by Sam Crescent
“No.” He huffed. “I only have one alternative body.”
“Of course, silly me.”
With a frown, he held her at arm’s length and stooped a little to look into her face. “I want to show you my home. So you can see what I will provide you with, forever.”
“Forever is a long time.”
“It is the perfect amount of time to love someone the way I love you.”
So there it was, the ‘L’ word. Sure she’d toyed with it herself. Aaron was one hell of a man and lover. But now … could she love a shifter?
She stared at him. He was still Aaron. Nothing had changed about him from when they’d stood in the mountains the day before, he stark naked and kissing her like he’d never stop.
I have a shifter for a lover?
“Wait here,” he said, releasing her. “Then I will take you down the mountain and as we go, you must settle your thoughts.”
She didn’t answer, instead she waited as he went out of sight for a moment and then came back dressed in his usual boots, dark pants, and black sweater.
He took her hand, and, in silence, they began to navigate their way down the mountain.
She stared at the back of his head, his unusual hair, she now realized, matched a snow leopard’s markings. Her gaze drifted down his body. No wonder he was so strong and lean. And heat always poured off him, his lack of needing a coat, it was all explained now. His DNA was clearly nothing science had seen before. And the footprints from the tent, the hairs where he’d slept…
She hadn’t dreamed of being snuggled up with a leopard that night on the mountain. She really had been, and he’d walked out of the tent on four feet, or rather, on four paws.
“Are there many of you?” she asked suddenly. “Shifters, I mean. Up here?”
“I am the only male snow leopard shifter in this territory. It is my territory.”
“How can it be?”
“I fought for it and the females within it.” He tapped his butt, indicating his claw mark scars through his pants. “Many fights over the years.”
“The females.” She tugged his hand. “So you … you mate with them, when you’re in your leopard body.”
He stopped and turned. “Don’t be so shocked. It is the instinct of animals to procreate, and we are an endangered species.” He paused and stroked the back of his thumb down her cold cheek. His voice softened. “But that’s all it is, instinct, an urge, nothing like when we make love, then it is desire and passion and love. My human body is very different when it comes to the erotic. I’m sure you discovered that last night when you took me in your mouth and left me giddy with ecstasy.”
Will I ever get used to this? I have to try.
“I think I understand.” She paused. “So those cubs, the ones we filmed. They’re in your territory?”
“Yes, they will be mine.” He shrugged. “She is a good mother, which is just as well because I never have anything to do with my animal offspring.”
“But you would your children … our children.”
He smiled as though enjoying her saying ‘our children’. “Of course. I am a man who wishes to be a father. A father to your children.”
He turned and carried on walking.
Well, at least I know what I’m getting now.
Soon the village came into view. Chloe tried to imagine leaving now. Should she make a quick exit and run from such an unusual relationship with such an unusual guy? Or should she go with her instinct, the one telling her he was the best she’d ever come across or was likely to, and stay here in Nepal?
She didn’t know, but as the air became richer with oxygen, she found her nerves settling and her jumbled emotions beginning to untangle.
She had deep, profound feelings for Aaron—she had for a while. And now he’d shown her what he really was, it had brought them closer … hadn’t it?
He led her to the south of the village and then up a steep slope littered with rocks and away from the other homes. A yak scrabbled to avoid them.
“You live up here?”
“I prefer to be slightly out of the way of the villagers.”
“Does anyone else know what you are?”
“The elders do.”
“And they’re okay with you being half man, half snow leopard?”
“Chloe, I’m all man, or hadn’t you noticed?” He turned and raised his eyebrows.
“Well, yes … but you know what I mean.” A heated flush traveled over her chest and up her neck. Damn, he certainly was all man.
“Shifters are as ancient as the mountains themselves,” he said, continuing to lead her up the track. “It is the way of the land for the elders to be trusted with that knowledge, and it is how I live here, in harmony, doing my work.”
She shook her head. It was a lot to take in.
“They all know and support me,” Aaron went on. “My protection of the leopards is important to them, mainly for superstitious reasons, but it doesn’t matter, as long as it’s important. Plus, as this is scented as my territory. It keeps other leopards away from livestock, most of the time, at least. So I’m doing the locals a favor and acting as a caretaker and contributor to my species.”
She was quiet for a moment, and then said, “So they’ll know, me with you … that you and I are … that I’m with a shifter?”
“Yes, and they’ll accept you as my one and only mate.”
“Aaron, I don’t understand. You’re what, nearly thirty? How come you’ve never been with a woman?” She hesitated. “At least I’m guessing that’s the case from what you’ve said.”
“I’m twenty-five, and shifters, well, in our human form, we wait for the right one to come along so we can give with all of our heart and soul. The opposite as when we mate as animals which is purely for procreation and without emotion.” He paused in front of a large wooden house, much bigger than the others in the village. “And you have, finally. Come along, that is.” He wrapped his arm around her waist. “Welcome home, mate.”
Chapter Eight
“Wow, it’s impressive,” Chloe said.
“Built with my own hands.”
“It must have taken years.”
