Ellora's Cavemen: Tales from the Temple I

by Various

  He knew he had come close to finding her the last couple of months. He’d caught the faint scent of her; enough to stir his mating instincts, but the hint always disappeared before he found her. Adam knew what that meant—a safe room. He could only hope that by following the trace he had of her to the same area, that this month she wouldn’t make it in time…that she’d forget, or think herself secure.

  Then she would be his. Muscles clenching in anticipation and hope, he moved resolutely into the night.

  It was time. Adam could feel the energy of the moon calling to him. Changing him.

  Throwing his clothes off, he felt the first few tingling ripples under his skin. Opening himself, he welcomed the transformation, reveling in the sensation that would change him in a bright flash, from man—to wolf. His last thoughts in human form centered on how much he loved this life, but how he yearned for someone special to share it with him. He could only hope that the old stories were true, that you felt as if you couldn’t live without your mate one minute longer that when it was you found them.

  A large gray wolf moved out of the shadows shortly after a brilliant burst of light.

  The early wars to grant rights to all races, not just the dominant human race, allowed him the freedom and relative safety to roam in his second form. It had been more than a century since either lycanthropic or the Others had to hide. The Lupine Act two decades ago had given his kind the added benefit of being legally allowed to hunt for their mate.

  His mate had to be warm-blooded. She could be Were, human, or one of the Others.

  In the sub species of Others there were many that were warm-blooded, Faerie and Sprites to name two. Vampires were cold-blooded. His mate had to be genetically capable of having live young. He knew of no Were that had ever mated with a Vampire—the genetic codes never matched. Of course, there were many additional sub species that were compatible, and he wouldn’t care what species his mate was, just that she was his. He hadn’t really kept up on the science of Cryptozoology, the study, uncovering and classification of hidden animals.

  All Were-creatures and vamps had been among the first studied in this field several hundred years ago. He knew they were working on the classification of Big Foot now.

  102

  A.D. 2203: Adam & Eve

  When it was proven that any man-like animals existed, had the capacity of speech and the ability to reason, verified that they could be good or inherently evil just like their human counterparts, then they would be given the rights and protections won during the early wars as a sub species of man. So humans would be forced to stop killing them for sport or putting them in cages. They would have to accept them. As neighbor, and mate.

  Unfortunately that didn’t stop the Ku Klux Klan mentality of groups like the ‘One Racers’, humans who felt that any sub species should be staked or kept in a zoo, and definitely not allowed to associate or procreate with one of pure human blood. Never mind that over the centuries it was difficult to find a family tree that hadn’t intermingled their blood in one form or another with either Were or Vampire.

  In human form, Adam had these thoughts. In wolf form, he concentrated on one thing—following the scent of his mate.

  And this Lupine Moon that scent was strong.

  103

  Ravyn Wilde

  Chapter 3

  The glide’s motion came to a gentle stop. Eve nervously stepped into her garage after the door shut behind the glide.

  Doors wouldn’t stop them.

  She chastised herself again for not realizing three days ago that it was time to lock herself in her private lab. Private airtight lab, she reminded herself. Idiot!

  The One Racers had discovered many years ago that it took three days for human pheromones to disperse enough that a genetic trace was impossible for the werewolves to follow. In their zeal to keep their bloodlines pure, they locked their sexually mature sons and daughters up tightly before each and every full moon. There was no law against locking yourself up, just one that if you were caught—you had to honor the mating.

  While Eve disagreed with their politics to rid the world of all sub-humans, she heartily thanked their research. It had allowed her to maintain the ideal of strict independence. She did not need or want a mate in her life. Look what it had done to her mother.

  After Eve’s full-human father had died, Naomi had been a wonderful single mother to her sister, Jezi, and herself. She had also managed in three short years to become one of the world’s leading Cryptozoologists. She had found, researched and documented the existence of several hidden species; the most notable was the Loch Ness Monster.

  Nessie turned out to be a large, lovable, vegetarian serpent that was 50 feet in length at maturity.

  Then “short and hairy” Maxwell, her stepfather, had marked her mother as his mate. In short order Maxwell had forbidden Naomi any outside work. They’d had Jonaa, her stepbrother, and her mother had given up the fight with Maxwell to retain her scientific position and had instead become Domestic Goddess extraordinaire. Ugh!!!

  That was definitely not for Eve.

  Eve stripped the clothes off her tired body in the bathroom and opted for a quick air shower. Normally she enjoyed the ancient ritual of water bathing, but it would only irritate her tonight. She wanted to pace and watch the minutes until daylight.

  Clean and feeling suitably armored in her old sweat suit, she downed energy pills instead of food. Another favored ritual she would forgo tonight. All Eve wanted was for the night to be over, and to be blissfully free from any man. Or wolf.

  The windows and doors of her 100-year-old home were first rate, effective at keeping out the street noise. Everything was quiet. Normally she loved her little house; 104

  A.D. 2203: Adam & Eve

  tonight she’d have felt safer in a compact. One of those high-rise apartment-slash-shopping-slash-entertainment complexes that were hives of activity…and smells.

