by Vivian Wood
“Stop! She’s mine!” he shouted, raising his arms to draw attention to himself as he approached the group.
The males in the group went still, a few familiar faces turning and recognizing him. The rest remained vigilant, which surprised Mason. Ian entered the clearing to stand behind Mason, which drew a few more gazes. No shock there; vamps and Shifters weren’t typically the most friendly of bedfellows.
Still, Ian’s presence ratcheted up the tension sky-high. Many of the Shifters here knew that Mason had a close friend who was a vampire… so why the cold shoulder?
Shaking his head, Mason trotted forward and pushed into the group of Shifters. He stopped dead when he saw Rose, who was being restrained in a choke hold by a total stranger. She was wearing a brightly-colored Legion uniform jacket, and looked half-faint in her captor’s arms. Mason took one look at the male’s pale skin and eerie eyes, then bristled and showed his teeth.
“Vamp,” one of the Shifters murmured, echoing Mason’s own thought.
“Let her go,” Mason said, his voice going deadly. “She belongs to me.”
“She’s untouched. By bite, and otherwise,” the vampire intoned, somehow knowing that Rose was a virgin. Mason’s stomach heaved, and he lurched forward. Hands grasped him, pulling him back. His vision hazed over with red for a long moment, and he had to struggle not to punish the Shifters who were holding him back from attacking the vampire.
When he could focus again a moment later, Mason saw what the others had already seen; upwards of ten vamps were coming out of the treeline to support their compatriot. A part of Mason didn’t care, and he considered attacking despite the vamp’s backup.
Then he saw Ian slip out of the woods along with the other vampires, and Mason grimaced.
“Ian!” he yelled. “Call them off!”
Ian walked forward, coming even with the vampire that held Rose. The two males exchanged a long look, and Mason noted that the stranger dropped his gaze first in deference to Ian. Ian was in control here, which should be enough to save Rose.
Ian didn’t immediately command the other vamp, though. Instead Ian first gave the collection of Shifters a long perusal. Then he turned his gaze on Mason, seeming to consider the best course of action.
“She’s human,” Ian said to Mason, as if that summarized his feelings on the matter.
“I claimed her,” Mason spat, furious. That Ian was even considering anything other than releasing Rose right this moment was unbelievable; for a moment, Mason wondered if his friend could be joking. A close look at Ian’s face shut down that thought, though. Ian was genuinely weighing whether he ought to simply give Rose over to his kin.
Mason stared at his friend, his glare so intense that he felt he might actually be able to kill with a stare. Prayed for it, actually.
Finally Ian sighed.
“You’re not going to come around about this, are you?” he asked.
“No,” Mason bit off.
“I can’t just rip her from my clan like that. They hunted her and caught her. There are rules, you know.”
“Ian, enough!” Mason hissed.
“I’ll give you a choice. You can bite her, or turn her over to my clan,” Ian said. Mason coughed, sure he’d heard his friend wrong.
“Wh-what?” he sputtered.
“If you absolutely must have the human, you’ll have to bite her.”
“I- okay,” Mason said, confused.
“Now,” Ian clarified. “Right here.”
“But-”
“Do you claim her, or not?” Ian asked, as if it were that simple. Mason’s mind spun. He had no time to decide whether he wanted this, much less time to explain any of it to Rose.
“I see,” Ian said, taking his silence as a denial. Ian turned away, ready to leave his kin with their meal.
“No!” Mason said, half-begging now. “No! I’ll do it!”
Ian froze for a second before turning back, the only thing that gave away his surprise at Mason’s acceptance.
“You’ll do it?” the vampire asked, tilting his head. Curious at Mason’s decision.
“Yes. Right now,” Mason affirmed.
After one more long study of Mason’s face, Ian shrugged and turned to the vampire holding Rose.
“Release her, please,” Ian asked politely.
