As if perceiving William as a bigger threat, or perhaps simply a bigger target, the leopard turned his attention around to the man. William held back, giving the man time to run. Rachel was impressed by his restraint, even as she wondered at it. The leopard charged. Rachel leapt, intent on stopping the leopard’s attack. William growled defensively, going for the cat’s throat. His action blocked Rachel and she fell hard against him. It was over in seconds.
When he pulled away, blood trailed down William’s chin. The cat looked stunned before limping off in the direction St. Joan had disappeared. Rachel tensed, tempted to go after him. The smell of blood filled her head, calling to the predator inside her. However, there was no need to give chase. The leopard didn’t make it far before dropping to the ground. She stood, tense and ready, but within seconds, the shifter was dead.
Hearing a rustling next to her, she looked at the other wolf. William pawed the ground, lifting his head. He wanted her to follow him. She nodded. They ran back towards the wreckage. As she thought of Douglas, she grew worried. They’d left him alone. The forest passed in a blur, resounding with the beat of their paws. It didn’t take too long before they were by the wrecked vehicles.
William began to shift mid stride, standing on two feet by the time he reached the spot Douglas has been. Muscles rippled over his tight, naked flesh. The red blood from the cat shifter marred his chest and neck. The long line of his spine indented his back, forming a trail down to his firm ass.
Rachel glanced over the area, sensing her surroundings before shifting to human form. She shivered, aware that she stood in the forest naked.
“You’re an omni-shifter. Why didn’t you say?” William asked, as if the question had been burning inside him.
“Where is he?” Rachel demanded, looking around the area. Her heart pounded in worry as she found her clothing on the ground. She held it against her naked body. “Where is Douglas? You should not have left him alone.”
“I didn’t have a choice. You flew off.” William walked towards the old truck. “He’s in the back. He’ll be fine. I kept an ear on him as we fought.” Looking in the back, he gestured to where Douglas slept. “See. Already the wounds heal.”
The clothes slipped from her fingers, falling to the ground. It might have been the adrenaline of the fight, or the wreck, or even the run through the forest, but she felt her blood hammering in her veins. She touched William’s hip. He was so warm. At her caress, he turned narrowed eyes at her.
Before she realized it, she was leaning into him, brushing her lips against his shoulder. He tensed seconds before she felt him give in to her. William made a small sound of pleasure, instantly turning her to press her back into the side of the truck. His cock was in her hand, hard and ready. Moisture flooded her sex, her body just as eager. She stroked him, and he made a small noise of approval.
The urgency of the situation built between them, as if they both knew this was the last thing they should be doing at the moment, and yet they were unable to stop themselves. Rachel told herself they would just find a fast release before moving on.
The mindless euphoria as they touched filled her. Her hands answered the silent call of his body, running over flexing muscles. He dipped his hand between her thighs, parting her sex. She groaned, rocking into him, desperate for the release he could give.
Rachel nipped at his chest and shoulder, tasting the salt of his flesh and the blood of battle against her tongue. He groaned as she bit him, his muscles tensing beneath her lips. William reached for her ass and lifted her up off the ground as he pressed her tight to the truck for support.
She knew his movements would be raw and primitive, as wild as the wolf inside of him. Rachel craved the hard, primal, pounding lovemaking. His large cock brushed her slit and she cried out. William thrust, taking her with wild abandon. Her naked breast bobbed, and he seemed to get much pleasure from watching them.
Clawing his shoulders, she held on. The pleasure built. William breathed hard. His features were pulled tight, as if he fought the beast inside him for control. He slid in and out and in, repeating the violent rhythm until she couldn’t keep her eyes open.
She came, her body quivering, her heart thumping, her thighs and stomach burning. The climax rippled through her, causing her to cry out. William thrust deep, jerking his release.
“We should go,” William said, his breath catching, even before the tremors subsided fully.
Rachel nodded. “You drive. I’ll ride in the back with Douglas and make sure he doesn’t move around too much.” She began to dress. “Give me your shirt for his head and try to drive easy.”
