The Chosen Series Box Set: Books 1 - 3

by Charlene Hartnady

  “Best friend forever.” He pulled a pained face. “My Ysnaar would have my balls if you hurt Becky in any way, both physically or emotionally, so think long and hard before you go down this road.”

  “I want the female,” Ross said without so much as a hint of hesitation.

  “Griffin will go with you.”

  Ross made a sound of irritation.

  “Take it or leave it. I’m not sending you out to rut a human,” Zane dropped his voice, looking around them, “without backup. You are not permitted to drink from her. Get your fill of the female because I want you back tomorrow. No one is to know about this. Send Griffin to me in …” Zane looked at the watch strapped on his wrist. “Half an hour … make that forty-five minutes. I will brief him myself. If Brant finds out about this, you are on your own. Are we clear?”

  “Thank you.”

  Zane held up a hand, his eyes narrowed. “Don’t, it’s not like you left me with a choice.” Then he sighed. “Go and have your female.”

  Even though Zane acted like he wasn’t doing him any favors and that this was his only choice, Ross knew better. His friend was granting him a favor, one he would gladly take.

  Chapter 9

  Becky moved the stethoscope a little to the right. “Another deep breath for me please, Mr. Bradford.”

  The elderly gentleman did as she asked. After several repeats, Becky did the same on his upper back, listening each time. “Good news, Mr. Bradford, your lungs are sounding clear, so it looks like the antibiotics have done the trick.” Her patient had been in a week earlier with a nasty chest infection. If left untreated, he would most likely have ended up in the hospital. Thankfully she caught it in time.

  “Good to know. I’m hardly even coughing anymore.” It was as if he suddenly remembered to do just that, because he had a little coughing bout while putting his hand over his mouth.

  Once he finished, Becky added, “I’m just going to do a routine check of your blood pressure and then we’re done. Please pull up your sleeve.”

  Today was her first day back at work and it felt good. She loved being a doctor. She enjoyed the interaction with her patients, that one-to-one connection. She even made house calls when the situation warranted. There was no doubt in her mind that she would have been great as a surgeon, like her parents wanted, but this was more her scene. Surgeons needed to be more reserved, holding their patients at arm’s length. Also, unconscious people couldn’t talk back. No, the thought of having to play god just didn’t sit right with her.

  Her father was a neurosurgeon who specialized in neuro-oncology and her mother was a congenital heart surgeon who specialized in operating on children and infants with heart disease. Becky had been made to feel like a failure for settling on just being a plain general practitioner. She wasn’t specialized, let alone a surgeon. Her parents were both so disappointed in their only child. She sighed, wrapping the cuff around Mr. Bradford’s arm and forcing herself to smile at him.

  “Why so glum?”

  She shook her head. “I was just thinking that there is no pleasing some people,” she shrugged, “no matter how hard you try.”

  “Young lady, there is only one person in this world you need to worry about pleasing and that’s yourself. I’m not saying that you should do this at the expense of others …”

  She pushed the bladder rapidly, inflating the cuff.

  “What I am saying is,” his watery eyes stayed on her, “if you are happy, those who truly love you will be happy for you no matter what path you choose. You will never please everyone in this world and you shouldn’t take that responsibility onto yourself anyways.”

  “Wise words.” She nodded. “Your blood pressure is good.” She smiled, feeling much better. “Thanks. I needed to hear that. I just sometimes worry that I made some wrong decisions along the way. I second guess myself, even though I shouldn’t.”

  The old man chuckled. “That’s normal, but I’m sure you did go wrong sometimes. Making mistakes is normal too. It’s how we learn. Thing is not to make them a second time. Keep looking forward, you’re going to fall on your ass if you don’t keep your eyes on the path ahead of you.”

  “You’re right, Mr. Bradford.” Becky removed the cuff and lightly touched his arm. “We’re all done.”

  He smiled warmly as he rolled his sleeve back down. “Thank you.”

  “Oh no … thank you.” They both walked to the door, which Mr. Bradford insisted on holding open for her.

