Mating Hunt

by Bonnie Vanak

  He almost seemed to make the question conversational.

  “She’s a pretty piece of pussy, even if she is chunky and has a big ass.”

  Arianna suppressed a low growl. Damnit, more criticism of her butt?

  “I like women with meat on their bones. And I’ll bet she’ll like it too when I fuck her. When I’m tired of ramming my cock up her ass, I’ll give her to Skip for his turn. After he’s done fucking her, she’ll beg for more.”

  “The bitch is mine,” Skip spat out.

  “Wrong.” Kyle gave another slow, dark smile. “She’s mine, and if you value your skins, you’ll both leave by the time I count to ten.”

  Skip laughed, but looked uncertain as Kyle began to count. “One, two, three, four...”

  “Say good-bye.” Tall Skin raised the rifle.

  “Ten.”

  Gunfire cracked, the ensuing blast compressing the air and hurting her eardrums. Shards rained down on her fur. She blinked hard and glanced up. Half the cherub’s head was gone. Cherub had definitely bit it. The Skin had missed Kyle. But where was he?

  The Skins seemed have the same thought, for they turned, scanning the area. And then her keen Lupine vision caught a blurred streak. Kyle tapped Tall Skin on the shoulder.

  As he turned, Kyle seized the shotgun with one hand and tossed it aside, then grabbed his throat and squeezed. Hard. The man gasped as his injured friend withdrew a hunting knife from the scabbard at his waist. Moonlight glinted on the serrated blade, polished to a killing sheen.

  Arianna growled and prepared to leap forward, but before she could advance, Kyle dropped Tall Skin.

  The man lay still, and she scented death.

  Skip hobbled over, trying to rush Kyle with the hunting knife. Another blur of air and Kyle vanished. The downward stabbing motion caused Skip to stumble. He nearly tripped over his friend’s body.

  Suddenly Kyle appeared behind him. Skip turned, slicing at Kyle’s muscled torso. A thin line of vermillion appeared on his skin. The hot, coppery scent slammed into her nostrils. She growled, creeping forward to punish the one who dared to injure her beloved guardian as Skip swung the blade again, but Kyle danced out of reach.

  Her wolf froze in fear as she glimpsed his eyes. Shining in the night, they glowed a fierce amber. Her protector was no longer the male she knew.

  Skip bellowed like a wounded bull as he hopped around on his injured foot, slashing his knife through the air. Then he fell and fumbled to reach the shotgun. As his hand closed over the barrel, Kyle appeared. He stepped on the man’s hand. Howls of pain followed the sickening crack.

  Kyle grabbed the gun and snapped the weapon in half.

  Then her guardian stalked toward the whimpering Skip, who tried crawling away, dragging his bleeding and injured leg. Muscles bunching, Kyle stood over the terrified Skin.

  “You dare to come here, to my territory, threaten to hurt innocent children and say you want to fuck my woman? My woman, who I’ve sworn to protect. My woman, who I’ll defend to my last breath, who I have yet to fuck because I care so much about her?”

  He fisted a hand in Skip’s shirt collar and lifted him to his feet. “Don’t. Think. So.”

  Then her guardian began to change. Two bone white horns emerged from his skull as his hair grew long and thick, spilling past his broad shoulders. Claws erupted from his fingertips and a dark beard covered his lean face. Fur erupted on his hindquarters, covered his long, strong thighs. Arianna froze, her heart going still.

  She’d seen this before...

  “What are you?” Skip screamed.

  Kyle wrapped a hand around the man’s neck. “The last thing you’ll ever see.”

  A minute later, Skip dropped to the ground, staring sightlessly at the sky. Tail lowered, ears back, Arianna closed her eyes, shivering violently. She heard a low grunt, and the sound of bodies being dragged across the yard, into the woods, followed by a long, deep howl piercing the night.

  Several minutes later, her ears pricked. Footsteps coming from the woods. Remaining motionless, she scanned the thick weeds and flowers.

  And then the smell of cold snow and pine drifted into the air.

  “Ari? Come out. I know you’re there. I can scent you.”

  She must deal with it sooner or later. Arianna stood and shook her body, fur rippling with the motion. Cold wind pricked her muzzle, but it wasn’t as icy as the dread pumping through her.