Chapter Six
Rachel flexed her arm, trying to get the blood flowing to her tingling hand. She had no idea where they were going or how long it would take. Douglas’s head rested across her arm, but she refused to move it. The truck bounced along the road. Her arm and William’s thin shirt were the only things padding Douglas’s skull from the hard metal bed beneath them.
“You’re going to be fine,” Rachel whispered in his ear. She brushed a lock of hair off his forehead. The gesture was pointless as the wind only blew it back. “I can see the cuts on your face already starting to heal. It won’t be long now.”
He didn’t answer. She knew her words were pointlessly spoken, only meant to comfort herself in her worry. His body might heal itself, but the brain would not. If he suffered from brain damage, he might not recover or even wake up. Shifter powers could only do so much.
“Thank you for shielding me from the wreck,” she continued, again brushing back the hair only to have the wind push it across his forehead once more. “I—” The truck slowed, and they slid a little towards the front of the truck bed. She grunted in discomfort. “I promise I’ll stay with you until you’re awake and able to take care of yourself. I’ll take care of you as you took care of me. St. Joan won’t get her paws on you.”
Rachel wasn’t sure what prompted the oath, but she didn’t want to take it back. The truck continued to slow its progression. Unable to see, she finally pulled her arm out from under Douglas’s head and sat up. William pulled into a long cobblestone drive in front of an English country estate. When he said they were going to hide out, she didn’t expect it would be in some sort of nineteenth century nobleman’s mansion.
A nervous knot formed in her stomach. The yard looked lush and green, trimmed perfectly, as if the gardener stood outside all day with a ruler just to make sure. Small stone trails sprouted off the cobblestone drive, winding around the home before breaking off in several directions into a garden before ultimately disappearing into an area encased by stone walls.
The house itself spread wide across the landscape and looked as if it could hold fifty of her aunt’s cabins. She wondered how many people lived inside the towering walls. A wide, oak door opened, and a couple servants stepped out followed by the woman Rachel had seen at the airport. She didn’t look happy. Remembering that the woman had given William a list of prospective brides, Rachel frowned. By the look on Douglas’s face as William had mentioned it in the car, she knew her name wasn’t on the list. Why should it be? Didn’t royalty have to marry aristocrats, or power animals? Yes, she was powerful, but her two lovers were the only ones with any idea as to her abilities.
The servants moved cautiously down the round sweep of steps leading from the front door. William pulled to a stop, and the two women visibly relaxed as they saw who was driving the beat-up vehicle. The older woman moved forward in front of the others, but didn’t deign to move closer. Her lips pursed tightly together.
“Magda,” William said. “The Duncanis chief is injured. We must get him inside. Fetch help.”
The older woman, whose name was evidently Magda, disappeared inside to do as her chief commanded. The maids approached the back of the truck, straining to see inside where Douglas was. Then, their curiosity somewhat sated, they turned harder gazes to Rachel. She narrowed her eyes at them, too sore and tired to deal with whatever w
as going on in their heads. As a big brute of a man passed between them, the maids backed away, scurrying up the steps.
“Douglas,” Rachel whispered, trying to get him to wake up. For a moment, she thought she heard him groan, but any future sound was muffled by the clang of the opening truck bed. William appeared next to the brute and they both reached in to pull Douglas into their arms so they could carry him inside.
“Duncanis,” Magda muttered in contempt, as if the single word conveyed all the weakness and unworthiness of Douglas’s unconscious form.
“He saved my life,” Rachel snapped, not liking the woman’s tone.
Magda’s sharp eyes turned to Rachel, sweeping up and down. The woman evidently didn’t think much of Douglas’s heroic deed. Apparently, Rachel wasn’t worth saving.
“This way,” Magda ordered, turning her back on Rachel. “I’ll take you around to the servants’ entrance and show you were you can wash that wildness off of you.”