  “No charge, Elisabeth.” Becky inclined her head to her receptionist. She knew he lived off of a small pension.

  “Oh, that’s very kind. Thank you, doc.” Mr. Bradford smiled.

  “Is it my turn now?” a familiar gravelly voice sounded to the right of her.

  Her breathing turned slightly choppy and her back became rigid. She kept her eyes on her receptionist, not able to face him just yet. She heard the door click as Mr. Bradford left her clinic.

  “No, sir.” Sarah stood up from behind the reception desk. “You haven’t filled in the forms I gave you, and as I mentioned earlier, it is Dr. Shaw’s lunch break. She then has two scheduled patients and will be able to see you at,” Sarah glanced at her watch, “one o’clock.”

  Becky’s heart raced as she turned, taking in all six and a half delicious feet of him. Damn, damn and damn again. He was even more delicious than she remembered. Short styled hair, thick and black. Perfect for clutching. She was sure it would be soft and silky to the touch. He was really big, possibly bigger even than Rushe. Jeans and a T-shirt had never looked better on a man … male. She swallowed hard.

  Ross crumpled the forms using one giant hand. His dark eyes never leaving her. “I will see her … you now.” His voice was a low growl that had goose-bumps forming all over her body. “Please,” he added, his eyes locked with hers.

  “Sir, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask—”

  “It’s okay, Elisabeth, I’ll see him,” Becky interrupted, watching how her receptionist’s mouth dropped open.

  “I will stand outside the door.” A second huge male stepped forward. “Hello, sweet human,” the male addressed Elisabeth who gasped into her hand, her skin turning a lighter shade of pale.

  “Are these …?” she whispered. “They must be …?” she muttered.

  “This is Griffin,” Ross said. “We are vampires.” For the first time, his eyes turned away from her to glance briefly at Elisabeth who looked like she might faint at any moment.

  “You might want to sit down, Elisabeth,” Becky advised.

  “We are vampires but we will not harm you.” The other male smiled at her receptionist.

  Elisabeth slid down into her chair, her mouth was a thin white line. She made a tiny noise which spoke of fear and panic, even though she almost seemed calm.

  “They’re good. Don’t worry. Remember, I told you that my best friend married the vamp kings? Well that’s how I know Ross, we have been friends for a while now.”

  Elisabeth swallowed thickly and nodded slowly.

  The male she now knew as Griffin inclined his head for a second. “Fear not female, we are not permitted to drink from humans, so you are quite safe.”

  “Good to know,” Elisabeth squeaked, her eyes were wide in her head.

  “I won’t be long,” Becky reassured her.

  “How long is your lunch?” Ross asked. His intense gaze seemed to bore into her.

  “A half hour,” Becky glanced at her watch, “make that twenty-five minutes.”

  “She will be twenty-five minutes,” Ross said, his eyes still locked with hers. He moved forward, entering her personal space and herded her into her clinic.

  “Call if you need anything,” she heard her receptionist shout just before Ross shut the door.

  “I thought I told you to leave me alone.” She folded her arms across her chest.

  He shook his head. “I can’t do that.”

  “You vampires are all a bunch of grade-A assholes. I may have been inter
ested once upon a time, but I’m so over it now.”

  His face turned solemn. “You must believe me when I tell you that I didn’t agree with Brant’s treatment of the wolf and his pack, or of the things he said to Stephany. He acted like a colossal idiot but I had to follow my orders.” His eyes darkened. “The only reason I volunteered to join with Brant on the expedition was so that I could see you. Please believe me.”

  “Following orders, huh?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “And if Brant told you to jump into a fire would you do that too?”

  He looked confused for a few seconds before shrugging. “Yes, I would.”

  She couldn’t help the incredulous sound that escaped her. “That’s freaking crazy! You would burn to a crisp because your king told you to do it?”

  “It would be greatly uncomfortable but I would heal quickly. I don’t see the big deal.”

