by Susan Arden
Removing her shoes, she wondered if a small chapel wedding was even possible. A small, intimate wedding sounded divine.
She was about to shed her dress when a slow, laborious knock sounded at the door. She smiled and called out, “Did you forget your key?”
The prospect of one more kiss from Shawn had her moving to meet him at the door.
“Come here and let me show you what I’ve got planned for later.” Swinging open the door, she stared at the faces of Mia and Frazier. A blinding chill overcame her senses. She tried to slam the door in their smug faces, but Frazier was too quick. He stuck his foot in the jamb and his massive body laid into the door, moving it as though she were nothing more than static cling lint. He pushed in, and Mia followed in his wake.
“Yes, you were saying something about your plans?” Mia slinked by Diana, going into the living room. She walked down the hall, stopping in front of the bedroom. “All alone?”
“What do you want?” Diana asked, already imagining nothing good. “Shawn will be back in a couple of minutes.”
“That’s not what we heard. We know you’re alone and will be for hours. Shawn’s on his way to a poker game of sorts. One which we’ve arranged as a special treat. Now that Shawn has plans for the Vegas justice council, we thought it an apropos welcome. How rich! An eye for an eye.”
“That’s not what the council is about,” Diana retorted.
“But wait, that isn’t what Shawn espouses. Or is it? Where you’re concerned, he seems to forget that he can’t simply issue threats. Like all other shifters, if he has a problem, it must go through the council. Not have his lackeys go around and tell our clients to stop doing business with us.”
“You’re the ones who have lost your own accounts. You’re blaming him for your own issues.”
“Not exactly. Ever since he arrived in town, we’ve seen a record number of our accounts close. That’s not coincidence, it’s Shawn acting as though he were above the law. And now this seems fitting; since he seems to believe he can do as he wants, then we can act freely as well. I also don’t think the actual game will last long. Not to worry, though. We’ve got special times planned for you as well. And your lover won’t have to miss a thing. We plan on webcamming this event for a whole lot of viewers’ pleasures.”
The feeling of blood draining from her face kept her desperately attuned to them. “What do you want?” Diana repeated her question, buying time.
“Why, you, silly. And we mean to have you … in every way possible. By the time Frazier’s done with you … not even a dog will come near you.” Mia patted Frazier’s meaty arm.
Diana noticed the case Frazier had been carrying as he swung it up onto the table and the latches clicked open. He glanced over to her, then nodded his head to Mia. “Get her ready.” His stony voice came out in a bark. “Prepare her the way I like.”
Mia beamed. “He’s becoming impatient. Note to self, Diana … uh, he’s failed at anger management.”
“You’re twisted. Sick. Do you think you’ll get away with this?”
Mia came at her, taking hold of her dress, her face contorted. “Shut your slut mouth or I’ll shut it for you.”
“Threaten me. Go on. I’d like to see you try something yourself instead of hiding behind … your henchman,” Diana said.
Even with her small stature, Mia was able to grab Diana and pull her roughly. Whispering into her face, Mia spoke slowly. “Truth. You won’t know. A little preview on the events: after we finish up with you here, we plan on taking both you and Shawn out into the desert. And this won’t be a pleasure trip, dearest Diana. There will be nothing left after the buzzards finish with you. Now, get undressed, you stupid fool. I can’t even imagine how Shawn got involved with someone like you. He is so out of your league.”
Diana studied Mia’s movement, her breath and heart rate. The physical exertion taxed Mia, and she wanted to see just how much of a toll it took on her reserves. Resisting, Diana pulled back, forcing Mia to hunker down with her grasp upon Diana’s arm.
Mia spat, her anger starting to leak through. “Fucking bitch. We can do this nice, or not. I’d rather you do it not nice. Personally, I’m aching for a fight. Of course, I’d be just a sideliner. My money is on Frazier. He likes it rough.”
Diana stared open-mouthed at Mia for an instant before assessing her options. Mia shoved her up against the table, across from Frazier. Mia blocked the hallway, and the only way out of the hotel room was off the balcony. But this was the rooftop. A magnificent view. And no way down unless she jumped.