“Rachel,” William called as they hauled Douglas inside, “this way.”
Rachel, unable to help herself, gave Magda a superior look. She went towards the front door. “Coming!”
*
“I don’t think Magda approves of me,” Rachel said to William, as she studied Douglas on the bed. The servants had removed his shirt, and she’d been shocked to see the massive purpling over the man’s chest. A bandage wrapped his ribs, a stark white to his tanned flesh. Their kind normally could heal from such rib wounds, but that didn’t mean he was out of the woods yet, nor did it mean he wasn’t in pain.
“She’s just set in her ways and likes things the way she likes them.” William dismissed the concern. “She has a lot to contend with and is worried about us being here and possibly in harm’s way. The plan was to hide out until it could be discovered who was after us. Though secure, if someone at court wants to do us harm, this mansion isn’t the safest place. Too many people are coming and going.”
“Worried about you maybe,” Rachel said. William didn’t answer.
“We should go get something to eat. There is not much we can do for Douglas but let him rest. I will have someone come and check on him.”
Rachel made a move to crawl onto the bed. “You go ahead. I’m sure you have business to attend to. I’ll stay here with Douglas.” Without thinking about it, she stretched out on the mattress.
William hesitated, as if he would protest. Then, slowly he nodded. He gestured to a velvet rope hanging near the wall. “Ring if you need anything. I’ll be back later to check on you both.” He hesitated again before finally leaving.
Rachel curled next to Douglas, running her hand lightly over his chest. “Hey, you need to wake up. I’m not sure we’re safe here. I didn’t like how some of the people were looking at us. William doesn’t want to hear it because this is a Cononious mansion, but there was something not right with that Magda woman.” She gently pulled on a bandage, lifting it to peek under. His ribs were still bruised. “Douglas?”
“Uh,” he groaned, turning his head back and forth on the pillow before finally settling his gaze on her.
She sighed with relief. “You’re awake.”
“You smell pretty,” he murmured.
Rachel laughed. “I think you might have hit your head. How are you feeling?”
“Like I was in a car wreck.”
“That would be a fitting conclusion. You’ve been out a long time.” She rested her hand low on his stomach, propping herself on her elbow to study his face. “We’re at the Cononious mansion. William just left.”
“I recognize the room.”
Rachel quickly told him everything that had happened, leaving out the part where she and William had sex against the side of the trunk in an explosion of after-battle release. If he asked her, she wouldn’t lie, but she saw no reason to bring it up.
“You’re an omni-shifter?” He arched a brow. Other than that, he didn’t make any quick movements.
Rachel nodded. “Yes.”
“How many?”
There was no point in lying about it now.
“Falcon, wolf, shark. Wolf is the strongest and most natural for me. I can’t seem to hold on to the falcon form too long, and I don’t really have call to use the shark. The few times I have, I tend to get mindlessly lost in the ocean. By the time I’ve adjusted enough to shift back, I have no idea where I’m at.” Rachel tried to act as if it wasn’t a big deal. “I’m too scared I will get lost at sea. There’s something about the ocean that calls you out of your head.”
“Air, land, and sea,” Douglas said. His hand skimmed over the top of hers, holding it to his lower stomach. Covers lay across his waist, hiding his hips from view. “I don’t think you know how rare a gift the omni-shift is. In my father’s time, he had scientists working to discover why certain people were omni-shifters, or wolves, or birds, or even fish. They were trying to unlock the genetic key.”
“Elvie told me stories of such experiments,” Rachel answered. Her stomach tensed, but for some reason she sensed she could trust him, just as she could trust William. “She said if anyone found out about me, they might take me away and do experiments on me. That is why I tell people I am a trout. It’s safer and easier that way.”
“No one would dare to harm you, but would merely honor you for your gifts. I stopped the experiments years ago.”
She frowned. It wasn’t a denial that such things had happened in the past.
“But we will keep your secret,” he said. “If that is what you wish.”
