Second Chance with the Shifter

by Leela Ash

  She was about to go back and try to find the right way when suddenly out of the darkness ahead of her, she was aware of a figure emerging… a flashlight clasped in their hands which they shone up into her eyes.

  “Chloe,” the voice said sternly… and it sent a chill right down her spine.

  She would know that voice anywhere…

  It was Damon.

  Chloe brought her hands up to shield her eyes and blinked as she tried to see past the harsh glare of the flashlight, but as soon as she was able to focus, she immediately wished that she hadn’t… because in his hand, Damon was holding a gun. And he had it pointed right at her.

  Her whole body was frozen to the spot and she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Damon was there… and he was going to harm her. She felt her body tremble and she wanted to speak, but she couldn’t find the words.

  “Hold your hands up,” Damon said coldly. “Hold them out in front of you and cross them at the wrists. In a minute I’m going to tie them and then you’re going to come with me.”

  “Damon…” she stammered, “What is happening? What are you doing?”

  “Oh for God’s sake Chlo,” he spat, “Isn’t it obvious?”

  Her mind raced to try and make sense of it all, but she was coming up with nothing.

  “You didn’t think I was with you because I was into you did you?” he snorted. “As if… I was only with you to get information about your father and his businesses… and now I know a hell of a lot that I can use to my advantage.”

  None of it made any sense.

  “Your dad’s not really away on business you fool!” he laughed. “He got wind of my little plan to kidnap you and use you for ransom… so he sent you here thinking I wouldn’t be able to get to you… Ha! How he underestimated me.”

  Chloe’s mind almost exploded… Damon had used her… and was going to kidnap her to extort money…? This was almost too unbelievable for words.

  “So get down on the ground and hold up your hands, I have a van waiting and I’m already half frozen!” He spat.

  Trembling, Chloe got onto her knees and just when she was about to resign herself to whatever fate Damon had in store for her, she looked up into his eyes and realized he had a look of sheer terror spreading out across his face.

  He was looking at something behind her and she could tell that he was frightened. When she turned to look around, roaming proudly and fiercely out of the snowcapped trees behind them was the biggest and purest white bear she had ever seen.

  It stood up on its haunches and lunged forward in a snarl of teeth and claws. Chloe screamed and covered her eyes, but couldn’t help but peek through her fingers as she watched the majestic beast launch itself at Damon and pin him to the ground.

  The bear was huge… she had never seen anything so incredible, but also so out of place. It was like a polar bear, something so beautiful and unique in that little resort in Colorado… none of it made sense!

  The bear clamped its jaws around Damon’s leg and began to drag him ferociously into the woods and out of sight. Chloe couldn’t see what was happening, but she could guess from the wailing and snarling that it wasn’t going to be anything good. She got to her feet and went to run but then was aware of a silence that pierced through the forest.

  The screaming had stopped.

  She turned on her heel and peered behind her, into the darkness, and she could see the outline of the great hulking bear coming slowly towards her. She was rooted to the spot with fear and as she shook with terror she made a silent prayer that it wouldn’t harm her.

  Please, she thought, please don’t hurt me.

  The bear came towards her and stopped about two feet away from her. It looked at her deep in the eyes and she felt herself falling into a trance. The eyes were so familiar… she knew she had looked into them before. Her heart started to pound as she realized what was happening… She knew who’s eyes they were…

  They were Finn’s.

  “Finn?” she whispered as she moved closer to the bear and held out her hand.

  The bear rose onto its hind legs and roared up towards the moon. It was so deafening she clamped her hands down over her ears and whimpered with fear. But when she looked up the bear was looking at her tenderly and she knew in that moment that she was right.

  In a flash of white fur and rippling muscle, the beast in front of her turned from majestic animal to handsome human, and as Finn stood in front of her, completely naked and covered in sweat and streaks of blood and snow she felt something trigger inside of her that she had never felt before.

  She was speechless… but all she wanted was for him to come for her and to strip her naked. She held her breath and watched the rise and fall of his chest as he caught his breath.

  “Take me,” she whispered.

  Finn lunged at her through the dark and pulled her close to him. As he tore at her clothes she had never been at someone’s mercy so much in her entire life, but it had never felt so right. This man, this beast, this powerful creature, had chosen her. He had protected her and saved her from Damon, and now she had seen him shift back to his incredible human form and he was going to devour her in his own way right there on the forest floor, in the snow and under the moon.

  As he thrust his powerful unsheathed cock inside of her warm folds Chloe moaned with ecstasy and gripped onto him with all of the strength she had. She wrapped her legs around him and opened up fully to him as he pumped in and out of her and she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold on for long before she unraveled in a wave of pleasure.

  As she came she screamed up at the stars, savoring every second of a pleasure she had longed for and needed for so very long. As Finn felt her pussy quiver around him he too exploded and emptied his hot, thick load inside of her and collapsed down onto her chest.

  She had been claimed. She was now his and she wanted to be his mate for life. She knew in that moment that she would do anything for him. She wanted to give Finn everything.

