by Rose, Aubrey
Human Shifter
by Aubrey Rose
Julia and Damien are aching to start a family, but Julia's shifting ability has been suppressed for years. Despite the danger, she ventures out on a quest to find the werewitch who took away her ability to shift, so that she can get it back ... and have a child with her one true mate.
WARNING: This story ends with a cliffhanger! The full series will be available later, so if you don't like suspenseful endings, please subscribe to my mailing list at AubreyRoseWrites.com to be notified when the whole series is out!
From New York Times Bestselling author Aubrey Rose comes a new shifter book that's as wild and hot as anything. This werewolf shifter BBW romance novella is 25,000 words long, has some naughty language, and a lot of naughty sex. Be warned!
Copyright 2013 by Aubrey Rose
First Kindle Edition: October 2013
ISBN: TBD
Cover design by Aubrey Watt
CHAPTER ONE
Julia
Julia had just dropped her course catalog on her bed when from behind her came a low growl.
"Don't move," the voice said.
She froze. Her notebook tumbled from her fingers to the floor and spilled loose pages everywhere. After only a split second, before she could decide whether or not to turn around, strong arms came around her chest and gripped her tightly. She gasped as hot lips grazed her neck, the touch electrifying her nerves and giving away the identity of the intruder as the connection between them sprang into clear focus.
"Haven't I told you not to sneak up on me like that?" she said.
"Well, but I never thought you meant it. Besides," he said, nuzzling her hair, "you deserve it."
"Deserve it?" Julia wanted to turn around, but Damien's hands were moving over her body in such a delicious way ...
"Of course you deserve it. For letting a blind man sneak up on you. Again!"
"First off, you can't very well call yourself blind," Julia said, leaning back into his embrace as his teeth nibbled at her ear. "You can sense me better than I—"
"I am legally blind." Damien said. "Furthermore, one sense does not replace another. I would give my left ear—"
"To see my right tit, yes, I know," Julia said, grinning as she spun around to face her mate. She couldn't stop a flash of sympathy from crossing her heart when she saw again the white scars that crisscrossed his eyes, the misted irises speckled gold that gleamed amber when he kissed her. He was always more wolflike in bed.
"I don't want your pity," Damien said, clasping her hands to his chest. His eyebrows were dark slashes across his forehead.
"Don't spy—"
"It's not spying. I can't help it. I want things to be open between us."
"It's only open in one direction," Julia said. She hoped that she did not sound too petulant. "I'm looking the wrong way into a one-way mirror here."
"I tell you everything that I feel," Damien said.
"You tell me some of the things you feel," Julia said. "Not all."
"No?"
"Not what you're feeling when you smell Mara go by after a workout." Julia cocked her head.
Damien closed his eyes.
"Julia ... "
"You don't need to explain," she said, snapping down on the thought she hadn't meant to let slip out.
"It's different," Damien said. "I don't love her. Hell, I don't even like her. It's a purely physical reaction."
"As opposed to what? All of the NON-physical emotions that I must have?" Julia said. She hadn't meant to start a fight, but now that he was on the defensive, she was too.
"No, you're right," Damien said. "It's not fair. I need to stop getting so upset."
"I'm sorry," Julia said, feeling guilty for her sarcasm and frustration at knowing Damien could already sense her guilt. "I know it's physical for you., It's physical for me too, when I look at your face." She placed both her hands on his cheeks, her thumbs stoking the seams lightly. "But of course there's more than pity. There's love. I hope you feel that."
"I do. I want you to be able to feel it from me too."
"That's impossible."
She said it softly. But he winced as she spoke the last word as though she had slapped him across the face.
"I'm sorry," she said again, the words spinning off helplessly into the air between them that now seemed so thick. He sighed and touched her face.
"I only wish I could see all of the beautiful parts of you that I can feel." He caressed her cheek with one hand, the fingers sliding down rapidly to her breast and cupping the weight there as he grinned. A wolf's grin. Julia knew then that the argument was over.
"But for now," he said, moving his hands lower, "I'll just have to feel twice as much."
"Oh, really?" Julia said, laughing as his hands wrapped around her waist and cupped her ass, pulling her against his body. She could feel his length through his pants, already growing hard. "Twice as much?"
"Maybe three times as much," Damien said, squeezing her ass as he picked her up entirely. Julia was pinned against his body, and she wriggled in his grasp.
"Put me down!" she gasped. Damien's face was pressed between her breasts, his nose nuzzling her skin.
"Whatever you want," Damien said, throwing her down onto the bed and jumping on top of her. She barely had time to yelp before his hands were moving all over her, tearing her clothes off as he forced kisses down her neck.
"Damien! Ohh!" Julia twisted under him, hiding her smile. It was fun to play this game with him, for while he had the strength to pin her completely, he could also sense Julia's emotions and react accordingly. She enjoyed wrestling with him more than she cared to admit.
His mouth kissed her shoulder, her chest, slid over her nipples, sucking until she cried out with the thrilling pain of it, then continued on, biting her on the neck gently, like a wolf admonishing a pup, then harder, sucking and licking her skin until she was breathless. His dark hair fell over his eyes and tickled her body when he bent down and kissed her hard, so that she was laughing through the kiss, then gasping, gasping for air.