  She kept forgetting that they had extra abilities. “If he told you to stab yourself with a silver knife would you do it?”

  Ross shook his head. “That would be stupid.”

  “You see?” She put her hands on her hips. “You don’t have to follow orders.”

  “I do if I want to keep my balls, but if it’s a choice between my balls and dying on a silver blade I’ll take my chances and opt not to be stabbed. Why are you asking me all of these silly questions?”

  His eyes dropped to her breasts and then lower, not that he could see much under her buttoned up lab coat. The big vampire groaned, his eyes filled with untethered desire.

  “Don’t. I told you that I’m not interested.” A bald-faced lie, but maybe she would start believing it herself if she kept saying it.

  His nostrils flared. “Your scent tells me otherwise.”

  Becky ground her teeth in sheer frustration. These non-humans and their sense of smell. Wait just a freaking minute. It probably meant that he could smell Rushe on her. “What are you playing at? You can’t possibly want me.”

  “I just said that I do and I plan on having you. I’ve waited a very long time.” His eyes narrowed for a second as his nostrils flared again. They then turned smoldering hot. “Take off your clothes or I will destroy them.”

  “Wait just a minute, buddy.” Becky wagged her finger at him. “You cannot come into my place of business and demand that I take off my clothes. We are not having sex here.” She whispered the last even though Elisabeth couldn’t possibly hear her.

  “I need to be inside you. Need it so badly that I ache.” His muscles bunched and his jaw locked.

  “Well, you should have thought about that before you followed all of Brant’s bullshit orders.” She knew she was being a bit unreasonable, but she didn’t like how her heart pounded at the thought of him between her legs. How her nether regions turned soaking wet just by looking at the sexy vampire. They had spent months texting one another and although it had started out flirtatious, even down right steamy, they had also texted about other things. Like what they were doing. What they were feeling. It had become a ritual for Ross to send her a goodnight text every night. After the whole Ward and Steph thing, she’d ignored his messages, deleting them before she read them. It was only right at this moment that she realized how much she had missed hearing from him.

  Becky gave herself a mental shake. It wasn’t that long ago that she had been with Rushe. Less than two days. She might want to play the field a bit, but gosh … less than two days … this was taking it a bit far.

  “I told you, I didn’t have a choice.” He looked pained. “Please try to forgive me. I know that you like me … that you want me.” His voice turned gravelly. “I have petitioned hard … have done everything short of begging and have finally been granted permission to have you.”

  “You should’ve tried harder to make this happen sooner.” She shook her head, “It’s too late.”

  Ross growled loudly. Not as deep or as raw as the wolves, but it was still a terrifying noise that made her gasp.

  “I would never hurt you.” Ross’ voice was still gravelly, although now at least he sounded calm. “Just tell me this one thing, do you love the wolf?”

  Becky made a choking sound. Oh shit! She knew he could scent Rushe on her, but somehow she hadn’t expected him to actually bring it up. Especially not after he’d been in her company for this long without saying anything.

  He shook his head, looking pained. “Please, just tell me you don’t love him. Do you plan on mating him?” Then his whole stance hardened up, his back stiffened, his muscles bulged. “I found you first. We have been messaging for months. You said I could rut you. Why is it too late?”

  “Calm down. I’m not mating anyone.”

  He let out a huge sigh and actually smiled at her. Oh god, what a smile it was. She felt her knees go weak and had to put her hand out on the chair behind her to steady herself. “I’m not mating him but I’m also not falling into bed with you.”

  Ross looked around the small clinic, his eyes landing on the examination table before sliding to the wall to the right of her. “I would like to take you against that wall. We do not need a bed.”

  Desire coursed through her. “Lunch break is over in fifteen minutes.” She looked at the wall clock above his head.

  Ross threw her a grin that had her pussy clenching and her clit throbbing. “I can make you come at least three times in the next fifteen minutes. Do not let time concern you.”

  “I can’t … couldn’t possibly, after just two nights ago … It just wouldn’t be …”

  Ross growled. “You won’t let me have you because that wolf rutted you? What did he do to you? Are you afraid?” His eyes turned deadly and he clenched his fists.