The feel of silken covers brushed her finger, and she realized he’d inched her hand lower on his stomach. She glanced down his body, seeing the unmistakable lift of an erection beneath the cream-colored silk. “Are you feeling better?”
“Somewhat.” His breathing deepened. “I can think of something that would make me feel even better.”
“That has to be the worst pick-up line in history.” She let him slide her hand lower and her fingers became tangled in silk.
“But it’s working, isn’t it?” He gave a small laugh. “Please say it is working.”
“You could have tried a little harder, but considering you took a window to the back for me, I guess I can overlook it.”
“Then my plan worked.” He laughed harder, bringing her fingers to rest over his arousal. His bold confidence excited her. “You’re in my debt.”
He made an effort to sit up, but she removed her hand from his cock and pressed his shoulder to keep him down. “You should take it easy. Some of your ribs might be broken. I almost demanded they take you to an emergency room, but—”
He shook his head in denial. “I’m hardly a frail human. There is a Cononious doctor in the mansion should the need ever arise. If memory serves, he’ll be dead drunk in a bedroom in the east wing. We have little need of his services and he enjoys a life at court.”
“I clearly went into the wrong profession,” Rachel said, giving a meaningful look around their lush surroundings. “I could have been living it up as a posh doctor to patients who never needed me.”
“Wouldn’t it be much better to be treated like a queen than a servant?” Douglas brushed back her hair.
Rachel chuckled. Being treated like a queen didn’t sound so bad. “Well, my chief, why don’t you relax? Let me play doctor and see how I like it.”
“You’re hired. Come away with me to my court at once.”
“I haven’t even started my audition yet.”
She moved to kneel beside him, leaning over his stomach. She ran her hands over his body, careful not to touch his wounded ribs as she massaged his hips and thighs through the silk. Taking her time, she rubbed his legs, letting the silk make an agonizingly slow trip down his body, unveiling tight hips and firm flesh like a curtain lifting over a grand stage. She scratched nails lightly over his exposed length.
She kissed a trail down his magnificent form, starting at the edge of his bandage and moving across the sensitive flesh of his hip. She nipped him with
her teeth and his body contracted. He began to sit up and she paused until he settled back down.
The tips of his fingers brushed against her cheek, tangling in the locks of her hair. She wanted him. She felt it as surely as she felt anything. But then she also wanted William. Confusion filled her. She’d tried for so long to be like the full-blooded humans, but she was not human, not completely. Humanity and the beast warred within her, they always warred, but here she was free to let a little of the beast roam free—or in her case beasts. She felt more than heard the shifters around her, filling up the large estate. It was a wild energy that pulsed through the walls, as uncontainable as the beasts that caused it.
Douglas encouraged her mouth to move downward, and her conflicted thoughts were momentarily lost in the taste of his skin. He smelled clean, a tinge of soap and natural musk. She moved silk over his legs, inch by inch, kissing the exposed thigh, then knee, then calf, before lifting it away from his flesh. His feet stirred as she made her way back up. She didn’t close her eyes, instead watching the erotic shifts of muscles beneath her.
Taking his balls, she rolled them in her palm. Her lips brushed over the tip of his shaft, teasing it with tiny licks. He moaned, before tensing and holding his breath. She worked her mouth over him, taking in his thick length.
Desire rippled through her, washing over her entire body in waves. She couldn’t get enough of him. Douglas gasped. He jerked, pulling her off him before his seed spilled. He lifted her by the shoulders, bringing her mouth up to his. She made a weak noise of protest, but his kiss silenced her.
He rolled onto his side, pinning her against him. His leg slipped over hers, holding them down. “You are a miracle worker. I feel much better already.”
Fingers peeled at the layers of clothing that kept her flesh from his hands. Silver flashed in his eyes and he crawled over her with a predatory grace. His lips brushed across her breasts, teasing the peaks before they passed lower. He gave her body the same attention she’d given his, only his caresses were harder, sucking and licking and biting down and up her legs.
Let the Wild Out Page 7