"Damien!"
Strong fingers pushed aside her underwear and she felt him press his hand against her there. She moaned. Already she was wet with desire. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the sensations Damien must be feeling when he met her body with his, blind to light. The feel of skin on skin. The warmth of breath. The sweet sighs and moans that rose from both of them, intertwining.
But if he felt her emotions, he must feel this too. Julia let herself sink into the sensation of Damien as he slid into her slowly, filling her. Her lips fell apart in a soundless groan. He stopped halfway and she reached up, pulling his hips forward into her, but he had her pinned.
"Please," she said. "Please."
He kissed her mouth, waited one more second, then eased in farther. God, he was so big. He stretched her out, but then retreated, beginning a slow thrusting rhythm that was unlike most of their lovemaking. Their first time making love had been fast, furious, brutal almost. Julia arched her hips up now as he pushed forward, then back, slowly, oh-so-slowly.
"Slow," he said, and it was both a command and a caress.
She rocked with him, then, the burning pressure mounting slowly as their rhythms began to match. Just as she felt herself about to crest, he pulled back.
"Torture," she gasped.
"Slow torture," Damien agreed, kissing her forehead as he thrust upward just a bit more, eliciting another gasp from her body. "For me, too."
"Oh, god, Damien, please—"
Her words faded as he thrust again, harder, penetrating de
ep into her core. She wanted it, yes, she wanted him. He began to rock harder into her body, still slowly, aiming at the perfect angle that pressed against her body, slicking over her sensitive flesh. Every thrust brought on a new bout of pressure, the ache within her building, building ...
"Should I stop before ... "
"No!" Julia pulled Damien close to her, her body clenching around him. He thrust once more, deeply, sending her tumbling into ecstasy, her mind unwinding, spinning out. Her eyes clenched shut, she saw stars still, blindingly white flashes that lifted her up. She gasped, the release so blissful she could not breathe.
He came after her, the shudder from his body rippling against her skin as he paused in climax. She opened her eyes to see him above her, his nose grazing hers. His eyes were open, too, and in them she saw a burning amber glow that flared brightly as he spasmed inside of her once, then again.
Damien kissed her lips softly, and she was surprised to feel him trembling. He rolled off of her, sighing in satisfaction as his head lay down on the pillow.
"Come here, love," he said. Julia snuggled up into the crook of his shoulder, her hand against his chest. They rested in silence for a minute, Damien's arms folded protectively around Julia. His breaths came at regular intervals, his unseeing eyes open to the ceiling.
"What are you thinking about?" she asked suddenly. "You're lost in thought."
Damien reached down and touched her belly, his fingers hesitant.
"I know you say you want children," Damien said. "If we keep doing this, though, it might happen sooner rather than later."
"We don't even know if it's possible yet," Julia said, turning her chin up to look at him. "You said yourself that shifters can't breed with humans."
"You're not human," Damien said.
"I sure as hell can't shift," Julia said.
"No?" Damien nuzzled her neck.
"I've been trying. It's not there. I don't know if that changes things. Maybe we can't even have children at all." Damien frowned, and Julia knew that he was sensing her conflicted feelings. She loved him, that much was certain, and the thought that they might not be able to have a baby was heartbreaking. That Damien would have to live as a shifter without her was equally heartbreaking, if she couldn't figure out how to shift from her human form.
"I hope we can," Damien said. "I just want you to be ready for it, in case—"
"If it happens, it happens," Julia said. The thought of starting a family with Damien made her happy. Nervous, but happy.
"What about your school?" Damien asked. "You've just started ... "
"I'll manage," Julia said firmly. "Not having to work at the library anymore gives me so much free time. And don't forget, you'll be changing half of the diapers."
"Change diapers?" Damien said. "How can I change diapers? I'm blind!"
"I'm pretty sure you'll be able to do it by scent," Julia giggled. Damien groaned, slapping his forehead with one hand.
"So you're not pregnant yet, right?" Damien asked. He smiled, but his expression underneath was serious.
"How would I know?" Julia said. "I haven't missed a period yet, if that's what you mean."
"I've always heard that you can tell right when it happens," Damien said. "Maybe it's different with us."
"Us?"
"Shifters, I mean," Damien said. "I just mean, maybe you—"
"I get it," Julia said flatly. She hated when he referred to shifters as us. She already felt excluded from the pack. And now this was just one more way in which she was different from the rest of them. Different from him. As though it wasn't enough that she wouldn't be able to stay with him as a wolf when he grew older. She'd never really felt at home in her own body anyway, and the way Damien talked made her feel as though there was something wrong with her. Missing.
Damien was her perfect mate, her one true love. The connection she felt with him was truly unbreakable. But at times like these, she was so far removed from his experience that it seemed not even their connection could hold them together. Not for the first time since their bonding ceremony, she felt as though she were disappointing him by being only human.
