by Lynn Hagen
Not as long as he had one hell of a team on his side.
Rick bent down and pulled Dorian from the floor. “We need to get the bullet out and patch him up.” Rick knew the wound wasn’t fatal. It hadn’t nicked an artery like it had when Omar had been shot.
His mate would recover and live another day to fight by his side.
“I swear to god I’m going to kill that narrow-minded bastard!” Dorian shouted. “The next time I see Jayson, I’m going to have a damn gun to his head.”
Rick nuzzled Dorian’s neck. “You are so hot when you want blood.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Dorian said, but Rick could see the knowing look in his mate’s Peruvian-colored eyes. Dorian was turned on by Rick’s lust. “Just get us out of here before the soldiers arrive.”
“Gladly.” Rick walked from the loft and carried his mate all the way back to the truck, whispering in Dorian’s ear the entire time about what he planned on doing with him just as soon as his mate healed.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Deluca paced the bedroom, watching as his best friend writhed in pain. His shouts and growls ripped at Deluca’s heart. But he would rather have Brooke suffer through this than lose the man. Brooke had been there for him for as long as Deluca could remember, and watching the man die was not an option.
They were not only best friends, but Deluca wasn’t sure he would know how to live without Brooke in his life. The man was an integral part of everything Deluca lived through. If it hadn’t been for Brooke and his family, Deluca knew he would have died years ago. He was on a self-destructive path and didn’t even know it. He took suicidal chances with his life, slept with more women than he cared to count, and had thought he was unworthy of anyone’s love.
His parents once told him that he was a ticking time bomb and if he was hell-bent on killing himself, then they would rather he do it somewhere else.
But it was Brooke who showed him that life had a lot to offer. It was Brooke who showed him that not all families were cold-hearted bastards.
And it was Brooke who stuck by his side when all Deluca did was push him away. Deluca would never be able to repay his best friend for the things he had shown Deluca or the nurturing the man had given him at a time when Deluca needed it the most.
They were best buds, brothers, and he was not going to lose Brooke.
Willow bathed Brooke with the cool rags, but nothing seemed to help. Deluca could see the sweat return just as quickly as it was being wiped away.
He felt helpless as he paced the room, wondering how long the man was going to suffer.
Deluca tensed, clenching his jaw when Brooke arched his back off of the bed and then began to flail around. It looked as though he were being jerked around by an unseen hand.
“Stay back,” Willow warned when Deluca rushed over to the bed. “I know you want to help, Deluca, believe me, I know. But if you go near him right now, he could rip your arm off unintentionally.”
“Then why in the hell are you sitting next to him?” Deluca demanded. If Brooke was that unstable, he didn’t want Willow anywhere near the man. It should be him sitting there taking that chance, not Willow.
“I’m changeling. I can handle him.”
Deluca was not going to let his male pride be hurt. He knew Willow was stronger than him. It fucked with his mind, but he wasn’t that caught up in his ego to deny the fact.
“What can we do?” Laura said from the doorway. Deluca could hear the strain in her voice and knew she wanted to stop her son from hurting.
“Nothing,” Willow said gently. “There is nothing anyone can do but wait.”
Brooke’s body began to sprout light-grey hair as his jaw elongated. He howled as his body spasmed on the bed. Deluca’s hands curled into fists, making himself stay back as his best friend began to pant heavily.
Willow jumped up just as Brooke jackknifed and began to crawl toward the foot of the bed. His body twisted and writhed as he clawed his way toward them. Deluca ground his teeth and made himself stay rooted to the spot. But it wasn’t easy. It was not fucking easy. “Stop it,” Brooke begged. “Stop the pain.”
Laura began to cry behind Deluca, Pappy and Dad cocooning her in as Brooke curled his fingers around the footboard and splintered a large portion of the wood. His eyes were glowing, and his body was taking on more and more characteristics of a werecoyote.
Brooke rolled to his back, crying out as claws shot from his fingernails, blood decorating his hands. Laura cried louder as Deluca watched in fascinated horror.