  She’d disobeyed him. And would now pay the price.

  Arianna crept out of the garden and hovered near the flagstone path. Looking normal once more, Kyle stood at the garden’s edge, staring into the woods. Muscles knotted, he looked carved from granite. Anger radiated off him in waves. He turned and in a fluid motion, shifted into a large timber wolf.

  She sensed his anger as he trotted over to where the Skins had fallen. Kyle lifted his leg and urinated, marking the spot. Then he loped over to where she’d hidden and marked the spot where she’d hidden, covering her scent with his. The possessive and male dominant behavior was a clear warning for others.

  Kyle approached. Resisting the urge to roll onto her back and present her belly, she remained motionless. He circled around her, sometimes touching her with his muzzle as if assuring himself she was not hurt.

  Looking upward at the shattered cherub, he growled. Then he nipped, a brief, but sharp sting on her rear, nudging her forward. Needing no more encouragement, yup, she got the picture, Arianna raced back to the house.

  Herding her back to the cabin, he nudged her onto the porch and then the wolf shifted back into a naked man. Kyle looked at her and opened the front door.

  “Inside, now. Sit on the couch and don’t even blink until I return.”

  Arianna lowered her head and trotted inside. She was a muscled 100-pound wolf with sharp fangs and claws, but Kyle’s stern expression made her feel like a pup.

  Jumping up onto the couch, she whined, wondering what punishment he planned. The clock on the mantle ticked away the minutes. A few minutes later, he came inside. Her ears pricked at the sound of the door closing, the bolt sliding shut and then the lights snapping on.

  Now clad in worn jeans, a checked shirt, he gave her a pointed look. “You staying like that all night?”

  Panting, she tilted her head sideways. Well, you ordered me to sit and not even blink. But she shifted back and clothed herself.

  His severe expression softened. “Are you hurt?”

  At her headshake, he nodded. “First, we’ll check on the young. Then you and I will have a little talk.”

  Nausea churned in her stomach. She’d screwed up again, badly.

  In the first guest bedroom, the girls still slept, but Jessie stood by the bed, the heavy iron doorstop in his fists. Eyes wide in his round face, he was prepared to protect his sisters. Arianna’s heart twisted. Kyle gently removed the doorstop from the youngster’s grip and ushered him downstairs. As they sat on the sofa, the boy’s thin body tensed.

  Arianna hurried into the kitchen and microwaved a cup of milk, looking over her shoulder.

  Jessie’s voice was low and anguished. “They came for us.”

  “They won’t be back.”

  Jessie stared at Kyle. “You killed them. I’m glad you killed them. I would do the same, if I was older and stronger.”

  Kyle heaved a deep sigh. “Killing your enemies should always be a last resort, Jessie. Lupines must never enjoy it, but use it to survive and hunt. Always remember, Montana is a state that allows Skins to shoot wolves. You’re much better off honing your tracking skills and evading danger, especially from armed Skins. Never confront it unless absolutely necessary.”

  The boy stared at Kyle, his expression reverent. “You found us, tracked us. Are you a hunter?”

  He nodded. “I taught Arianna. She’s the one who initially picked up your trail. Would you like to know how to track?”

  Placing the cup of warm milk on the table, Arianna left them to talk. She went to the windows, staring out at the gard
en and the shattered cherub. That could have been me. Her stomach knotted. Kyle was right. She must learn to control her wolf and these fears. If she didn’t mate before the full moon, Tristan would fry her.

  If she survived Tristan but didn’t control her wolf, life would fry her.

  A few minutes later, Kyle escorted a sleepy Jessie back upstairs as she washed the empty cup. Arianna went into the living room and removed the fleece throw, tossing it into the washing machine. Her arousal stamped the fabric, and Kyle was cranked up enough.

  When he returned, he paced back and forth on the floorboards. She sat on the sofa, watching him.

  “I told you to stay inside, and you disobeyed my order.”

  “My emotions took over again, and I had to shift. That Skin had a shotgun, Kyle.” She drew in a trembling breath. “I’ve seen what shotguns do to wolves. I saw what happened to my parents.”