"I need to go pick out my classes," she said, and rolled upright, pulling her clothes back on quickly. She couldn't figure out how to explain herself to him without hurting him. It wasn't Damien's fault that she couldn't shift, after all.
"Okay," Damien said quietly. "I love you."
Julia bent over the bed and kissed him on the lips. She felt a flash of anger at the idea that he was reading her emotions. She had no idea what was passing through his head at that second. Maybe she never would.
"I love you too," she said, standing back up. Damien lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling with his eyes open as though he could see. The scars that ran over his eyes creased with the hint of a frown, and although she knew that his golden eyes were blind, she thought she could still see a disturbed expression in them.
CHAPTER TWO
Damien
Damien stretched his arms out as Jordan pressed a stethoscope to his bare chest. The bathroom was not large, and his hands could almost reach from one wall to the other over the sink. Damien flinched at the icy cold metal against his skin.
"Ooh, chilly," Damien said.
"Breathe in," Jordan said. He bent so close to Damien's chest that his beard hairs tickled Damien's skin. "I've never met a pup more than a month old who whined so much during a checkup."
"Have I ever told you that you need to work on your bedside manner?" Damien asked.
"Breathe out, if you have any hot air left in you," Jordan said. He moved the stethoscope lower. "Breathe in. Breathe out. Okay, now don't say anything, just hold your breath."
Damien obliged. Jordan took off the stethoscope and put it back in his bag. Damien waited as he took out a needle and syringe from his bag, laying out the gauze and bandages on the sink, medical instruments clinking against the granite counter. Damien waited and waited. Was Jordan seeing how long he could keep air in his lungs? He hadn't counted, but he was sure it was more than a minute ago. His lungs burned for oxygen, but he held on as long as he possibly could. Finally, he could not hold his breath any longer. He exhaled loudly.
"What was that for?" Damien asked, panting.
"Oh, holding your breath?" Jordan said. "I just wanted a moment's peace and quiet from all your yipping."
Damien cuffed his friend on the shoulder.
"You're a terrible doctor," he said.
"Never pretended otherwise," Jordan said. "So why are we here?"
"I'm worried about Julia," Damien said.
"Clearly. So you ask me to give you a physical examination." Jordan tapped his fingers on the edge of the sink. "What's this about Julia?"
"Whether or not she can shift."
"I've done this already," Jordan said. "I've gone through it with her and with you."
"And there's nothing—"
"There's nothing physically wrong with her," Jordan said. "And the blood tests come back the same as the grandmother. Shifter. And I don't have the equipment to do it here, but even if I did a genetic test in more depth, I already know how it would look. Look at her red hair, green eyes. She's got every recessive gene there is, including that of a purebred."
"If she's a purebred shifter, then why can't she shift?" Damien asked.
"Ask the grandmother."
"Dee doesn't know what happened," Damien said. "There's very little she does know. Hypnosis, that was all she could say."
"Hypnosis can't change her physical structure," Jordan said. "I may not be the best doctor in the territory, but I know that much."
"Then why can't she shift?"
"Got me," Jordan said. "Put out your arm. Why do you want to know?"
"We've been trying to conceive," Damien said quietly, his voice dropping to a lower register. He winced at the tiny pinch of the needle in his arm, glad at the very least that he didn't have to see the blood flowing through the needle. He'd always hated needles.
"There shouldn't be anything wrong with that," Jordan said, his expert fingers pressing a square of gauze against the needle and withdrawing it easily.
"She hasn't felt the conception yet," Damien said.
"It doesn't always happen the first time," Jordan said, a smile in his voice. "Sometimes it takes a while. Weeks, months, even years."
"I'd be alright with waiting," Damien said, "but it's not fair to her to just keep waiting and waiting without making sure it's not a physical impossibility between us."
"Would it change anything?" Jordan asked. Damien drew a breath between his teeth. He knew what his friend was asking him. The entire pack depended on him as alpha, and if he wasn't able to have a litter of his own, someone would almost certainly challenge him for the role. If he decided to stay with Julia, and if Julia was stuck as a human for the rest of her life, he could not go on leading a shifter pack.
"I'm not sure," Damien said. "But I'd like to have as much information as possible before I decide on any one path. Scent twice before you run, right?"
"Right," Jordan said. "If you want me to check her out—"
"I want you to check everything with me first," Damien said. "I don't want to assume that it's got anything to do with her. I haven't had any pups myself, so it may well be me."
"Unlikely," Jordan said. He leaned back against the wall, scratching his beard.
"But possible. I want to rule it out before having her go through all of this."
"I think you just want me to touch your furry parts," Jordan said, and Damien knew that he was grinning.
"You got me," Damien said. "This is all an elaborate ploy to get you to fondle my twig and berries."
"Damien, my dear alpha," Jordan said, "all you had to do was ask."
"Ask? That's it? You wouldn't have asked me to buy you dinner?"
"Maybe a drink or two," Jordan said. "You already have my heart."
"Easy to win over. I like that." Damien chuckled.
"Alright," Jordan said, clapping his hands once, briskly. "Now drop your pants and howl at the moon."