  Oh, hell. Eve’s breath caught in her throat. Was that something scratching at her front door? She strained her ears and fought for some semblance of control. Surely she was imagining a sound?

  This is stupid, she told herself. She forced her body to move towards the view panel.

  It was voice-activated and she could command a 360-degree view of the outside of her home. “House front,” she managed to croak out.

  At first she thought it was her mind playing tricks. A large, gray wolf was sitting patiently on her front step—looking directly into the monitor with flashing silver eyes.

  She ducked. Oh, my God! She needed to hide. Her mind desperately searched for an escape route.

  “Oh, now that was just ridiculous.” It can’t see me, she thought. She could run.

  Where?

  Closing her eyes, she frantically worked to calm her mind enough to review everything she knew about the Werewolf. She might be able to delay mating. Move out of town, out of state. But, if he’d truly scented her, and there was no doubt he had, he wouldn’t be sitting on her doorstep…

  No matter where she ran or how far, he’d find her. Wolves mated for life. And as dear old grandfather had proved beyond a shadow of a doubt, they had one genetic buddy. The law and God were on the wolf’s side.

  Eve had never been a coward. Well, not really. She didn’t consider bolting herself into an airtight room 36 days a year, cowardice. It had been lifestyle survival, her own brand of manifest destiny…destiny that appeared to be shot to hell with the appearance of the large lupine on her front porch. She was royally pissed off about this. She didn’t need or want some alpha male in her life. Her heart slammed in her chest and her nostrils flared in anger.

  The only question now was did she let him sit there, wait to see if he’d break the gorgeous 22nd century antique steel door down in his hurry to make his claim? Or maybe he’d wait there for days until she needed to leave for supplies or her own sanity?

  Or did she open the door and begin to make his life miserable?

  No way was she
going to make this easy on him! Eve Longtree had no Domestic Goddess hidden within. The big bad wolf was going to have a fight on his hands. She was not her mother!

  Okay, it was decided. Sniveling coward—not in this life. Take no prisoners, Red Riding Hood—yes. She just wished she had the man from the story with the ax.

  Striding determinedly to the door, Eve unlocked it and swung it open. She swore the damned wolf grinned at her.

  “My, what big teeth you have…” she muttered under her breath.

  105

  Ravyn Wilde

  Chapter 4

  Eve slammed the door behind the wolf. He turned to look at her with what appeared to be a patient gaze. She glared at him. She didn’t want patience. She knew he could understand both her body language and anything she said to him. Living with her stepfather and brother had taught her that. He would remember everything she said to him tomorrow.

  Well, she wouldn’t waste time…

  The wolf listened to his mate, watched her as she paced and ranted. She didn’t want a husband, lupine or otherwise. He got that from the first few sentences. He also got the point that she thought he wanted nothing from her but a house slave and a warm, breeding body. Well, they’d get to that. He couldn’t talk back in this form, reassure or fight her out of this mood. He would just have to be patient.

  Hours later, she finally wound down enough to sit in one place for at least a moment. He had wandered around the comfortably decorated living area, wallowing in her scent while she raved. He had decided that he couldn’t just jump her and clamp his teeth on her shoulder to mark her, as the wolf wanted him to do.

  It could be gently done. The mark didn’t have to be forced or brutal. He only needed to break the skin and mingle her blood with his saliva to ensure their joining and make it impossible for her to denounce him. But for his own sanity and territorial needs it would have to be done tonight. After waiting this long there was no way he could postpone the claiming. His eager body painfully tightened at the thought.

  She settled on the white nuleather couch. Perfect. The sofa was situated with the back to the entrance hall, facing what had once been a fireplace. Years ago the office of Airquality had banned the use of the smog-causing instruments. Now, in his mate’s home it served as a decorative display of candles and antique woven baskets.

  Her shoulders were above the back of the couch. It would be easy to let her rest, then casually stroll behind, quickly moving up to graze his teeth across her shoulder.

  The shirt fabric wouldn’t stop him. All that was required was her blood and his saliva mixed even minutely.

  Eve was so tired. The adrenaline from the fear, anger and resentment that had fueled her ranting had passed. She just wanted to sit on the couch and doze off. She had been afraid he would pounce on her immediately, dragging her to the floor to sink his teeth in her shoulder. He hadn’t. He watched her and moved around the room she was in, not letting her out of his sight to explore any other room, but he’d left her to her 106

  A.D. 2203: Adam & Eve

  lecture. Now what? She just knew she wouldn’t be able to keep her eyes open much longer. And it was still hours to sunrise.

  She watched woodenly as the wolf moved around the room. Sniffing here, wallowing there. Yeah. She was well and truly scented. He walked around the couch and she turned to follow his movement over her left shoulder.

  She had to admit he was a gorgeous specimen for a werewolf. His thick gray coat had black highlights with an almost white strip going from between his eyes, over his head and stopping about midway down his back. She idly wondered if that meant he had gray in his hair when he was in human shape.

  He was huge. Almost twice the size of any werewolf she’d seen. He had to be a very large man. Well, she was about 5’8” herself. No shrinking violet here. Err… what was he doing?