The vamp stepped away from her faster than Mason could blink, and his withdrawal obviously took Rose by surprise too because she staggered a bit. Mason bolted forward, pulling Rose into his arms and burying his face in her hair. He had to hug her for a long moment before he could pull back to make sure she was unharmed.
“I’m so sorry!” Rose whispered, her sea glass-colored eyes seeking his gaze with desperation.
“No, I’m sorry. You didn’t do this,” Mason said, tilting his head to indicate their audience. “These are Ian’s people, and mine. They’re the rescue party.”
“I ran,” Rose blurted out, then winced when Mason leveled her a heavy glance. “I heard you talking to Ian, and…”
Mason shook his head, cutting her off.
“There will be plenty of time to explain later. Right now I need…” Mason trailed off, unsure how to explain.
“To exchange bites?” Rose supplied, biting her lip as she looked up at him.
So she understood something of the process, Mason thought. That would make this easier.
“Yes. I want you to bite me first. Really bite me, like you mean it,” he instructed, tapping a finger against the spot where his neck and shoulder met. Rose nodded, leaning close.
To his surprise, her teeth found their mark without hesitation and sunk deep enough to make him flinch. When she released him, he took a deep breath.
“Hold still, okay?” Mason asked. Rose nodded, and he held her by the shoulders. He couldn’t help but drop a kiss against her nape, and he was rewarded with her shiver against his body. Taking a deep breath, Mason bit her just where he’d kissed her neck. She whimpered, her hands coming up against his chest as he sunk his teeth home.
Mason released her quickly, bitterly disappointed that they hadn’t had a private moment to exchange the bites. He would have liked to aroused her passion first, made the bite part of lovemaking. Taken away some of the sting with a kiss.
“Hell,” he muttered, cupping Rose’s jaw. Tilting her face up, he brushed his lips over hers. An apology of sorts, for hurting her. For dragging her into a whole life she hadn’t really agreed to, and which was more binding than any contract.
For her part, a lone tear tracked down Rose’s face as she looked up at him. Her face held a thousand emotions, a million. Fear and excitement and hunger and awe warred in her expression, and Mason was blown away. He wished he could do this properly, but it would have to wait.
“I want- I will tell you everything. Soon, I promise. Right now, though, we have to move. I don’t want the Legion catching up to us again,” Mason said.
Rose closed her eyes and shook her head, embarrassed.
“Right, of course,” she said, reaching up to touch Mason’s mark on her neck. The feeling made his heart swell with… rightness? Was that it?
“I have a car parked just a few minutes from here,” Rose added.
“Mason,” said one of the other Shifters. Turning his head, Mason acknowledged the male.
“Declan,” he said by way of greeting.
“We have vehicles parked here. Give me the keys to the human- er, the lady’s- car, and I will make sure it gets to the Den. We need to move fast,” the male said.
Looking to Rose, Mason nodded. She pulled the keys from her pocket and handed them over. Mason tossed them to Declan, then took Rose’s hand.
“Ready?” he asked her, looking down into her face.
“More than ready,” she said, giving him a weak smile.
For the first time in what felt like hours, the panic that had seized him began to ebb. Releasing a deep breath, Mason led Rose as he followed Declan toward the pack’s cars.
11
“This is your house?” Rose asked, wide-eyed. She’d fallen asleep curled up against Mason in the car and awoken just as they were coming into downtown New Orleans. Having never even visited the city, Rose had watched the colors of the city pass in a blur and absorbed almost none of it. Mason, the bite, the city… she was overwhelmed.
Now they stood in the yard of a cute single shotgun house, neatly kept and painted bright green. The Shifters that had rescued them had dropped them off moments ago, and now Rose trailed after Mason as he climbed the porch steps.
“Home sweet home,” Mason said, his tone light. His expression bordered on brooding, but he didn’t say whatever was on his mind. Rose just nodded, examining the house instead.
“You don’t stay where the others live?” she asked.