Frazier began methodically removing and arranging handcuffs, ropes, and an assortment of clamps and chains in a row along the top of the table.
“May I, love?” Mia fingered a mask, dangling the leather, then put it down and picked up a red rubber ball with elastic cords. She snapped her fingers at Diana. “Let’s go. Time is running out.”
She’d never seen the thing that Mia held. Unable to keep silent, she shook loose of Mia’s arm and said, “Keep that vile mouth of yours shut. The lies you spread are notorious. But no more.”
“Keep talking. This type of verbal foreplay gets my baby rock hard.” Mia turned back to Frazier. “Did you bring the spreader-bar? Oh, the things I’ve planned for this one.”
The anger that had been on a slow simmer roared to life within Diana. Instead of dropping her dress, the gown tightened around Diana’s body. It had been designed and altered to fit her as a woman, and her shifting form began to widen. Her bones elongated so rapidly that the pain seared her joints. In a split second, her size six, womanly human form no longer stood in the room.
Diana morphed into a lithe, powerful leopardess. The shift occurred spontaneously, rapidly, and her emotions rioted, inciting the need to attack. From controlling herself while contained in human appearance, her leopardess form blazed to life, already stalking Frazier from behind as Mia backed away.
“I can’t believe you still shift like a heathen. What the hell? Who in this day and age still fucking shifts like that?” Mia actually rolled her eyes, as if she didn’t grasp the issue for a moment.
Frazier’s face scrunched up before he swore. He picked up a handgun and aimed it at Diana. “Shit,” he yelled.
Diana smelled their fear. Words were distractions she didn’t heed. Instinct prompted her to powerfully leap, knocking Frazier down, and rip into his body with her claws extending and curling.
In one moment she’d gone from a petite woman to a leopardess weighing a hundred pounds more than Frazier, the man whose neck she held between her jaws. She snarled while holding him caught, her canines piercing his skin, his trachea flexing under the pressure of her jaws.
The door opened and Shawn burst in, followed by Tristen and Santo.
“Diana, let him go!” Shawn approached her while Santo took hold of Mia.
From the scratches on Frazier’s body, the air swirled with the scents of blood, rage, and revenge. Diana’s snarls became the sound of silk being ripped, but then with each step closer by Shawn, her snarl changed to a contact growl resembling a rapidly-moving saw cutting across wood.
Releasing Frazier wasn’t in the cards from her vantage point. The view of the toys of torture spread around his body on the table frustrated her.
Shawn reached out, touched her flank and stroked her, murmuring soothing words. Primitive volition demanded she attend to her alpha’s command.
Diana vacillated, unable to release Frazier, and so she picked him up in an ironclad bite. Again Shawn’s voice and touch gained entrance into her rage, and she reacted by tossing Frazier to the marble tile, the sound of his skull striking against the floor echoing hollowly throughout the room.
Regardless of Shawn tempering her anger, her gaze shot directly to Mia. Diana crouched down, and it was apparent she’d not let the other troublemaker go. That one meant harm to Shawn. All the leopardess knew was to seek protection for her chosen mate.
Roaring powerfully, the louder-than-normal growl
was meant to warn those present she was incapable of listening to reason. Diana bounded from the table, and stalked over to where Santo held on to Mia. He walked backward, dragging Mia away to relative safety.
Tristen approached Diana, holding out his palms. “Diana, no. Don’t follow your instincts! Draw from your training.”
The words flittered around Diana’s brain, as though she had a choice to acknowledge or disregard them. She skittered close to Mia, swiping out a paw to claw the woman, eliciting a shrill scream from her. There was a purpose to this toying with one’s prey, one she’d learned from Shawn during her training.
Tristen and Shawn tried to draw her attention. She didn’t care as she snarled a warning for them to get back. She leapt back up onto the table, causing it to tip and crash as she jumped into the hallway.
Santo pushed Mia back, unable to make her stay quiet. “Stop her, fucking stop that crazy bitch!” Mia shrieked, over and over.
Diana roared, coming up to where Santo and Mia had stopped, cornering them against the loft door. Blood trickled down her fur; she didn’t know if it was hers or Frazier’s, and she didn’t care. She only inhaled the scent, fighting her primal urge to attack and destroy when her prey was so near. Mia’s form and tone taunted the leopardess within Diana. Her prey’s blood would give her peace.