  Adam paused behind the couch, and then rose up to rest his front paws on the back. He did it slowly, carefully. He didn’t want to scare her away. That would force him to wait, possibly, until she was asleep before he claimed her.

  He wanted her awake so that she would experience the binding and there would be no question from her later that she was his.

  Eve knew what the wolf was doing. Her mother hadn’t raised an idiot. He had waited for her to sit, so that he didn’t need to knock her to the ground. How chivalrous!

  She knew she could move, delay it for another hour or so until she fell into complete exhaustion, or he decided not to be patient. Why bother? She’d rather be awake for this, there was no way she’d let him put those teeth to her throat while she was sleeping.

  “Might as well do it right the first time,” she grumbled. She did not want her favorite comfort shirt ruined.

  Turning her head forward, she raised her hands up to the sweatshirt’s neck. She stretched it out and pulled it off her right shoulder, and then in seeming indifference she cocked her head to the left side. This exposed the area on her right side from neck to mid shoulder to his teeth.

  As she did it, her mind flashed to the current lupine fashion craze and she wrinkled her nose. Shirts and dresses with cutouts to either show off mating marks or bare the area for marking. Some even came with fancy writing that said “bite me”. She swore right then that she’d deck the first person that bought her one.

  Adam could not believe after everything she’d said, that she was making this easy for him. Knowing that he would not understand this woman anytime soon, he internally shrugged and bent to take what was offered to him. The reason didn’t matter.

  107

  Ravyn Wilde

  Very carefully he opened his jaws and spread them over his mate’s shoulder. A few inches away from her neck he rested his teeth on her sensitive flesh. He felt her shudder.

  Gently he bit down, breaking the skin enough that she bled; he then drew his teeth in a scraping motion as he closed his mouth. His saliva mingled with her blood, and she was marked forever.

  His. She was his, now and forever. The relief and overwhelming sense of rightness washed over him. It was such an incredible feeling to know he had found his mate.

  Those feelings immediately turned to lust.

  Eve closed her eyes. She’d felt the hot breath of the wolf at her neck. Felt his teeth press together on her skin and the piercing sensation when he’d drawn blood. She’d been somewhat prepared for that. What she hadn’t been prepared for was the way she’d felt. She was hot, sensitive, turned on, and her body was telling her it had craved this claiming her entire life. She felt as if a shimmering cord had been stretched between her body and the wolf’s. The binding.

  Well, she was more than just her body. Shaking herself out of the haze she’d fallen into, she stood up, pointedly ignoring the wolf that kept pace at her side, and went to the kitchen to run water over a clean rag.

  It was done. Their genetic codes had been joined and Eve refused to give in to feeling sorry for her self or anger at the world in general. Nothing could be done about it now. She was tired and knew she would need to be rested for the morning. She had a few more things she wanted to say to him and she needed some rest if she was going to make any sense at all. Nothing more could happen while he was in wolf form and he wouldn’t change until daylight. She was getting some sleep.

  Eve wrung out the cool cloth and set it on her bleeding shoulder. She was going to ignore what would happen when he shape-shifted. She didn’t even know what he looked like. Tomorrow was soon enough to worry about the rest.

  108

  A.D. 2203: Adam & Eve

  Chapter 5

  Adam had stretched out on the floor beside the couch and his sleeping mate sometime during the night. He woke as he changed. Every nerve ending screamed at him to posses her now; he glanced down at his naked body as he moved gracefully to his feet. He was certainly ready. He was anxious to view his mate through human eyes.

  The wolf saw things in black and white with strangely distorted vision. He knew she was tall, with short, wild h
air that had appeared to be black. More than that he couldn’t tell, but he would be able to find her in a room filled with hundreds of people, just from her unique fragrance.

  He turned to glance down at her and quietly sighed. She was lovely. He’d been right about the hair, it was black. The silken gleam of polished black opals, it tempted him to bury his hands in it and never let go. Her facial structure was strong, yet feminine. Her eyes were closed of course. He wanted them to stay that way. Once she was awake, they would have to talk.

  Her body structure was hard to distinguish in the oversized sweat suit she was wearing. But he would bet on soft curves. She didn’t move like a muscled athlete and he remembered her saying something last night of refusing to give up her genetic research.

  She was a scientist. Developing the mind would come before developing the body. He could help her balance both. Right now it was her body he craved.

  How to go about this? If she woke up before she was caught in passion, she would try and stop him. And he wouldn’t be able to stop. His body burned and throbbed with insistence, he needed to possess her. His cock jumped with a life of its own, aching and straining to bring attention to its requirements. He wasn’t about to disappoint it. If he carried her to bed, where he would prefer to love her, she would wake. So it had to be the couch or the floor once they’d started.

  He knew that her body would be perfectly tuned to his; her arousal would come hard and fast this first time, in perfect concert with his own and heightened by the binding. The muscles in his neck corded with anticipation. Throwing his head back he closed his eyes for a second and clenched his jaw. He needed some control or it would be over the minute he slipped into her. His cock hardened even further at this thought.