like a hot explosion of pleasure that rushed out from my loins, spreading through my body and tensing me tight. I dug my fingers into Jack's back as the orgasm rampaged through my body, and I could sense by Jack's grunts that his own orgasm was right on the verge.

  Then, with a heave and a grunt, he came, emptying himself into me. At that point, I was in something of a wild, trance state, and all I could do was wrap my legs around Jack as hard as I could, my hands on the perfect round form of his ass as I guided him into me over and over.

  Soon, both of our orgasms ebbed, and Jack collapsed in a sweaty heap at my side, our bodies pressed together on the couch. We caught our breath, and I lay there like a pile of pudding, hardly able to move.