by T. S. Ryder
Across the room, she could hear the two wolves snarling and yipping as they bit and clawed at each other. Flinching at the sound of teeth sinking into flesh, she sank down behind the counter with a shudder, snagging onto a dish towel to bind the wound on her foot. Nate would be fine. There was no way he would lose.
The fight continued for just a few minutes longer, and with a final shriek and a horrible crunch the world went silent.
Trembling, Clara felt her breath hitch and she grabbed Jeremy’s discarded knife as a form moved around the counter. Brandishing it at her potential attacker, she let out a relieved noise when Nate held up his hands.
“Woah! Hey, it’s ok! It’s me,” Nate panted, wiping the blood on his face away and waiting until she let the knife clatter to the ground before pulling her into his arms. “Are you ok?” he rasped, pressing his face to her shoulder and allowing her to crumble into his arms.
“He was going to kill me!” she croaked, shock rolling through her body while his powerful form cradled her to his chest gently. Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, Nate nodded, scooping her up into his arms with a shudder.
“I know he was. I’m so sorry, Clara,” he whimpered, carrying her into the bedroom and quickly swaddling her in a blanket. “I’m taking you to the hospital. I’ll call someone to take care of that bastard.” He closed his eyes, a shudder rolling through his form. “I thought he was my best friend, and then I saw him standing over you like that. I never thought he would do something like that to anybody,” he croaked, as he held her shaking form to his chest.
“You saved me,” she whispered against his chest, tears staining his shirt as his grip tightened around her shaking form.
“Course I did, you’re my everything,” he whispered against her shoulder, trotting down the stairs towards his car. Melting against his chest, Clara allowed herself to be enveloped in his comforting embrace. She didn’t think she could ever be more in love with a person than she was in that moment.
Chapter Seven
Recovering for the next few weeks left Clara with a lot to think about. Mostly, her relationship with Nathaniel, and the growing love she had for the life growing inside of her. The attack had left their lives in a sort of chaotic jumble. Their business life was put on hold in favor of pacifying the police, the media and their coworkers with an explanation of what had happened and how Jeremy had wound up dead on the floor of Nathaniel’s apartment.
Fortunately, the majority of the scandal had wound up pushed under the rug in favor of an investigation into Jeremy’s motives. The police settled on some sort of crime of passion and determined that Jeremy was simply jealous of the relationship that Clara and Nate had. Clara honestly didn’t care what they thought. She just wanted things to go back to normal.
By the time that the investigation was over and done with, Clara had just reached her nine-month mark. Just before their child entered the world, Clara decided to resign from her position within the company.
Of course, she didn’t have any intention of stopping her career forever. She had every intention of returning back to the hustle of corporate life but decided she would rather spend the first year or two of their child’s life at home. Nate had been reluctant to let her leave the business for so long but agreed that if he couldn’t be at home with the baby, at least she could be.
“Riley, don’t put that in your mouth, hun,” Clara scolded, scooping her daughter off the ground with a frown when the baby snagged onto a stick she found on the grass of their back yard. At only six months old, the child was already completely mobile. Her father’s genes allowed her to progress far more quickly than an average child.
This, of course, left Clara needing to give the child far more attention than the average baby required. She didn’t mind, of course. The little growls and squeaks that the child let out were endearing, and she couldn’t think of a single day that she didn’t wake up happy to hold her little girl in her arms.
“How are my girls this morning?” Nate grinned, wrapping his arms around his lover’s waist and kissing their daughter’s face with a chuckle while she squealed and hid against her mother’s shoulder.
“Just fine. We need to get her something a little sturdier than the baby teething rings, though. She keeps destroying them.” Clara chuckled as Riley chewed on her own fist with little razor-like teeth. “She takes more after you, I think.” Nate laughed at this, shaking his head.
“Wait until she starts randomly changing shape,” he grinned, winking at his flustered wife with a laugh. “Nonsense, she’s got your eyes, your hair. She is very much your little girl,” he insisted, kissing Clara’s cheek and scooping his daughter into his arms. “How bout we start lunch, huh?” he asked Riley, who let out a babble of excitement and clung onto her father’s fingers.
Smiling, Clara watched as her lover moved inside, her heart fluttering softly in her chest. She had never thought she’d be so happy living a life like this. She had insisted that she would never get married, let alone have kids, and yet there she was, watching her husband and daughter dance in the kitchen with a warm feeling in her chest.
Of course, her life was still far from traditional, she mused, laughing as her husband let out a squeak of pain when the child sank her newly grown teeth into his finger. Shaking her head, she moved inside. It looked like her husband needed her to rescue him, and she was more than happy to do so.
On her arm, she could feel the mark that combined her and her mate start to flood with warmth, her eyes sparkling as she moved up to her mate and scooped her child into her arms. Her world was a bit strange, but to her, it was perfect.
*****
THE END
Bonus Book 4: The Shifting Billionaire's Baby
Description
A curvy BBW investigating a murder PLUS a hot billionaire business tycoon leading his pack PLUS a dangerous killer on the loose!
