by Aubrey Moyes
Rose nodded a few times before saying, “Thank you, Ross.”
Before I could say anything else, she started closing the door. Just as it shut I managed to squeeze in, “I hope everything turns out all right.”
Rose paused for a moment to add, “You know, we could always go for coffee or something if you’d like…”
I shrugged, but smiled. Seeing Rose in the doorway helped me remember why I was here in the first place. The woman that’d been enchanting my life ever since she walked through the door. As much as I liked Rose, there was no denying that I’d moved on. “Nah, I’m all right. But thanks for the offer anyway. Take care, Rose.”
“You too,” she said as the door finally shut, locking as I went down the steps.
I let out a sigh of relief once my apartment came into view. A car in the lot beside it was a familiar face: Isabell. Damn, you’ve got great timing, huh? I wondered as she stepped out of the car. I couldn’t help rushing over to her and wrapping my arms around her. Jack growled at me, but I smiled widely at him.
He took a few steps out of the car and walked over to me only for me to hug him as well. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he growled.
I smiled and said, “Things are fixed now.”
“What?”
“I found out who was sending the threats and, long story short, they’re not going to be an issue anymore.”
“Wow, really?” asked Isabell excitedly.
“Yeah. You can go home!”
Jack smiled, but it faded as Isabell turned to me and said, “Actually, I wouldn’t mind staying with you…”
“Really?”
Isabell glanced over at Jack, and then pressed her lips to mine, making him claw at his clothes while I closed my eyes to deepen the kiss.
THE END
Unwanted Mate
Chapter 1
Alyse ran through the woods, her heart pounding in her chest. She was in her cat form and had decided to get some fresh air away from the city in which she lived, but she made the mistake of forgetting about how other animals would react to her. Now she was being chased by a very large wolf whose area she had accidentally invaded.
She ran to the nearest tree and dug her claws into the bark, climbing to the first branch. The wolf stayed at the bottom of the tree, growling at her and pacing back and forth. Every few minutes he would try to reach her by jumping, but to no avail. Alyse wondered how long it would take the wolf to give up. She hadn't planned on being gone long and knew that she would need to eat soon. Not only did shape shifting cause her to need to eat more calories, but she also had other reasons to eat more these days.
The wolf settled at the bottom of the tree, laying down on the snow-covered ground. Alyse sighed inwardly. It didn't look like the wolf would be leaving any time soon, so she began to look for another way down and hoped she could sneak away. While the wolf laid his head on his paws, she slowly began to climb down the trunk of the tree as quietly as possible.
Once she was down, she slowly padded away, but something must have alerted the wolf that she was down because he immediately began to run after her once more. She screeched in her cat voice and ran as fast as her legs would carry her. Just as the wolf began to close in on her, another wolf came running at her from the side.
Terrified that this wolf was also after her, she immediately changed her direction. However, the second wolf ran his head right into the side of the first wolf, sending him flying away. When he landed in the snow, the wolf yelped and stood on his paws, giving the second wolf what could only be a glare. Then he turned and ran away from them both.
Turning to the second wolf, Alyse realized he was also a shape shifter as soon as she looked into his eyes. They both immediately transformed into their human selves. The handsome man stood before her with brown hair and green eyes. His body was muscular and he wore a black tank top and blue jeans. His feet were bare in the snow, but that wouldn't bother him.
"Thanks for your help," she told him, brushing her long black hair away from her face. Her eyes roamed over his body and she felt an immediate attraction, but she pushed those thoughts away.
Shrugging, Brandon told the woman, "It was no big deal. I would have done the same for any other shifter in trouble."
"Are you from the city?" she asked.
Brandon nodded. "Yeah. I just love being out here away from all the noise. I'm Brandon by the way." He held out his hand and she graciously accepted.
"I'm Alyse," she said. "I guess I'd better get going. I'm going to need to eat soon."
Once more he nodded. "I was just on my way back. Care to join me?"