“He will only bleed with the first shift,” Willow informed them as she looked just as helpless as Deluca felt. He was aching with his friend, suffering. Only his pain lay in the fact that there was nothing he could do for Brooke. “And it will only be painful the first time. After tonight, he should have no problems or pain.”
“Thirsty,” Brooke said in a raspy voice as he lay there panting.
Willow hurried to the bed and poured him a glass of water. “He’s burning up.” Once Willow gave him the water, she applied the cold compresses to his body. Brooke lay there shaking, but sweat was still glistening on his skin.
“How much longer?” Deluca asked around a tight lump that was forming in his throat. He loved the man like a brother. It was killing him to see Brooke in so much pain and Deluca couldn’t kill anyone for this.
Willow ran her hands through her hair, her hands shaking as she shook her head. “There isn’t a set amount of time. Every conversion is different. He could be going through the final stages, or it could take until tomorrow.”
“No,” Laura cried. “I can’t watch him suffer that long.”
“It’s better than the alternative,” Willow snapped. Deluca knew she was just as worried, just as scared as everyone else. The tension was running high, and everyone was feeling intense. Deluca wrapped Willow in his arms as a fine tremor shook her body. “I have you, sweetheart.”
Willow curled her fingers into his shirt, holding on as Deluca watched Brooke’s head thrash from side to side.
“I’ll take Laura out of here for now,” Dad said as he guided Laura from the room.
“I’m sorry,” Willow said as she turned to Pappy. “I know she is just as afraid as we are. I shouldn’t have snapped.”
Pappy gave a nod, his eyes fixed on Brooke. “We’re all worried.”
Everyone jumped when Brooke’s werecoyote finally burst from his body. It was like nothing Deluca had seen before. One minute Brooke was hairy, with a long jaw and claws, and a second later, he was a fully developed werecoyote. Deluca raced toward the bed but stopped just a few feet from it.
Brooke sprung from the bed, landing on his feet, crouched, one hand on the floor. He growled, glaring at everyone with a menacing snarl. The man was fucking huge!
“Don’t move,” Willow whispered. “This is all new to him, and he is scenting the room for a perceived threat. His werecoyote is in charge right now.”
Deluca froze when Brooke stood to his full height and walked right up to him. His head dipped down, his nose sniffing at Deluca’s hair. He could hear a low growl rumbling in the man’s chest.
“Hey, bud,” Deluca said. “You, uh, aren’t going to eat me, are you?”
Brooke pulled his head back, staring down into Deluca’s eyes. Brooke still had his amethyst eyes, but there were shards of yellow bursting through the purple as Brooke gazed at him.
“No.” Brooke’s voice was gravelly, growly, and deep. He pulled his muzzle back to show a row of very sharp teeth. Deluca thought he was going to have to fight Brooke from the way he was trying to back Deluca into the wall.
“Then stand down, Brooke,” Willow commanded harshly.
Brooke’s head snapped around, and then he was across the room faster than Deluca could blink. Brooke towered over Willow, snapping, snarling, and baring his teeth. His stance was menacing, and Deluca started toward his best friend until Willow spoke.
“Oh, how cute. You’re peacocking for me.” Her sm
all hands went to her hips as she glared up at Brooke. “Nice show.”
Deluca gaped at her. “Is that what he’s doing?”
Willow nodded, but never broke eye contact with the beast standing in front of her. “He’s trying to show me that he is a strong, dominant male that can take me down and mount me.”
Deluca couldn’t stop the chuckle. It would be so Brooke to try and show Willow how truly worthy he was. “Mount you? I like the way that sounds.”
Brooke gave a low growl as he turned his head toward Deluca, his coyote eyes narrowing in warning.
“Oh, hell no,” Deluca protested. “She’s ours, not yours.”
“No.” Willow quickly shook her head. “Don’t push him right now. He is going off of pure instincts. If he perceives you as competition, his werecoyote will fight you to the death, Deluca.”
“Fuck that,” Deluca said as he stood his ground. “There is no way in hell I’m standing here and letting him lay claim to you while he shuts me out.”