The instinct grew stronger, and she couldn’t put aside her anger and rage, her humiliation and desire for revenge. The leopardess recognized that to let a hazardous beast free meant they’d meet again, and the law of nature didn’t think that was the best route. The alpha DNA in her ruled that predators killed by instinct, knowing a better day to destroy an enemy may not come. Seize opportunity when it was presented and save the tears. That’s why animals didn’t cry. It was a luxury they couldn’t afford.
Diana roared again, demanding that her target be let loose. But it didn’t matter, really. If the man continued to stand in her way, she’d do what needed to be done. That was what her nature told her she must do, to protect herself and her mate. She sniffed the edge of Mia’s skirt and a blood-curdling scream erupted from Mia’s throat.
Diana ears pricked, understanding that this was the type of terror that goaded an animal to run. The predator appreciated this type of fear in others and she paced the hall, waiting as she’d been taught.
“Diana, no. Don’t do it. You’ll lose. In the end, you won’t be free,” Tristen pleaded, edging closer to her. “You must listen. Her death will mean nothing if you’re taken away from Shawn.”
The words spilled over her, and she batted her tail at him and what he was trying to preach. The air tormented her focus. She snarled, then issued a low roar. A moment later she sniffed, opening her mouth to bathe in her alpha’s scent.
Shawn appeared in leopard form, coming down the hall. Mia fainted, going limp in Santo’s arms without warning, and he didn’t have a chance to stop her from slipping to the floor. The movement caught Diana’s attention; she jolted instinctively toward Mia and took hold of her by the hair. Her claws flexed and then curled. She faced Santo, with not more than a few feet between their faces. Diana blinked at him, a low snarl fell from her mouth, and she pulled Mia’s body across the space along the floor. Santo released the woman.
Shawn’s roar echoed loud and forceful, and he was on her, knocking her body gently but with his alpha intent. He came off her and circled in front of her. He stepped over Mia, and gazed into Diana’s eyes. They touched noses, and he proceeded to rub his cheek across her face, bathing her in hormones and his scent, calming her nerves, and giving her space to decide her next move. Shawn switched sides, stroking his face against hers, licking her muzzle, and butting his head against her forehead.
All of sudden, holding onto Mia didn’t seem important. Following Shawn held her rapt attention, so she paused, absorbing that her immediate instinct to acquiesce to him overwhelmed her being. Their natures allowed for one leader, and she wasn’t about to buck him. In her world, there was zero need to challenge him into a skirmish. She hissed, releasing her hold on Mia.
Coming to Shawn, she rubbed herself down the length of the leopard shifter who had come to claim her. She settled down on the cold marble floor at his feet. He panted over her, roaring several times. Moving carefully, Tristen collected Frazier while Santo picked up Mia. They exited the room, giving Shawn and Diana privacy to shift back to human form.
They stared at one another. Diana could feel her body changing, her muscles rippling from pent-up energy. Shawn in both leopard and human forms was the most beautiful creature she’d ever seen. She wanted a life with him, bearing his children, and caring for him as her mate. She huffed out a breath of air, signaling her submission.
In less than a second, Shawn shifted and then picked her up and gently tossed her on top of the bed. “Turn around for me,” he said.
Shawn mounted her from behind, their bodies completely shifted back into human form. He penetrated her in a rush of heat. The bite into her flesh spiraled into exquisite pleasure. She moaned and arched back, giving him a better angle in which to drive himself home inside her body.
He released his hold on her skin, groaning into her ear hoarsely. “God, I’ve wanted this since the first time I saw you,” he breathed.
“Shawn, I’m almost there. This feels magical.”
Her mate’s strokes sped up; his thrusts went deeper than they’d ever gone. Her climax was there on the next thrust, and then they both exploded.