Roland Davis is no ordinary man. He's a werewolf and Alpha of his pack. As such, Roland has duties, and taking a mate and producing an heir to lead the werewolves after him are chief among them.
The problem is that there is only one female werewolf left in his pack, and though they’ve been trying for a baby, they haven’t succeeded yet. When she turns up murdered, Roland can't help but feel that he has lost his chance to protect his pack.
Until he meets curvy detective Claire Doyle...
Solving murders is Claire's specialty. Despite what her best friend thinks, she doesn't need anything else in her life. She's not looking for a man, not even a hunky billionaire like Roland.
But as something draws her closer and closer to him, she finds that what she doesn't want might be exactly what she needs.
When a one night stand has unintended consequences, Roland and Claire have to find a way to cope with dark secrets and an uncertain future. But is love really in the cards for them?
Chapter One
Roland could still smell Melissa's blood, even though the police had covered her with a sheet. He stood on the opposite side of the room, watching them work with narrowed eyes. He wanted to stride over to them and demand answers, but this situation was not one where he could intimidate others into submission. They didn't know any more than he did at the moment.
Melissa was dead in his bed. Murdered.
As cameras flashed, taking pictures of the blood stains and possible footprints, Roland's hands clenched. Melissa had been a sweet, kind woman. A little too submissive for his personal preferences, but she didn't deserve this. When he learned who killed her, he would kill them. She was a member of his pack, and he was meant to protect her. Failing that, he would have revenge.
The head of security and his second-in-command, Adam, shifted closer to him. "You know they're going to ask for security footage. Last night—"
"I'm aware," Roland interrupted. Like Adam, he kept his voice too low for the police to hear. "They will no doubt find it suspicious that we turned off the security cameras."
The cameras
had just been turned back on when Melissa's body was found. Roland had been the one to find her, laying in his bed, a knife still in her chest. He ground his teeth together. Apparently she was ready to try to get pregnant again. She had told him more than once that she wanted to be a mother. It was why she had agreed to try with him in the first place. Now she never would have the chance.
Roland and Adam were the only two born werewolves left in the pack. As Alpha, Roland kept his kind when the full moon rose and transformed his pack into bloodthirsty monsters. Adam, his Beta, had better control over himself than the others, but even he could not fully resist the full moon. Roland needed to take a mate that could bear him children. He needed an heir who would eventually take his place as Alpha, protecting the pack and keeping them in line during the three nights that their wolves took over.
Melissa had been the only female in the pack, the last since Roland's mother passed. Roland didn't love Melissa and she hadn't loved him. They never felt the connection of being mates, even when they were in bed together. They both knew their duty, though, and had been trying to produce young for the past year.
After three miscarriages, Melissa had decided that she didn't want to take the heartbreak anymore. They had agreed to take a break until she was strong enough to face the possibility of losing more babies. Roland hadn't thought that would ever happen. In truth, he wasn't sure how much more heartbreak he could take, and if Melissa had been in his room to start trying again, he didn't know if he would have wanted to try.
"How are you going to find a mate now she's gone?" Adam muttered under his breath.
Roland tensed.
"You know that you need to have an heir soon. The pack is getting restless during the moon. Unless you have young soon, I'm afraid they're going to start challenging you. Especially Brian."
"I understand your concerns, Adam." Roland worked hard to keep his voice level. The Beta was only expressing his concerns, after all. "But Melissa's body is still in my bed. Show some respect."
Adam bowed his head. "I didn't mean—"
"I know. Just keep it to yourself." Roland blew out a deep breath, struggling to keep his emotions in check.
The faint scent of chocolate cupcakes had his head turning. As he turned, a woman strode past, completely ignoring him. His eyes zoned in on her as she went directly to the body. She walked with all the self-confidence of a queen, although she was dressed in a fitted business suit and sensible flats. Her short hair was perfectly curled, and she carried a large, black bag over her shoulder.
"Detective Doyle." The cop who had told Roland to stand outside the room, then permitted him to stand by and watch when Roland had refused to leave, nodded in greeting to the new woman. She nodded at him in return.
"What do we have here?"
Roland couldn't stop his eyes from widening. Her voice was rich and slightly husky for a woman, although all the more attractive for it. His eyes traced her body. She was all mouth-watering curves, soft and plump and oh so succulent. The pencil skirt she wore hugged her ass, and he couldn't help but imagine what the curves of the twin globes would be like if she was naked. His mouth watered.
A sharp jab from Adam's elbow brought him back to the present. Roland glared at his Beta, who ducked his head in apology. The Alpha shook his head–as he had just told Adam, Melissa's body was still laying in his bed. This was the worst time for him to be checking out another woman!
Even one as delicious as Detective Doyle.
The detective was being briefed on the circumstances of how Melissa was found, and she glanced over her shoulder at Roland. She had a kind, open face, and the biggest, brownest eyes he had even seen. They matched her chocolate scent perfectly. Her skin was milky-white.
Melissa had been Hollywood-pretty. Stick-thin, with cute, bite-sized breasts and a flat, tight ass. Roland had enjoyed being with her, but he had never felt the thick lust towards her that was pooling in his belly when Detective Doyle met his eyes. He shoved his hands in his pockets, trying to breathe through his mouth so that he couldn't smell her. Chocolate was his favorite food.