  He wrapped her in his arms and kissed her lightly on the forehead. She shivered but it wasn’t because of the cold. The reality of what had happened with Damon came flooding back and the panic set in.

  “My mom!” she said as she sat up and grabbed at her clothes, pulling them around her.

  “It’s okay,” Finn soothed. “She’s safe.”

  Chloe looked down at him as he traced his rough hands across her soft, smooth, plump skin.

  “How do you know?” Chloe was so confused.

  “Because…” Finn began… “I was sent here to protect you…”

  She looked down at him and took his hand in hers.

  “Your father sent you here like Damon said… but he’s no fool Chloe… he hired me to make sure you and your family were safe.”

  “What?” she couldn’t believe it.

  “My military background… special ops… He hired me to take care of any problems should they arise and keep an eye on you all… And good job, hey?” he winked.

  Chloe couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He’d been hired?

  “So this?” she said as she wrapped her coat around her chest… “I take it this was part of the job description?”

  Finn laughed and shook his head.

  “Chloe, the last thing I bargained for when I took this job was that I’d fall for the girl I’m supposed to be protecting.”

  All of the anger and confusion she had started to feel quickly evaporated. Finn was falling for her. And she certainly knew that she had fallen for him.

  “White bears, Polars, shifters… whatever you want to call us… we know when we find the one,” he smiled.

  He took Chloe’s hand in his and kissed it softly.

  She had never been so happy in her entire life.

  “Come on,” he said as he helped her get dressed and then began his walk back to the woods to find his clothes. “I better get you back to the lodge, your father is on his way.”

  As they left the woods and walked back ac
ross the mountain Chloe couldn’t believe how much her life had changed in the space of a few days. She had lost one boyfriend, but gained something much more… she had found her mate for life. There were only a few days to go until the holidays and now she had Finn she knew it was going to be the most special Christmas she had ever had. What could be more incredible than spending it out at their log cabin in Colorado with her wonderful family and the man of her dreams?

  They held hands and walked into the night, as the moon shone brightly above and the sky seemed to jingle with stars…

  Happy Holidays, Chloe thought.

  THE END

  Marked as the Alpha’s Mate

  Pamela Avery

  Copyright ©2015 by Pamela Avery. All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Thank you so much for your interest in my work!

  PROLOGUE

  2012

  Lisa Fuller jogged, her strides lengthening along the path in time to the music blaring over her earphones. She had decided to take the scenic route today, jogging down the forest path that was least popular among most joggers in Fidelity, Philadelphia.

  It was quite early in the morning and the air was dewy, fresh, and invigorating. The smell of fresh pines tantalized her nostrils and she inhaled deeply as her feet pounded along the path. Her red hair was done up in a simple bun atop her head and she was clad in a skin-fitting exercise outfit that accentuated the generous curves of her waist and hips.

  A noise like thunder rumbled overhead and she almost lost her footing as she looked around in amazement. It was still a bit too dark to tell but the skies didn’t seem to be cloudy. With a shrug, she resumed her jogging, humming in time to the music as a slight wind began to rustle the leaves of the trees lining the forest path. Lisa picked up her pace a little, almost running now.

  She had gone almost a half mile along the forest path when she suddenly got the unmistakable feeling of being watched. Her eyes widened with irrepressible panic as she scanned the tall pine trees on either side of the path, extending in every direction as far as the eye could see. She saw no one. Fear coursed through her veins and almost automatically she started running, her breath burning in her lungs as she ran faster than she had ever run before.

  Then she saw him. A huge, brown, absolutely beautiful, and deadly, bear with chestnut brown fur with flecks of gold. Its teeth were bared as it raced towards her. She almost froze in her terror. She couldn’t remember … are you supposed to freeze when you see a bear, or play dead, or run? While she tried to figure it out, he kept coming right at her in long lopping strides.

  Raw fear clotted her blood in her veins and adrenaline burst through her in a rush as her terror took over and she faced forward and chose the “run away” option. He caught up to her effortlessly, his large paws closing about her waist as he lifted her in his great big paws and roared loud enough to wake the dead. She didn’t have to speak bear to recognize a roar of triumph when she heard it. His scent assailed her nostrils, surprisingly clean and nice. There was something strange about this bear. Why wasn’t she dead already? Her eyes fastened in fascinated horror on the pink inside of his mouth as he roared anew. The sound so loud she was almost afraid it would break her ear drums. Goosebumps erupted all over her hands and sweat poured down her body in rivulets. His paw encircled her entire waist effortlessly as he held her closer to his face and studied her.

  Then things got even stranger as some deep survival instinct took over. This was a wild animal, but there was something different about it. There was an intelligence behind its eyes. Rather than scream she chose to speak.

  “Please, please,” she panted, barely breathing through her fear. “Please don’t. I have little kids depending on me! Please don’t kill me!”