"Sure," Alyse said and she changed back into her cat form. Brandon found her to be stunningly beautiful. Her brown eyes matched her brown skin. Her curvaceous body was emphasized at all the right points in her gray sweater and dark blue skinny jeans. Her booty was large and he wanted to run his hands across it.
As they ran, he couldn't help but wonder if she would be interested in mating. He knew he certainly was, but he didn't know how to approach the topic without sounding like a creep.
It didn't take them very long to reach the city. When they were in the outskirts, Alyse stopped and changed back into her human form. Brandon followed her lead and changed as well. She began to walk away and he jogged to catch up to her. "Where in the city do you live?" he asked.
"Briar Hill. You?" she replied.
He chuckled. "I'm your neighbor. I live in Oak Hill."
She nodded and continued walking. Neither one of them were far from where they lived. They continued in silence for a few minutes before he tried again. "Listen, would you like to hang out sometime?"
Stopping short, Alyse turned to him. "What kind of hanging out?" she asked.
Brandon shrugged. "I don't know. We could go to dinner and then catch a movie. See if it leads to anything."
Alyse shook her head and started walking again. "No, I'm pretty sure you don't want to get involved with me."
"And why is that?" he asked, keeping up with her pace. She was a fast walker.
"I have some stuff going on in my life right now that you don't need to become involved in," she replied.
They had reached the point where he needed to turn to head to his house and she would need to go straight. The streets they were walking on were lined with trees and a shadow fell over her face from a branch that hung in the way of a street lamp. "Try me," he said. The attraction he felt toward her was incredible and he couldn't imagine anything getting in the way.
Alyse looked into his eyes for a moment, one eyebrow raised. Finally she shrugged and said, "I'm pregnant."
Brandon stopped short. If she was pregnant, then that likely meant she was in a relationship. "What about the father?"
She shook her head. "He's out of the picture."
He wasn't sure what to say. He was still attracted to her and wanted to try. "Can I have your number?"
Alyse looked shocked. "You still want it?"
He nodded. "Yes. And I will give you a call tomorrow."
She hesitated for only a moment before pulling a pen from her pocket and writing her number down on the back of his hand. Brandon smiled and held onto her hand for a moment, placing a light kiss on the back. "Talk to you tomorrow," he said and he walked away.
As she started walking once more, Alyse wasn't certain what had just happened. The man was definitely attractive, but she had been certain that her pregnancy would send him running. Instead, he seemed not to care and had promised to call her the next day. She placed a hand on her stomach as butterflies fluttered throughout it. Or perhaps that was the baby moving. A smile spread across her face and she found that she was actually looking forward to the next day.
It didn't take her long to reach her house and when she did she found that her brother, Ben, was pacing the floor, waiting for her. "Where have you been?" he demanded, the second she walked through the door.
Alyse sighed, looking up at him. He stood a full foot taller th
an she and his muscular form usually meant that people found him intimidating. Alyse didn't. She knew that while he would protect her at any cost, he was also a giant teddy bear. He was caring and sweet to those he loved and was the type of man to help an old lady carry her groceries into her house. "I just went for a run," she said, pushing past him and walking toward the kitchen.
They lived together in a house that he had purchased nearly two years prior. Before that they had lived in a tiny apartment. Ever since their parents had died when they were teenagers he had taken care of her and even though she was grown now, he still maintained that attitude. "It would have been nice if you would have said something to me about leaving," Ben said, following her. "I was worried sick."
"Sorry," Alyse said. She pulled some bread and lunch meant from the fridge and began to make a sandwich.
"How are you feeling?" he asked. Besides the father and now Brandon, Ben was the only person who knew that she was pregnant.
She shrugged. "Hungry."
Ben chuckled. "I supposed that explains the beeline to the refrigerator." Alyse nodded, layering the meat she had chosen onto a slice of bread. After adding lettuce, tomato, and mustard, she slapped on the other piece of bread and took a big bite out of the sandwich. "So where did you go?" he asked once she had finished chewing.
