Kissing him again softly, I shake my head. "A healthy baby. That"s all I want."
He kisses me back, and this time he deepens the kiss, putting my back on the blanket and coming over me. He pushes my light spring dress up and exposes my bare s.e.x to the sunlight. Then he moves down my body and settles between my legs.
I close my eyes and moan a little as his warm tongue licks lazily across my c.l.i.t. We are in no rush today, just enjoying the beautiful spring day and each another.
His mouth opens and covers my p.u.s.s.y, then he sucks on my c.l.i.t. I feel his thick fingers penetrate me, and I arch up to greet them. I"ve been in a state of constant need since the first time we made love. I thought at some point it would diminish or fade a little, but it hasn"t.
Our mating bond is something I never thought I would experience. It"s all-consuming, and I can"t seem to get enough of him. I reach down and grip Koda"s hair, pulling him as close to me as I can. Then I"m climaxing against his mouth and he"s slowly licking me clean.
When he"s wrung me out, he comes over me, careful of my growing belly, and slides his full length inside of me. My mate mark tingles, as does the rest of my body as we make love on the blanket. His heavy thrusts become our heartbeat, and our perfect day is even better now.
As his hot seed enters me, my own o.r.g.a.s.m is triggered, and I cling to Koda, shouting his name. He leans down, worshiping me and whispering words of love. I"ll never get tired of the way he dotes on me and tells me he loves me.
As I close my eyes and drift off to sleep, I feel Koda curl up beside me and kiss my mate mark. It"s heaven on earth, and I never want it to end.
Epilogue.
Koda.
Two years later ...
I growl watching the unmated wolf smile at Snow. I stand beside her, looking like a giant shadow scaring off the townspeople, but I don"t care.
"Koda, if you are going to intimidate everyone that comes over here, then what"s the point of me helping out with the bake sale?"
Snow huffs, and I sit down in the chair behind her, looking at her lush a.s.s. I lick my lips as she moves around the table selling baked goods at the festival.
We agreed to help out Ruby, Gwen, and Winnie with the fall festival and take a turn selling the baked goods. It"s going on all weekend, and she"s been looking forward to it for months. She started helping out with Ruby"s Goodie Basket right after our mating, saying that she wanted to get out into the town and become a part of our pack community. I knew it would be good for the both of us, so slowly I"ve been integrating into the role of town deputy sheriff. I"ve also been helping her in the bakery and with watching the cubs of our pack.
Snow is about five months pregnant with our second cub, and seeing her like this only turns me on more. We"ve got one girl cub so far, but she thinks this one is a boy. Just like the last one. I don"t care what we have, as long as they are all healthy and happy, just like my mate. Little Snow is at home with her Aunt Winnie and Uncle Stone today, so the time alone is nice. Although I would have liked to have spent it in bed instead of out here in the town, but this makes Snow happy, so I do as she wishes.
"Hey there, pretty lady. Got anything on this table as sweet as you?"
I hear a man"s voice, and I pull my eyes from Snow"s a.s.s to look around her and see a human standing in front of her. If he was a shifter, he would have smelled my scent on her a mile away and know d.a.m.n well to stay clear.
Slowly, and with as much restraint as I can, I stand up behind Snow. I rise up and tower over the top of her head to look down at this human.
"What did you say?" I ask through gritted teeth.
I hear Snow stifle a laugh, but I don"t think anything about this is funny.
"I, umm, I was, umm." He tries to stutter out a few sentences, but nothing intelligible leaves his lips.
"Everything is two dollars, and all the proceeds go to the children"s playground on Main Street," Snow says, trying to smooth over the situation.
I loom over her, looking down at this man, daring him to make a move. I would rip out his throat in the middle of this street to show my dominance to all who would think to approach my mate.
Slowly, he pulls his wallet out and takes out a twenty-dollar bill, laying it on the table and backing away. He doesn"t say a word as he backs up and blends into the crowd, never showing me his back.
Snow turns around on me then, putting her hands on her hips and raising an eyebrow. I just shrug my shoulders and sit back down, not even bothering to apologize.
She just lets out a huff like she"s mad, but I see her smiling when she turns back around to the table. That"s fine with me because I get to look at her a.s.s again.
"At least it was a good donation," she says, picking up the twenty and putting it into the jar.