  Becky held up her hands. “No, don’t misunderstand … he never hurt me. Oh god, the opposite is true.” His eyes narrowed, so she didn’t elaborate. “I can’t have sex with you so soon after him. It wouldn’t be right.”

  “Because you have feelings for him?”

  “No. Stop saying that. He will be mated to another human female within the next few days, so you have it all wrong.”

  “He’s a fool.” He frowned. “What is it then? Are you still angry with me?”

  “I should be.” She shook her head. “But I guess I’m not. The thing is … it wouldn’t be right if I had sex with two guys in the space of a few days.”

  His frown deepened. “Why not?” Ross took a step towards her.

  Becky took a small step backwards, which put the chair at her back. “I’m not that kind of girl.”

  “I still don’t understand. What type would that be, the type to rut?” His deep voice seemed to rumble right through her.

  “The type to rut two different guys in the space of a few days.”

  Ross’ lips twitched. “I am not a guy and neither was that other male. We are non-humans. It is perfectly natural for you to rut when the urge strikes.” His nostrils flared as he stepped closer. “I can scent that you would like to have me inside you now.” His eyes moved from her eyes to her mouth and back. “Take off your clothes. We still have time for two orgasms.”

  “I don’t think I should … I mean … no I can’t.” Her chest was heaving like she’d run a marathon. “Come back in a few weeks … maybe then.”

  “No,” a low growl. “I have permission right now and must act before it is too late. I need to return by morning. I have missed you, Becky.” His eyes dropped to her lips, which she couldn’t help licking. His eyes grew heated.

  “All these rules and freaking regulations. I get off work at six. We can meet then … to discuss it,” she quickly added the last, her voice quivering slightly. If he so much as touched her, even non-sexually, her resolve would melt.

  Ross took a small step towards her, his neck craned as he looked down at her. She could feel the heat radiate off of him. “Although rutting is natural, I will not lie and say that I am okay with this other male having touched you.” His eyes dipped down and she just knew he was looking in the area where Rushe’s scent was the stronge
st. “He marked you many times.”

  She made a squeaking noise instead of an acknowledgement.

  Ross’ eyes locked with hers. “His scent on you is driving me a little crazy.”

  “You look fine,” she managed to croak.

  “Well I’m not.” He stepped up flush against her. So close that she could feel his cock pushing against her stomach. “Please, female. I will make it quick and enjoyable. We can talk later.”

  Her breath came out in ragged pants and his eyes dipped to her lips again. He licked his own, like she was the tastiest morsel he had ever laid eyes on.

  “I’m not a slut.”

  “I don’t know what that is.” He gripped her hips with his big hands. “Please,” he murmured.

  “A slut is someone who has sex often with many different partners.”

  “Then vampires are colossal sluts and you will fit in just fine … or should I say that I will fit in just fine.” He licked his lips again. “Just say yes … please,” he growled softly.

  “Fine, but—” Before she could say anything more, he covered her lips with his and there was a loud ripping noise.

  Becky broke the kiss, looking down at her gaping lab coat. “What the—”

  “I’m sorry,” Ross said as he ripped her blouse and skirt, leaving her in tattered rags with only her underwear still in one piece.

  “So fucking sexy,” he growled again. Ross moved so quickly that she couldn’t register the motion. There was another quick rip and her panties came down around one ankle. She felt her breasts spring free.

  If she wasn’t so damned turned on, she’d be angry. Spitting freaking mad. Ross’ eyes heated up a whole lot more as he raked them from top to bottom and back again. By the time they met her own, his irises glowed.

  “I need you to wrap your legs around me,” he instructed as he lifted her easily. Excitement coursed through her as she complied.

  Using one hand, he anchored her against him while the other tore at his pants. Ross spun them around, he walked a step or two, putting her back to the cold, hard wall.

  “Hold on.” It was the only warning he gave before he plunged into her.