"To the woods outside of the city," Alyse told him and took another bite. While she ate, Ben poured her a glass of milk and set it in front of her.
He didn't look happy at her response. "You went that far?"
"Yes. I wanted to be away from the city," she told him.
Ben shook his head. "I don't want you going that far alone. Especially while you're pregnant. What if something had happened to you?"
Alyse raised one eyebrow. "I'm sorry but I like being in the woods. If I want to go run through them, I'm going to go whether you like it or not."
Sighing, Ben looked into her eyes. After a moment he said, "Fine. But will you at least let me know next time? I'd like to go with you so I can watch after you."
"That sort of ruins the point of being alone," she pointed out before taking a long drink from the milk.
Ben gave her a look that said, "Do not argue with me on this." Out loud he said, "I'll give you your space, but I want to know that you're safe."
Alyse considered what he had said for a moment. She had almost gotten eaten by that wolf. If it hadn't been for Brandon, she wouldn't be in her kitchen eating at that moment. Finally she agreed. "Okay."
"Really?" he asked in surprise.
Alyse nodded. "Yes. I know you're just trying to watch over me and I love that about you. I don't want you to have to worry." Ben raised an eyebrow, studying her for a moment. "What?" she asked.
He shrugged. "It's just not like you to give in like that."
Alyse ate the last bite of sandwich before replying. "Well, I thought about what you said and you're right. It was inconsiderate of me to just leave without letting you know where I was going. After everything you've done for me, I should be more thoughtful. I'm going to bed now." She hopped off the stool that she'd been sitting on and went to her room, leaving Ben staring after her in surprise. She didn't want to tell him that she had nearly been a wolf's dinner, but she could tell that he knew something had happened.
After she brushed her teeth in the bathroom, Alyse changed into her pajamas. She crawled into her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. As she tried to fall to sleep, she couldn't help but wonder if Brandon was really going to call her the next day. She hoped that he would and found herself smiling as she drifted off.
Chapter 2
Brandon's day at work went by slowly. He worked as a veterinarian and his office had very few animals in that day. His secretary, Mary, was typing away on the computer, probably talking over instant messaging to her boyfriend. He had been resisting the urge all morning to send Alyse a text, but it was afternoon and he figured he would finally be able to contact her without looking desperate.
He typed in a message and studied it to make sure it sounded okay. "Hey Alyse. It's Brandon from last night. Would you like to hang out Friday night?"
He read over it several times before pressing the send button. As he waited for a reply, Brandon went into the reception room to ask his receptionist for advice about taking Alyse out. He walked up to the window on the side of her desk and leaned his elbows on it. Mary jumped when she saw him, quickly switching tabs on her computer screen so he wouldn't see that she had, indeed, been messaging her boyfriend. "What's up, boss?" she said, looking up at him.
"I have a question," he told her. "I met this girl last night—"
"Oh fantastic!" she said, clapping her hands together. He couldn't count on both hands the number of times she had tried to set him up with some girl or another in order to try to "remedy" the fact that he was single.
Brandon laughed to himself. "Yeah. Fantastic," he said, starting again. "Anyway, after some coercion I got her to give me her number and told her I'd be contacting her today."
"And have you?" Mary asked, leaning toward him, clearly interested in what he was telling her.
He nodded. "Yeah, I just sent her a text."
"Good," she replied, nodding. "That's a start."
Brandon was starting to regret going to his secretary for help. "Okay. Anyway. I asked her if she would like to hang out Friday night." Mary slowly inhaled through her teeth, baring them at him. "What?" he asked.
She shrugged. "Well, asking that way sounds like you're not really interested in dating her romantically. It sounds more like you just want to hang out with a friend."
He pursed his lips, pushing them to the side. "How do I fix it then?"