"At least the view is nice," I say, and she looks over her shoulder and gives me a wink.
She knows exactly what she"s doing when she wiggles that thing around in front of me, but I just let her pretend she"s innocent as I think about all the ways I"m going to bite it later.
She"s lucky she"s pregnant or I would for sure be putting a baby in her tonight. Mating moon or not, she"s being a tease and she knows it. Snow knows exactly what happens when she pokes at my bear.
Reaching out, I grab her hips and pull her down on my lap. She lets out a squeak and tries to pull away, but she and I both know she doesn"t want to go anywhere. She just likes riling me up.
"You shake that thing in front of me again and I"ll carry you out of here over my shoulder." I nip at her neck, and it sends a shiver down her spine.
"You promise?" She gives me a wicked smile, and I growl.
"Careful, mate. You"re supposed to be here for another hour." I rub my hand across her growing belly and feel myself getting harder.
She smacks my leg playfully, and I let her get up out of my lap.
"Then I guess you"ll just have to have some self-control for the next hour."
I grip the seat, nearly snapping the arms off, and grit my teeth. "Snow, when it comes to you, I"ve never had control."
She turns around and walks up to me so we are almost eye to eye. "I know, and I love it. Just like I love you."
The kiss she places on my lips is soft and sweet, but it has me counting down the seconds until I can get her out of here and back in our cabin. When it comes to Snow, I know two things are for sure: I"ll never stop loving her, and I"ll never get enough.
THE END.
The first time Stone saw Winnie, she was alone in the woods with no memory of where she came from.
With one look, he knew something was different. When she finally came of age and her mating heat kicked in, he realized that she had always been the one.
Sent to live with a strange family, Winnie was forced to deal with the hateful treatment of her stepmother and stepsisters.
Mating the alpha changed that.
But when her past comes back to find her, will the heat last after the clock strikes midnight?
Warning: This shifter fairy tale is meant to be enjoyed by only those who love this kind of adorable stuff. Think you"ve got what it takes? Then come on in! ( To the hubs; my life, my love, my mate.
Prologue.
Winnie.
Past...
"Please don"t leave me here." My voice cracks at the plea. I hate this. I hate all of it. I stare up at the alpha of the Gray Ridge pack, not wanting to part with him. One would think I"d want to get away from him as fast as possible. Everything about him screams strength and power. I"ve noticed no one even really makes eye contact with him, but I do. I stare up at him, pleading with my eyes. I feel safe with him. It"s almost funny because he"s easily a foot-and-a-half taller than me. Maybe more.
Stone"s an alpha in every sense of the word. I knew it from the moment he picked me up in his arms. I could feel it almost bleeding off him. He was attractive, but not what I would call handsome by any stretch. His dark-brown hair is shaved at the sides, with the top a little bit longer. He always grips it when he gets a little bit agitated with me. Which seems to be a lot since I started following him around like a lost cub. Which I am.
Even at night, when everyone would go to bed, I"d sneak into his room and crawl into bed with him. Maybe that"s why he"s making me leave. Who wants a lost little cub following them around everywhere they go? He"s all I know, but that"s not saying much since I can only remember the last seven days of my life. He"s my world at this point. He and Gwen are all I know, and I don"t want to let that go.
His big hand cups my chin, and I lean into it, trying to inhale his scent. It"s now become the scent I think of when I think of home, and he"s trying to take it from me. His thumb brushes my cheek, and something flashes in his dark-blue eyes before he drops his hand away liked I burned him. I want to reach out and put it back, but I don"t.
When I was first found in the woods, they brought me to him, and he held me for days. Lay on the floor with me in his home, petting me, trying to get me to shift out of bear form. I couldn"t do it. I didn"t know how. I didn"t know anything except my first name. I still don"t know much. I seem to remember everything except my previous life. I know how everything works, and I can read and write, but my life just isn"t there.
Even the first few days after being found in the woods is still hazy in my mind. Just like the rest of my life, but no one has come for me. No one has come forward to claim me as theirs. I was abandoned and unwanted, it seems. And now it"s happening again. In seven days I"ve been cast out twice. Okay, maybe Stone isn"t casting me out as much as placing me in a new home, but it feels like it. He"s found me a permanent place among a family in his pack, but it feels as if I"m being thrown away.