  He whirled, his green eyes flaring with emotion. “And you saw what I can do, Ari. They were no match for what I can turn into.”

  Kyle still looked wild and dangerous. Yet she must know. Had to ask him, because if she became terrified of the one male who promised never to hurt her, she could never gather the courage to mate with him.

  Taking a deep breath, she asked the burning question. “What exactly did you turn into?”

  Her guardian went still, searching her face. The green of his eyes deepened. “You know what I am, Ari. I’m the beast you’ve dreaded since childhood.”

  Chapter 13

  DEEP DOWN, HE suspected she’d known all along. His revelation was more an acknowledgement of what she’d tried to forget.

  Kyle tightened his jaw. Finally it came to the hard truth. For years, he’d kept his nature secret, revealing it to a select few, like Darius and Aiden. He never wanted to tarnish her shining image of him. But if they were to mate, and his fierce Satyr blood was determined to have her this night, Arianna must know.

  “The beast you saw in bed with a woman when you were fifteen.”

  “A Satyr.” The word came in a hushed whisper.

  “Hybrid. Half Satyr, half Lupine.”

  Arianna bit her lush lower lip. He steeled himself against a sudden surge of desire. Damn, the things he’d love to see her do with that mouth of hers...

  Kyle leaned against the wall, studying his charge. “Tell me what you want to know, Arianna.”

  “What you did out there, that wasn’t Lupine. No Lupine can run that fast.”

  “Satyrs are creatures of the wild. My powers link me to nature’s elements and endow me with certain gifts. Speed, taken from the wind. And strength, taken from the earth herself.”

  He did not mention his other, more well-known endowment. Gods, he hoped like hell to show her later, after he’d loved her with tenderness and taught her about passion.

  Fisting her hands in her lap, Arianna stared at the fire. “When you turned like that ... was it like shifting into a wolf?”

  Kyle joined her on the couch, watching her guarded expression. “A little. Except I sometimes can’t control it. I did just now when I became enraged and purposely released the beast. But sometimes others prod its release, such as what Aiden did when he provoked my basic instincts. And during the full moon.”

  Throat muscles worked as she swallowed convulsively. “Let’s leave the full moon for later. So is this why you’ve never settled into one pack, why you wander?”

  Acid churned in his stomach. “A Lupine pack is about security, stability and belonging. They don’t welcome freaks into their fold.”

  “Freaks?” She finally turned to look at him. “You mean like me? Someone too scared to try sex?”

  “No,” he said quietly. “You suffered a trauma. Your sensual nature will emerge when the time is right, when someone takes the time and patience to teach you.”

  He wanted to have that honor. But first, she must know the truth about him.

  Heart beating fast, he looked deep into her eyes, his stomach tight. “I’m talking about a freak who is the lowest of the low. Zeta, the kind who doesn’t belong anywhere. Me.”

  Silence draped between them, broken only by the occasional snapping of logs on the dying fire. His heart pounded hard against his ribs as he waited for a response. Zeta, the last letter in the English alphabet, not the Greek. He remembered the mocking words, how he wasn’t even good enough to be considered Omega. Because Omegas belonged with pack.

  He did not.

  Arianna moved over until their thighs touched. She gently traced the cruel brand on his cheek. Kyle steeled himself against the temptation to draw her into his arms and hold tight.

  “Zeta. That’s where the Z came from. Your pack did this to you?”

  At his nod, she growled low. “Bastards. I’d love to kick their asses.”

  Her defensive attitude touched him. “They had their reasons. I was different, and pack doesn’t like different.”

  “Your parents?”

  Kyle stared at the tip of his worn boots. “Ari, my father wasn’t a wild Lupine as everyone told you. He’s a Satyr.”

  Her eyes widened.

  “My mother was a full-blooded Lupine, like you. She mated with the alpha of a very powerful pack, who wanted her pure bloodlines for his offspring.”

  Gods, he knew where this was going and hated it, hated his father for what happened.

  “But my mother couldn’t conceive. Two years went by and talk started that my father would take another mate to sire an heir. One day when she was walking alone in the forest, a Satyr spotted her. He was instantly smitten, and it was a full moon.”