"Text her back and tell her you have a plan," Mary said. "Be unique with your plan. Don't do the typical dinner and a movie."
"That's where I need your help," Brandon told her. "I don't really know what to do."
A smile spread across Mary's face. "It's cold outside, so take her to that hot cocoa bar that just opened up over on Maple. After that, take her ice skating. If she doesn't know how, it gives you a great opportunity to have to hold her hand or have her hold on to your arm."
Brandon shook his head. "She's pregnant. I don't think ice skating is a great idea."
Mary's jaw dropped. "She's pregnant and she's willing to go out with you?"
He shrugged. "That's why it took some coercion to convince her to give me her number. She says the father is out of the picture."
"No," Mary told him, shaking her head. "No you don't want to go there. There's bound to be all sorts of drama surrounding the baby. Even if she claims the father isn't in the picture, there's a chance he will want to be and another man around will only complicate things."
Sighing, Brandon told her, "Well, I'm going for it. There was just something about her that I can't put my finger on that makes me keep thinking about her." Mary didn't know about the whole shape shifting thing, so she definitely wasn't going to understand the attraction he felt to Alyse. He wasn't about to try to explain it to her right then.
Mary shrugged. "Whatever. If you think you can handle it, then I guess go for it. But still be original. Maybe instead of ice skating you could take her to the beach. It'll be cold, but you could light a fire and watch the sunset. Roast some marshmallows."
Brandon thought about her suggestion for a moment. "I like it. Thanks."
Nodding, Mary turned back to her computer screen. "Good luck," she said as she began typing away at the keyboard.
He walked back into his office and sat at his desk. Alyse still hadn't replied. "I have a great idea for what we can do," he texted. "But you'll need to dress warm."
A few minutes later, his phone finally buzzed. "I would love to. What time?"
He told her he would pick her up at four-thirty. He wanted to make sure that they had plenty of time to get to the beach and get a fire started before the sun went down. Mary was smart. A sunset at the beach would be beautiful and as shape shifters the cold woul
dn't bother them as much. Excited for what the weekend was going to bring, Brandon couldn't help smiling.
* * *
Friday afternoon, Alyse was ready by four-fifteen. Brandon had told her to be punctual so they didn't miss out on what he had planned. She waited anxiously, wondering what he was wanting to do. The doorbell rang at exactly four-thirty and she jumped up, excited. Ben was still at work, so he wouldn't be around to interrogate Brandon, for which she was grateful. She had sent him a text message, letting him know that she was going out and gave him Brandon's number, just in case.
When she answered the door, she saw Brandon standing before her, dressed in a blue plaid shirt and dark blue pants. He had a black jacket over his shirt and a scarf wrapped around his neck. "You ready?" he asked, smiling.
Alyse felt butterflies fluttering in her stomach and she couldn't help smiling back. She nodded and accepted his held out arm, wrapping her hand through his elbow. "Where are we going?" she asked.
Brandon wiggled his eyebrows up and down. "It's a surprise," he said.
"You said to dress warm, so I assume it outside?" she replied.
He nodded. "Yep."
"You do realize we're shape shifters, right?" she said, laughing. "I mean, I'm pretty sure I can handle the cold. You were standing in the snow last night with no shoes on and it didn't seem to bother you."
Brandon shrugged. "Yeah, well, it's still a courtesy that I figured I should extend."
"How thoughtful," Alyse replied as he pulled open the passenger door on his car. He walked around and climbed into the car on his side. "So you won't give me even a small hint?"
"It's very hot," Brandon said as he pulled away from the curb.
Alyse looked at him, confused. "But you told me to dress warm."
He nodded. "Yep."
"So...how exactly is it 'very hot'?" she asked.
Brandon laughed. "That's your hint. Not my fault if you can't figure it out."
Folding her arms, Alyse sat back in her seat, wondering what on earth he could mean. She could sense his amusement at her confusion, which only made her wonder more. Finally, she gave up. "I have no idea," she said.