“At the Den? No. I like to live in the city, and the Den is way out there. Besides, there’s a lot of drama. Too many single males and females,” Mason said with a wry smile.
“I’m surprised that you see that as a negative,” Rose said, wrinkling her nose. Mason unlocked the front door and took her hand, leading her inside.
“I wasn’t exactly looking to take a mate,” Mason said. “Anyway, this is it.” Waving a hand, he invited Rose to look around.
The front room was simple, a couch and big screen TV and several full bookshelves. Rose checked out the next room, which proved to be an open kitchen and dining room.
“Bathroom and bedroom in the back, and the back yard,” Mason said.
“Okay,” Rose said stiffly, unsure where to go. Turning, she headed back to the living room and sat down on the couch.
“We can go out later and get some things for you. And your car should be here tonight or tomorrow,” Mason said, crossing his arms and watching Rose closely.
“Oh.”
“Rose?” Mason asked, looking concerned.
Rose realized that she was touching the bite mark he’d placed on her neck again. Dropping her hand, she shrugged away his question.
Mason came over and sat down on the couch, moving close. When Rose didn’t respond, he sighed and reached out to pull her close. His touch was a balm to her confused mind, and she relaxed against him immediately. Mason buried his face in her hair and sighed again.
“Rose, I’m sorry,” he said, frustrated.
“You’re sorry?” she echoed.
“For the bite. And what goes along with it,” he explained.
“You’re sorry.” Rose felt a strange disappointment at his apology.
“If the circumstances had been different…” he said, hesitant.
“I know it’s not what you wanted,” Rose said, willing herself to stay calm. Logical.
“What?” Mason pulled back, looking down at her. “That’s not what I meant at all.”
“You didn’t want this. You didn’t want a wife. A mate,” she corrected herself.
“No, but that doesn’t mean…” he sighed, closing his eyes and shoving a hand through his hair, leaving it an unruly mess.
“It’s okay,” Rose said, feeling bad that she’d made him uncomfortable. “When my car comes, I can just go. I have money and my passport-”
“That is not- Rose, that’s not it at all. Damn, I’m making a mess of this,” Mason growled. Taking her hands in his, Mason gazed at her earnestly.
“I’m trying to apologize for- well, for trapping you. For making the decision for you. I’m not asking you to leave!” he said.
“Oh,” Rose replied, as confused as ever.
“Rose, you can’t leave. We’re bound together now. Permanently,” Mason said gently.
Rose’s gaze snapped up to meet his, baffled.
“We are?” she asked.
“Yes. The bites aren’t just symbolic. There’s power in the ritual, and it’s very strong. If you did try to leave, you’d be back soon enough. Unless I found you first, that is,” he said wryly.
“I see,” Rose said, tilting her head. “Maybe I’m the one who should be apologizing to you. You probably had other plans than being stuck with me.”
Mason shook his head with a gentle smile.
“Nothing that would beat being with you. I just feel like… I took your virginity, and now you’ll never experience anyone else. It seems selfish of me.”
“You think you were being selfish? You saved my life,” Rose said, wrinkling her nose.
“Yes, but… now you’ll never get to-”
Rose put her fingers against his lips, stopping him midsentence.
“I don’t care. If you can live with this, I can too. If the cave was any indication, I think I will be quite satisfied,” she said, blushing at the last. “As for the rest…”
She shrugged.
“We can work on that later,” Mason said. “For now, though…”
He leaned down and pressed a kiss to Rose’s lips.
“Wait,” she said, pulling back. “What about Ian? He didn’t come back with us.”
“He’s got some business to handle. A human girl he’s preoccupied with.”
“Business, huh? What kind of business?”
“How about I show you just what kind?” Mason asked, leaning in for another kiss. Rose accepted the warmth of his mouth, sighing.
“I suppose that would be alright,” she said, laughing.
With a growl, Mason scooped her up and carried her off to start the first night of their new lives.
Ready For More?
Click here to keep up with all of Vivian’s hot new shifter stories, giveaways, and freebies!!