  Insides turning to ice, he whispered his next words. “That man was my sire. He kept my mother trapped in his lair and raped her until he tired, and then released her, pregnant with his bastard. She managed to fool the alpha at my birth, until I was five years old. And then she finally became pregnant again. My mother died giving birth to the alpha’s real heir, a stillborn son.”

  Arianna’s mouth wobbled as she stared at him.

  “As she lay dying, she confessed she was raped, and made her mate promise to not take revenge. Her sister swore a blood oath to raise me to adulthood. The pledge was honored until I turned twelve and shifted into Lupine, but hours later, manifested signs of my Satyr side. I managed to hide it for two months until a full moon when I transformed into the beast. The pack leader said since I had shifted, I was an adult and the pledge to my mother no longer stood.”

  Arianna gasped.

  “The next morning, they dragged me into the barn. And marked me.”

  They’d held him down as that bastard leader heated the iron, and then pressed it to his face. The agony had been so intense, he’d bitten his tongue to keep from screaming. No way would those sons of bitches have that satisfaction.

  Tapping his left cheek, he closed his eyes. “Zeta, the lowest of the low. A warning to others to stay away. Then he threw me out of the pack.”

  Silence for a moment. When she spoke, her voice was low and anguished. “Twelve years old, the age when all Lupines struggle to learn how to shift and hunt. How could he have done that to you?”

  He steeled himself against her sympathy. “I wandered in the forest. Kept shifting from Lupine to Satyr form. Makes for piss poor hunting when you’re trying to flush out game to eat. Got so hungry I couldn’t bear the pain anymore. I called out to Tristan and begged him to kill me.”

  “What did he say?”

  “Tristan told me my sorry ass was too tough to kill. Took me to a magic pool to heal and restore my health. Then he taught me to control my shifting, to hunt and survive. He even ordered his attendant, Elric, to find me a new pack. The alpha apprenticed me to a great hunter who was also an expert horse trainer. I stayed four years, until the pack started whispering about my hybrid blood. Kept roving, hiring myself out until I came to the Mitchell pack.”

  Kyle gave a rough, humorless laugh. “That’s why I never stay in one place. I don’t truly belong anywhere. My pack drove me out because
I’m a dangerous beast with insatiable sexual cravings.”

  “No,” she whispered. “They drove you out because you were stronger and they feared you. You’re better than they were, Kyle. Faster, more virile, passionate and compassionate enough to rescue hurt things from the wild. Like me.”

  She went into his arms and hugged him tightly. He stiffened, but she did not release him, only stroked his spine with long, tender caresses. Never had he asked for her comfort, but damn, it felt good now.

  Something inside him broke. He’d revealed his dark secret, and she did not recoil in horror, only reacted with compassion and sweetness.

  “You’re so special to me, Ari.”

  Overwhelmed by the emotional intensity of the moment, he could not say anything more. Always, he’d been the one comforting her. Kyle felt vulnerable, all his barriers lowered before her. It felt good, and yet it scared the hell out of him.

  Moonlight shone off a single tear trickling down her cheek. Arianna wiped it away and turned her head, as if she didn’t want him to catch her crying.

  “You must be quite strong to control your beast like you do.”

  Not as strong as I’d like.

  “I wish I knew how to control my wolf the way you can control your beast.”

  Teaching Arianna came naturally as breathing and he’d rather do that then drag out his sorry past.

  “Emotions ruled you, and you gave in to your beast. Can’t do that, Ari. No one wants a Lupine who can’t control his shifting. No one wants a wild card who doesn’t fit into the deck.”

  Pulling away from her, he dragged in a deep breath. “Rules of the pack. Mark those who don’t fit in to warn others, and then kick them out. Never let them know you’re different because you’ll pay the price. Others can make mistakes. You can’t. You have to fight tougher, be smarter because you’ve got much more to lose.”

  “It’s not fair,” she whispered, her gaze stricken as she touched his cheek, and suddenly he realized she talked about his situation, not hers.

  Kyle rubbed his scarred cheek. “It’s pack life and if you want to fit in, you must adapt. A shifter who can’t restrain animal instinct is dangerous to the pack. You rushed blindly into danger. Did you forget what I taught you? What’s the first rule of hunting?”