Brooke growled at Deluca.
Deluca crossed the room and growled at Brooke, getting right up in his face. Of course, his growl wasn’t as impressive as the werecoyote’s. But he was not about to bow out. He knew that if he didn’t set the rules with Brooke’s beast from the beginning, the changeling was going to think he could shove Deluca around.
That was not going to happen—even if Brooke seemed to have grown by at least two feet and his body width had doubled. Still, Deluca was not going to allow his best friend to push him around.
Brooke leaned forward and sniffed at him again, this time he could hear a small whimper and then a grunt.
“He knows you,” Willow said. “He recognizes your scent.”
“Of course he does.” Deluca smiled up at Brooke. “We’re best friends.”
Deluca narrowed his eyes at Brooke when the changeling reached out and chucked Deluca on the chin with his massive, furry hand.
“Do that again and I’ll kick your ass. You know I hate when you treat me like a damn kid.” Brooke tried to do it again, and Deluca batted his hand away.
Brooke grunted.
Deluca growled.
“I take it all is well?” Pappy asked as he watched the exchange between both men. Deluca wanted to laugh. He could just imagine what he and Brooke looked like challenging each other.
“Yes,” Willow replied as she smiled. “Could we have some privacy? Brooke needs to get used to his new form and rub his scent…” Willow’s cheeks blushed to such a deep shade of red that Deluca laughed.
“Enough said.” Pappy closed the door, leaving the three of them alone.
“Shift,” Willow commanded at Brooke.
“Why are you making him shift?” Deluca asked as Brooke began to lose the characteristics of his werecoyote, his human features becoming more predominant. He was glad as fuck when he saw Brooke’s neck fully healed.
“If he doesn’t, then his werecoyote will try to be the dominant force between them. They are both new to one another, and his changeling form is trying to figure out if he should lead or follow. Since Brooke was able to push his beast back he will be able to control his changeling form better.”
Brooke swayed and Deluca caught quickly him. “I gotcha, buddy. It looks like you need to get some rest.”
“Thanks,” Brooke said in a voice that sounded like it was strained and as rough as sandpaper. “I need to lie down.”
Willow helped Deluca get Brooke into bed and then he gave Willow a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for saving him.”
Willow refused to look at Deluca as she tucked the covers around Brooke. “If it wasn’t for me, he wouldn’t be in this mess.”
Deluca pulled Willow into his arms, running his fingers through her thick mane of hair. He couldn’t believe how much he loved this woman. She had come to mean the world to him in such a short period of time. “It isn’t your fault Garrett was a nut job. I don’t want you blaming yourself, understood?”
Willow nodded and then pulled away from Deluca. “I’m going to lie with him while he rests so I can keep an eye on him.”
“I’ll go check on the kids. Let me know if you need me.” Deluca walked from the room and thanked whoever was listening that Brooke had survived.
“Rick called,” Brooke said as Deluca and Willow walked into the bedroom and began to strip their clothes off for bed. Brooke was finally back to his old self. It had been two days since his attack, but he was feeling much better and had enough energy to fool around with Willow.
He would always have energy for the woman he loved. She had saved his life and he would always be thankful. His new body was taking some getting used to, but Brooke liked his heightened senses and the strength he felt racing through him at any given moment.
His eyes wandered to Willow as she pulled her blouse over her head and exposed two perfect breasts. Brooke’s mouth began to water. She pulled her jeans from her hips, and Brooke was damn near panting. Her thick curves were revealed to him, and all he could do was watch in utter fascination. She was a goddess in his eyes. He loved every soft curve, every inch of her creamy flesh, and her dark red hair as it flowed around her.
He pulled his eyes away so he could relay the news, although it was not the easiest thing in the world to do. His cock was rock hard, and his body was priming up to take her. “He says it was all a setup by the werehyeana alpha. Some guy named Tyson. The Death Squad killed him, and then Rick and his group killed the Death Squad.”
Deluca was in the middle of pulling his boxers off when he stilled. His blond eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “You’re shitting me!”