In the meantime, we suggest Vivian’s BRAND NEW bad boy romance PROTECTION!!!
An Excerpt From Protection…
“Hey guys,” Elly says, leaning forward to address Karen and Alejandro. “Thanks so much for breaking me out for the day. Is it cool if we keep this trip on the down low?”
Karen and Alejandro both nod at her. I can see a glimmer of respect on Karen’s face; like me, I think she’s finding that Elly is pretty nice and grounded, for a celebrity.
I mean, she’s still a fucking brat when she wants to be. But today she’s been pretty righteous.
“Awesome,” she says. We pull up to the hotel and get ourselves inside. Karen drifts off to the other side of the lobby; I imagine she’s trying to be respectful of Elly’s space, not smother her with bodyguards everywhere she looks.
We catch the elevator up to her floor, Elly humming along with the song playing in the background.
“What is this?” I ask, glancing down at her.
She cracks up.
“Only my hit single,” she cackles. “You know, the song that’s paying all our salaries?”
“Ah. Uh, sorry,” I say with a wince.
“Not a fan, huh?” she says, but I can see she thinks it’s funny.
“Not really my type of music.”
She looks me up and down and snorts, walking out of the elevator. When we make it back into her hotel suite, I check my watch.
“Plenty of time,” I say. “I’m going to get Lawrence outside your door while I go hit the showers. Gotta look fresh for your show, seeing as how I’m supposed to be your super sexy underwear model boyfriend.”
“Is that what you’re going with?” Elly asks, grinning. “In your dreams, buddy.”
“Jealous,” I shoot back, turning to leave.
“Wait.”
I turn and find her standing all too close.
Leave now, I beg myself. Just make any excuse and fucking leave.
“You’ve um,” she taps the side of her face, then beckons me closer. “You’ve got some fuzz or something…”
She steps forward until she’s nearly pressed up against me, plucking a speck of lint from my hair, thumb brushing my jaw. She stares up at me, her eyes stunningly purple.
This close up, all I can think is how small she is, petite and fragile. She looks larger than life on stage, striding around in sky high heels and wild feathered costumes, but right this minute she se
ems like she’d fit in my pocket.
Or in my arms…
“Today was nice…” I start to say, trying to break up the tension shivering between us.
“Shut up, Connor,” Elly says.
Then she’s up on her tiptoes, hands clutching my shoulders, lips brushing mine. I react on pure instinct, one hand cupping her jaw and the other sliding down her waist to bring her flush against my body. I’m beyond hard for her, have been all day, and she gives the tiniest gasp when she feels my cock against her belly.
She makes a little sound against my lips, the same kind of mmmm she made earlier at the restaurant that drives me fucking wild. Savoring, I guess you could call it.
Fuck, she likes this.
The second I deepen the kiss, my tongue sliding against hers, she tenses up and pushes me away.
“Oh god, I’m so sorry,” she says. She presses her fingers to her lips like she’s been scalded, looking mortified. “Sorry, sorry.”
She whirls and runs for her bedroom, leaving me standing there like a jackass.
What the fuck did I just let happen?
Cursing my stupidity, I storm away from the suite.
Grab Protection now on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited!!
Join The Vixens
Click here to join Vivian’s Vixens and get first access to all the hot new releases, big giveaways, freebies, and other fun news!
Get three free books just for signing up!!
About Vivian Wood
Vivian is an erotic romance writer, author of the Alpha Guardians, Winter Pass Wolves, Red Lodge Bears, Werewolf’s Harem, and Louisiana Shifters series.
Vivian has been an autodidact from a young age, and to this day she'll read anything she can get her hands on - back of the cereal box, billboards, whatever. When she's not reading or writing romantic stories, Vivian likes making drinks from her Trader Vic's cocktail recipe book, snuggling her badly behaved dog, and drinking great coffee on rainy wraparound porches in New Orleans.