She turned away again, and Roland shifted, reminding himself of the setting. He'd had serious attractions to human women before, and they always ended the same way. Badly. It wasn't like he could just tell them that he was a werewolf and needed to have babies as soon as possible. That was enough to scare off even the most starry-eyed woman.
He wasn't going to let his attraction to this new woman overcome his good senses. He didn't even know her, and Melissa deserved better than to be forgotten so quickly.
Adam leaned in, muttering under his breath. "Those legs weren't meant for pantyhose. She looks like a stuffed sausage."
Roland's eyes immediately went to the detective's calves. They were thicker than many women's, but there were smooth, taut muscles under her delicious skin. The Alpha growled despite himself, hackles rising at Adam's insult of the beautiful detective.
"The only thing that could possibly improve that woman is if she were naked and under me," he hissed at the Beta.
Adam's eyes widened. Roland glared at him, and the smirk that spread over the Beta's face only made him angrier.
Adam opened his mouth.
"Don't," Roland warned.
The Beta snorted, hastily covering it with a cough as the detectives turned in their direction. Roland ground his teeth together, clenching his fists. With the full moon so recent, his wolf was strong in his blood, and it was urging him to punch Adam in the face and remind him his place in the pack. Roland did not endorse physical violence when it wasn't necessary, however. Even if he did, hitting his head of security when a half-dozen police were staring at him was not the best idea.
Detective Doyle's chocolate-colored eyes were on him again, so he turned and marched from the room. It was the moon that was making him respond so strongly to her. That was the only reason he was getting so distracted by her when Melissa had just been murdered! He needed to remember that.
"Hey, I didn't mean it," Adam said, once they were out of the room.
"Didn't mean what, exactly? Your rude comment or laughing at me?" Roland's eyes narrowed in warning.
"What I said about the detective. I just thought that you needed something to lighten the mood. I didn't realize you were attracted."
Roland turned to him, then stiffened when he saw the detective had followed them out. Her expression was completely neutral, and he didn't know if she had heard what Adam had just said or not. Still, he sent a warning glance at his Beta and stepped up to the detective, offering her his hand.
"I'm Detective Claire Doyle," she said. Her rich voice had the slightest southern twang to it. "You must be Roland Davis."
Roland nodded. "I was Miss Clarkson's employer. And this is my head of security, Adam Buchan."
Claire spared a brief glance at Adam before focusing on Roland. "Do you have any idea why Miss Clarkson would be in your bed?"
"We occasionally had sex," Roland replied, trying to make his voice as bored at it could be.
The detective gave no physical response to his statement, keeping her gaze steady on him. "So you two were in a relationship, then?"
"A sexual relationship. We didn't have a romantic relationship."
Roland couldn't stop a note of sadness from escaping. He liked Melissa, he really did, and more than once had wished he could love her. It might just be a silly tradition, but his father, also werewolf-born, had always said that pregnancy took better between mates. But when it came to wolves, love was necessary for a true mating to happen. It was something that happened when they met, and solidified when they had sex for the first time. His father had described it like a holy sacrament.
Roland didn't know much about that. Both of his parents had been religious, but he never saw the purpose of it. He knew that he was cursed to become a devil every full moon, just barely able to keep his pack together to stop them from slaughtering innocents. He didn't need religion to tell him he was going to hell as
well. Perhaps that was why he never really believed in love at first sight.
"And she didn't have any feelings for you?" Claire raised one eyebrow.
Roland shook his head. Sometimes, when they were lying in bed together, Melissa would tell him about her dreams of falling in love. He was sorry that he was never able to give that to her. She had deserved a full, happy life. Not the multiple miscarriages she endured. And then to die like this… It was horrible.
"I see." Claire turned to Adam. "And Mr. Buchan, is it?"
The Beta nodded.
Claire cocked her head to one side as she studied him. "What was your relationship with the deceased?"
"Friendly. We hung out sometimes, but there was nothing between us. She wasn't my type."
Adam gave Claire an easy grin, the one that made it possible for him to seduce nearly every reporter, both male and female, who came snooping around Roland's mansion or office buildings, looking for a story. Roland frowned at him, but Detective Doyle's answering smile was anything but flirtatious. All business. He liked that.
"Where were the two of you between 6:00 and 8:00 this morning?"
6:00 to 8:00. So that was the time of death? Roland hadn't found Melissa until noon. At 6:00, the full moon would have just been wearing off. He forced himself not to react, but what if Melissa had still been half-wolf, and interrupted a burglar or something? Their secret could be out.
"6:00 to 8:00?" Adam scrunched up his forehead. "We were still cleaning up from the party downstairs. Hell of a thing."
Claire cast a glance around the hallway. "This rich and you have to clean up your own messes, Mr. Davis?"
"I like to pitch in once in a while. Keeps me grounded."
Claire smiled a pretty smile at him, causing his heart to skip a beat. "I see. Well, if there's anything you can think of that can help us, here's my card. Give me a call."