“Nope,” Brooke replied as he ran his hand over his jaw. “He and his men killed every last one of them. I’m just wondering if O’Hanlon will form another group or take a different avenue in trying to catch Rick. You know he is going to use this to his advantage.”
Deluca shook his head as he tossed the boxers aside and crawled into bed, spooning his body behind Willow who had just climbed in and cuddled up to Brooke.
Brooke ran his hand down her side. Damn if the woman didn’t have the softest skin. He could rub his hands over the creamy flesh all night long. “I still don’t know why he has such a hard-on for the werewolf alpha. My research only showed Rick being a damn district manager of a chain of grocery stores before all of this happened,” Brooke said as his cock thickened even further from having Willow so close. He could scent her arousal and it smelled so damn sweet as it clung to the air around them.
“Beats me,” Deluca replied as he began to play in Willow’s hair. He wrapped the long length around his hand, giving it a slight tug. Brooke watched as Willow’s eyes fluttered closed and a moan fell from her full lips.
“What about Kell’s files?” Willow asked as she opened her eyes, staring directly at Brooke.
Brooke shook his head. He wished all of his news was good. “The werejackals rescued the kids and burned the place to the ground. Nothing was salvageable.”
“Then we have no record of what Garrett did to Kell?” Willow asked as she pushed herself into a sitting position. “What about the other children? No one will know if they were experimented on.”
“Logan apologized to Rick. The werejackal alpha hadn’t known about any records,” Brooke replied. “But he said since the six toddlers are orphans, his pack is going to raise them.” Brooke was glad as hell the toddlers had a home. He was just pissed that he didn’t know what had been done to not only Kell, but the other kids.
“Can we not talk about Garrett and his insanity?” Willow asked as she sunk back down into the bed. Her expression had gone from desire to one of deep thought.
“Whatever you want, sugar,” Brooke said as he cupped one of her bountiful breasts and sucked the taut nipple into his eager mouth.
He smiled when the stressed expression vanished from Willow’s face, replaced by a look of pure pleasure. Now that was how he liked his girl to look—relaxed, needy, and falling apart in his arms.
He was still trying to get used to the heightened sense thing, but Brooke learned right away what Willow’s arousal smelled like and he loved it. He wanted to bathe in that scent. It was wild, spicy, and made his mouth water and his dick hard every time he inhaled the fragrance into his lungs.
Brooke sucked at the nipple, teasing it, playing with it. He seemed to be addicted to Willow’s breasts. Every time they were exposed, he was attaching his lips to them.
But Deluca…well, his best friend preferred the slick folds of her pussy. He bragged that the taste was his own personal addiction, but it was Brooke’s turn to taste her sweet nectar. He slid down the bed and pushed himself right between her thick legs.
Brooke glanced up. He loved looking at her while he sucked at her cunt. Loved watching her face, the expressions that flickered across it, the almost painful need that filled her emerald-green eyes.
Willow had the ability to destroy his senses like no other woman had. Just one look, one touch, one smile and Brooke melted for her. He had found the one woman who could tame him, bring him to his knees, and make him want to be a better man.
He had found Willow. His mate. His wife. His world.
A hot pulse of hunger flared through him at the thought. He could feel the small nub throb between his lips as he sucked it in deeper, rasping his tongue until Willow was clenching her thighs around his head. Brooke smiled, lapped at her cunt a few more times, and then reared back. His hands smoothed over his thick thighs, his fingers playing at the moist, dark-red hair that covered what he knew to be a very pretty pussy.
“Why are you teasing me, Brooke?” Willow whimpered as she thrashed around.
“Oh, sweetheart, you haven’t seen teasing yet.” He plunged his fingers into her wet, hot pussy, gathering the cream and then slid his fingers into her ass. Her hips bucked, her desperate cry escalating as he stared down at her hair fanning the pillow in thick, deep waves.
She was breathtaking.
“Put her on her hands and knees,” Deluca instructed as he moved toward the head of the bed. Brooke kept his fingers buried in her rear end as she rolled over and then pushed her bottom into the air.