  She was talking to a bear, her subconscious screamed. But even knowing that it couldn’t understand a word of what she was saying – or at least shouldn’t be able to, didn’t deter her as she continued to cry and plead for her life. Every nerve in Lisa’s body strained to breaking point as the beast kept her on level with its shiny white teeth, the size of small tusks.

  Lisa struggled weakly in its arms, tears coursing down her cheeks as the animal stopped roaring long enough to look right at her out of strangely beautiful grey eyes flecked with bits of golden color. The animal seemed to freeze as it looked into her clear turquoise eyes. It blinked its great big eyes as though in confusion and Lisa wished desperately that she had a gun or tranquilizer.

  The bear shook her slightly staring at her as though in wonder and she screamed anew. Then it extended one paw and  unbelievably  stroked her cheek gently. Lisa’s eyes widened in terror; was that the signal to begin eating her?

  The beast made a low sound deep in its throat, its pale gaze fastened on hers. They stared at each other for a while and then with a grunt, it gently, almost reverently, with a deftness she did not think a bear could possess, placed her on her feet back onto the ground.

  Lisa stared up at the immense bear, almost afraid to believe this was happening. The beast, as though understanding her disbelief, poked her slightly with one claw on its paw. She jerked backwards, almost falling over. Then with one last glance back at it, she turned and began to run, expecting every second to hear its feet thundering after her and the large furry paws closing around her neck again.

  But with every step that took her farther away, the bear just stood watching her, an almost wistful expression on its face.

  It let her go.

  She ran for all she was worth, gasping as she stumbled and fell. Her alarmed gaze flew over her shoulder again and then widened in disbelief; the bear was gone! In its place, she saw a naked man walking away.

  He turned for one last glance over his shoulder, the distance masking his features, and then he himself disappear. She fainted on the spot in mid-stride.

  CHAPTER ONE

  2015

  Lisa Fuller grinned down at three-year old Emily, sharing the little girl’s happy laughter as they both threw more bread down to the swans floating around in the pond.

  Emily was a little girl with a tangled mop of blonde hair, deep-set dimples, and the bluest pair of eyes she had ever seen on anyone. Emily had the sweetest smile possible and whenever she grinned at Lisa it felt as though all was immediately right with the world. You wouldn’t know it to look at her but she had known so much tragedy in her short life it was a wonder she even knew how to smile. Children really were resilient, Lisa decided.

  “Lisa?” Emily chirped, in her little girl voice.

  “Yes hon?” Lisa said, tossing a particularly large piece of bread to a giant swan at the far end of the pond.

  “Who’s that man over there?”

  “What man?”

  “Over there. He’s been staring at us,” Emily said, pointing in the direction of another bench with the typical innocence of children.

  “What man?” Lisa repeated craning her neck. In today’s world, a staring stranger could spell more danger than a rabid dog. “Stop pointing Emily,” she scolded gently as she finally saw the man who had caught the girl’s attention.

  He was at least five-eight, slim with straggly strands of greasy black hair that fell all over his face and sunken cheekbones and hungry eyes that spelled ‘addict’. Lisa swallowed, her hands knotting together in her lap as a slight tendril of fear worked its way down her spine.

  His gaze shifted imperceptibly to Emily and Lisa jerked to her feet immediately. She clutched the girl’s hand in a protective grasp as she turned and began to walk away.

  The man followed immediately, a nasty grin on his face. Lisa quickened her steps automatically; so preoccupied with getting them both away from the man that she didn’t realize they had wandered into an almost deserted section of the park.

/>   “Are we playing a game Lisa?” Emily chirped conspiratorially, her cheeks shining with good health.

  “Yes sweetie. We need to walk as fast as possible so that that man can’t catch us.”

  “So why don’t we just run?” Emily suggested happily, her eyes gleaming with anticipation.

  Lisa tried not to roll her eyes. Emily had only one speed; run! But on occasion, running was just what the doctor ordered. She bent a little at the waist as they walked and leaned down towards the little girl.

  “Okay listen Emily, when I say ‘run’ I need you to run and hide okay? You remember where Coby hid the last time we were all here and no one could find him?” Emily nodded, her pigtails bouncing. “Okay sweetie. Run!” Lisa whispered to Emily and the little girl took off like a light.

  Lisa also began to run, risking a quick glance over her shoulder. The man had also begun to run after her, his gaze trained on her. It wasn’t Emily he wanted then, she thought with relief as she picked up her pace, running in an almost opposite direction to lead him away from the little girl.

  The man was closing in on her now. In fact he was so close his rank smell hit her nostrils almost choking her.

  Just as the stranger was about to grab her from behind, someone dived at him and tackled him to the ground. Lisa slowed, unable to believe her eyes as the new man punched her pursuer right in the face, then flipped him effortlessly and tied his hands behind him with a trip of wire. She had never seen anyone move so fast in her entire life.

  The cops showed up almost immediately and carted the man away. As he left, he spat contemptuously in Lisa’s direction, hatred burning in his eyes.

  Lisa drew back, alarmed. What had she ever done to the man? She was certain she didn’t know him.