“I had time to kill as I was waiting.” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “Waiting for you as it turns out.”
Have I been waiting for him?
She looked into his eyes. They were full of love and desire and brimming with excitement and passion.
Yes. It’s him I’ve been searching for.
The sudden knowledge was like a light coming on in her mind and heart. She could see a future with him. She wasn’t sure of the details, but it was Aaron she needed to be with. Her soul was content when he was near, her future secure and warm.
“Chloe.” He cupped her face, the way he often did. “I want to take you inside our home, strip off your clothes, and show you how much you mean to me. Show you how you’ve completed my life and how I will spend the rest of my days making you, my mate, happy.”
“You move fast, Aaron.”
Too fast?
“Only when I’m determined to get what I want.”
He stooped and the next thing she knew, she’d been lifted into the air and was pressed against his chest.
“Aaron.” A giggle erupted from her. It was a release of tension, a bubble of joy. She liked the sound of him stripping her naked and being his mate. Hell, what girl wouldn’t?
But he’s a snow leopard.
She pushed the thought aside. How much did that fact about him really matter?
He marched up the two steps and then kicked the door open. It whacked against a wall with a hefty thud.
What greeted her wasn’t what she’d expected. A large room with a huge fireplace was set before her. There was a kitchen area to the right, huge windows making the most of the spectacular view. And the furniture was elegant and polished. Pictures hung on the wall and the room smelled of flowers.
“Do you like it?”
“It’s nothing
like the meager shack I’ve been staying in. I like it very much. It’s positively five star.”
“Good.” He stepped over the threshold, still carrying her, and back-kicked the door shut. “But you can study it more later. Right now, we’re going to the bedroom. I want to hear the cute little noises you make when you come again.”
“Aaron.” She swung her legs, but clung tighter to him.
“Don’t pretend you don’t want it.” He chuckled and then tipped her onto a huge four-poster bed.
“Wow,” she said again, staring up at the thick scarlet material billowing above her. “This is lovely.”
“Only the best for my woman.” He pulled off his sweater. “And as a Western woman, I know you’ll appreciate all the modern comforts I’ve added to make life easier.” He stooped and removed his boots. Then he stood and pushed his pants down his legs, and kicked them aside.
Chloe propped herself onto her elbows and feasted her gaze on him. Her whole body reacted to seeing him naked and aroused. Her pussy dampened, and her nipples tingled.
He placed his hands on his hips. His erection bobbed, the head shiny and domed. “Take your clothes off.”
She swallowed. “Yes.”
Hurriedly, she fumbled with her boots, and then tugged at her jacket and undergarments. A minute later, she was also naked.
He hadn’t moved, watching her intently. “Your body is so soft and pretty,” he said.
She lay flat and cupped her breasts, trapped her nipples between her fingers and tugged. “My body wants your body.”
He smiled and crawled onto the bed, his face level with hers. “I want to do something.”
“Tell me.”
He moved so his lips were brushing her mouth. “I want to taste you … down there.”
She clenched the muscles in her belly and tweaked her nipples harder.
“I want to taste you the way you did me.” He paused. “Can I?”
“Yes.”
He grinned and slithered downward, his skin heating hers. Pausing at her chest, he took her hand away from her right nipple and flicked it with his tongue.
She moaned and closed her eyes. Her nipples were so sensitive.
He repeated the action, scooping her breast into his palm and gently massaging.
“Aaron,” she said, slotting her fingers into his hair. “Yes, like that.”
He sucked and nibbled, and then switched his attention to her other breast, treated it to the same caress.
After a few minutes, she needed more. “Please … lick me.”
“With pleasure.” He kissed his way down her belly.
She spread her legs, allowing him to settle between them. There was something so erotic about being with a man with limited experience. Not that she was overloaded with sexual history, but still…
“Ohh…” She gasped as he ran his tongue over her labia and settled it on her clit.
Clutching the bed sheet, she curled her toes and arched her back.
He set up a steady rhythm on her clitoris.
Oh, God, it must be instinctual. He’s spot on.
He worked her with his tongue, building her up.
Soon the pressure was at overspill point. “Aaron, oh … yes. Now…”
He lifted up and gripped her waist. His expression was dark, his cock thick and engorged. “Turn over. I want you from behind.”
“No, please, like this, over me. I want us to come together, face to face.”
“You do?”
“Yes, there are lots of ways for us to come, not just with you behind.” She tugged his arms. “Please, come here, the way we did in the tent the first time, but until we climax, together.”
He hesitated.
For a moment, she thought he was going to flip her over and fuck her despite her request, but he didn’t. He slid up her and eased his cock into her pussy.
“Oh…” Her mouth hung open as she stared up at him. She was wet and ready for his girth, but still the combination of pleasure and discomfort was breathtaking.
“I’m hurting you?” Concern crossed his face.
“No, no, it’s wonderful. You’re wonderful.”
“So you’ll stay?” He hit full depth and captured her face in his hands. “Here with me?”
“Yes. I really want to.”
His eyes softened. “That’s all I need to know. The rest we can work out.”