Shawn let go a loud yell, “Diana, you’re mine.” His body shuddered with the force of his orgasm. The feel of his hot jet of cum filled her. The nerves of her body tingled and she moaned under him. Shawn wrapped his arms around her hips as continued to he slam his cock further inside her, claiming and forging a true mating bond with her. She gave into him, completely as a leopardess to her mate. The golden haze surrounded them, the sensation of being one with another overwhelmed her. Diana cried his name in a euphoric wave of ecstasy, “Shawn, I love you.” They both lay sprawled on top of the bed, gasping, with their legs and arms intertwined for long moments. Her heartbeat pumped wildly and she purred loudly, rubbing her hips against Shawn’s body. Her mate. Forever. Even though she desired to lie next to him in leopard form, this was more than perfect.
“I hope you’re not disappointed in me,” she whispered, caressing his forearm. “I’ve never been that upset. I won’t say I’m sorry for what happened to them. I can’t.”
“I’m amazed at you. Jesus, I thought you were going to crush his skull.” Shawn turned her in his arms, concern flagging his face.
Tears rimmed her eyes. “I wanted to. I had no choice. I listened to you. Your voice filled my head much like a calming balm. The effect was extraordinary.”
Shawn pulled her up into his arms. He kissed away her concern, taking his time until her body relaxed. Brushing her hair back from her face, he murmured. “You did better than I would have, given their fucking tricks.”
“They didn’t touch me. Not yet.” She recalled the items on the table. “Did they think they’d get away with attacking us?”
“I don’t know. Tristen checked out the game and sent word to turn around. They knocked out Fin. Slammed a pipe against his head. Tristen will take them to the police station. This is a federal crime. No matter what they didn’t do, they’re still going to prison for a long time. I’m sorry, I should not have left you alone. Not with them in this town.”
She closed her eyes. “I’m not sorry. Now they won’t bother us again. It worked out. Just as you taught me. Patience, planning, and confidence. To wait for the prey to come to me.”
“I never thought in a million years the prey would take this form. I can’t believe you were able to refrain from tearing them apart. This news will spread like wild fire in the underground clubs.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“My God, no. To refrain from taking an eye for an eye. You’ve shown shifters that revenge is not the route to take. You’re really the first shifter to s
how such restraint, considering what you’ve been through. Baby. I love you so much.”
With their gazes tightly locked, she said the words she longed to share with him. “Shawn, I love you so much. I never could have done that without you showing me the way.”
Chapter 18
Standing inside a plane circling Las Vegas, Shawn and she held hands. He’d agreed to a small, intimate wedding, and so she acted. If they returned to Denver, they’d be obliged to a large, formal affair. She’d always wanted to skydive and this was one way to get Shawn to herself.
The ex-military paratrooper-turned-chaplain pronounced them husband and wife, and then said, “You may now kiss the bride.”
Shawn enfolded her body within his arms while his warm mouth devoured hers, heating her whole body in a blaze of love and lust, curling her toes just as he’d done the first time they’d kissed.
Fin thrust a glass of champagne into their hands. “Say ‘cheese.’ Look this way.” Angling the camera, Fin snapped the wedding pictures. “These will go viral, I bet.”
“Tweet and Facebook them. What the hell?” Shawn chuckled, turning his attention back to Diana, and her breath caught at the gleam in his eyes. “Cheers, baby. I love you, Mrs. Barclay.” He pulled her into another hug, lifting her up and letting her slide slowly down his body.
“I love you,” she whispered, suddenly shy in front of so many men whose expressions had softened for once, making them seem young and boyish. It was a welcome change from the tense pack of shifters who normally surrounded Shawn and her.
Tristen cinched up Shawn’s parachute for the second time while Fin did another check on Diana’s. “Everything’s kosher,” Fin finally said.
“Shawn’s chute checks out. Good to go.” Tristen punched Shawn’s arm. “Nothing to this. Count to twenty and pull the line. Then you’ll bounce and float. Booyah! We’ll be right next to you, of course. But still, it’s a mad rush.”
Fin and Tristen high-fived each other, a rare show of any emotion between the pair of wolf shifters. Santo came forward with a camera for a second picture. The paratrooper preacher, another wolf shifter who’d didn’t mind the jump, cleared his throat, “Just sign this certificate and it’s official.” He clicked a pen and held it out to Shawn.