“Can we?” There was so much to work out.
“Yes. We are mates now.”
“But my work?” Could she give it up? She’d strived to become a wildlife documentary producer for years.
“Your filming will reach new levels here with me. You will be an ambassador for the mountain animals as well as contributing to the species.” He paused. “There could be no better way to use your talents.”
“Contribute to the species?”
“Yes. We will have children, the males will become shifters in their teens. You are my destiny.” He withdrew and pushed back in. “You are also the destiny of the snow leopards.”
His words spun in her mind. Her children, the boys, would become shifters. They’d help populate a dwindling species. She and Aaron, together forever … here in this beautiful, but dangerous land where the earth met the sky. And what was more, she’d get to film it all.
“I love you,” he whispered against her lips.
“I love you, too.” She paused. “My beautiful, handsome, mate.”
He groaned and captured her mouth in a deep, passionate kiss, began to rock his hips, rubbing against her clit and building up her orgasm.
After a few minutes, she broke the kiss. “Come with me, Aaron. Like this, two humans finding satisfaction together, face to face.”
“I’m … going to … it’s too good.” His eyes glazed slightly and he pulled back his lips. “It’s here, my seed.”
As he toppled into his release, Chloe allowed hers to ravage her. She clung to him, watching his expression as he succumbed to pleasure.
On the final throe, he released a primitive growl that dragged another luscious spasm of bliss from her. Heat washed through her. Happiness filled her heart and soul.
Never in a million years did Chloe Burton think she’d make a life for herself in the Himalayas, with a beautiful man who could shift into a snow leopard. But it seemed that was what her future held, and she couldn’t be more excited about what a life at altitude held in store for her and her mate.
www.evernightpublishing.com/lily-harlem
FATED TO THE RAZORBACK DEMON
Maia Dylan
Copyright © 2017
Chapter One
Demon Kane watched his opponent step sideways, and he countered it with a move of his own. Both men bled from various wounds. The swell of dominance that filled the cage they fought in told him that their animals drifted close to the surface. But Demon had a distinct advantage over the wolf shifter he faced off against. His animal was calmest, and his control over the beast never stronger than when he was fighting, no matter what form he took to do it.
“How does it feel knowing you are the last of your crew?” the wolf shifter said in a garbled voice, another sign his wolf pushed forward.
Demon remained quiet. The wolf wasn’t the first to try to goad him into making a mistake.
“When I end you, pig,” the wolf spat, “I’ll be fucking famous. I will go down in history as the man who killed the legendary Razorback Demon.”
Again Demon refused to rise to the taunt, simply tracking him as he moved around the cage. The wolf was tiring. Hell, if truth be told, Demon was feeling pretty fucking tired himself, but the wolf’s fatigue fueled his frustration, and that meant it would only be a matter of time.
Demon saw when the wolf tensed as he prepared to move to strike out at him, and stepped in to counter it. They came together in a flurry of punches and roundhouse kicks that whipped the crowd into a frenzy. As sick as it might sound to many, Demon thrived on the crowd’s reaction to the fight. He enjoyed the ro
ars of approval when his opponent scored a direct hit, but he lived for their groans of disappointment when he inevitably fought back.
Demon was lost in the fierce dance of battle, watching and countering the moves of the wolf. He felt each blow that connected, but as if from a distance. His beast wallowed in the pain and reveled in the scent of blood filling the arena. This was what they lived for. Razorbacks were a vicious breed, thriving on violence, and Demon was the worst of them all. He had nothing to lose when he stepped into the ring.
He saw the wolf’s left foot slip in the blood that pooled on the floor of the cage. Inside, his beast roared with triumph, knowing that victory was within his grasp. Demon inhaled, readying himself to step in and strike, using the side of his right hand to crush the wolf’s windpipe. This would give Demon the seconds he would need to step quickly behind his opponent, and snap his neck. But the scent he drew in gave him pause.
Mate.
He knew it as soon as he scented her. The one woman the Fates had destined would be his was here in the arena. His heart sank even as it began to pound in anticipation. He had never expected to meet his mate. Never wanted to curse a woman with who he was as a man, let alone the beast that lived within him. He had lived his life believing that surely the Fates wouldn’t be so cruel as to tie a woman to him, and yet here she was.
His opponent forgotten, he turned to search the crowd through the electrified mesh of the cage walls. It was a Friday night and the place was packed with shifters and humans alike, all here to watch two men rip each other apart all in the name of entertainment. His gaze slid across the faces in the crowd with a desperation he had never felt before. He knew he would recognize his mate the moment he saw her. He—
Demon grunted as pain exploded in his right side. He dropped to the left out of instinct and avoided the elbow the wolf bastard aimed at his temple by mere millimeters. He went with his own momentum and dove to the ground, rolling over his shoulder to come back to his feet. For the first time in his life, his beast was roaring for him to forget the fight. He demanded that Demon rip the cage open and tear the crowd apart until their mate stood before them. He had always found it difficult to control the beast, but with the prospect of finding their mate, it was damn near impossible.