"This is what"s best. Trust me," Stone finally says. I want to believe him. Trust him. I turn my head to look at the place that"s to be my home now. A man and a woman stand on the porch with two blonde girls who look to be about my age. Well, what I"m guessing is my age. They look like they"ve been plucked right out of a magazine. Stone said it was a nice family. They have two daughters, and I will like it here.
I hear Gwen, Stone"s sister, let out an unhappy huff from behind him. She doesn"t want me to leave either. She and Stone have been fighting for the past two days about it. I hate that they were fighting about me. Maybe that was another reason he wanted me gone. She wanted me to stay with them, but Stone said it just wasn"t possible. I think it"s a lie. He"s the alpha; he could make it so. He just doesn"t want me to.
Even knowing it"s a lie, I try again, not caring how pathetic it is. "Please don"t make me go. I promise I"ll be better." My voice drops a little before whispering the rest, even knowing everyone will hear it anyways. They"re all wolves, they hear everything. "I won"t sneak into your room anymore. I"ll stay in mine. Please don"t make me go." I feel the tears. .h.i.t my cheeks.
Oddly, this is the first time I"ve cried. Even when I finally shifted out of bear form, I didn"t cry, and it felt like my whole body was on fire. Somehow this hurts more. How I"ve become so attached to him so fast, I don"t know. But I am. The thought of leaving him steals the breath from my lungs.
A low growl leaves his chest, and I can hear everyone take a step back, but I don"t. No. I step closer. I like the sound. It seems to scare everyone else, but it makes me feel safe. Even if the growl is directed at me. I want to lay my head on his chest and hear where the growl emanates from.
Stone takes a step back from me, then another.
He"s going to do it. He"s leaving me here.
"I"ll come back tomorrow to check on you, Winnie." Then he turns, making his way back to his truck. Gwen steps in front of me, pulling me into her arms and whispering in my ear. "You have the phone. You can call me anytime. I"ll come tomorrow to see you, too. I"ll make sure you"re settling in okay." She pulls back, looking down at me with the same blue eyes as Stone. Like everyone around here, she"s way taller than me. I guess bears just aren"t tall, or maybe it"s just me.
"We"ll find your family." She tries to rea.s.sure me, but it"s not rea.s.suring.
I"m a bear shifter, which I"ve been told is rare. Not only that, but I"m a female and there aren"t many female bear shifters left. Stone told me we would find my family fast, being as I"m so rare, but that has yet to be seen. I don"t feel rare or special. All I feel is unwanted.
She fully releases me, following Stone and getting into the truck. I watch them pull away, and I can"t bring myself to move until I feel a warm hand on my shoulder. I look up at the woman, who looks to be in her thirties. Her blonde hair matches the younger girls", who I"m guessing are her daughters. It"s hard to tell with shifters.
"Come inside, dear. I"ll show you to your room."
"She smells like a bear," one of the girls says. Her face scrunches up like she"s smelling something terrible.
"I"m not sharing a room with it," the other girl says, making an equally grossed-out face.
"You"ll do what you"re told. The alpha said we"re to take care of her and that"s what we"ll do," the father finally says. The woman"s hold on me tightens at his words, her nails digging in a little. She"s clearly not happy with the alpha"s orders.
"Come inside." This time her tone is annoyed as she starts to pull me towards the house. I want to yank from her hold, but I don"t. What choice do I really have? When we pa.s.s the two girls on the porch, they both give me a look that could kill. Gone are the nice girls who were making sweet doe eyes at the alpha when he was standing there.
When I get inside, I"m pulled up two flights of stairs until we reach the attic. Then the woman finally releases me, unlocking the door and showing me the s.p.a.ce. The room is a mess, a bed in the center of the chaos.
"You"ll need to get this cleared up and habitable. I"m sure the alpha will want to see it when he comes back here tomorrow. Make sure it"s done right." She turns and makes her way down the stairs. "Dinner"s at seven. Most of this better be done by then, or you won"t be eating," she calls as she descends. "...Not that you need it," she adds in a murmur.
I sit down on the bed and look around the attic. I feel more alone now than when I was running through the woods without any memory of anything. At least then I didn"t have anyone to miss.
Prologue.
Stone.
Past...
"You"re making a mistake." Gwen"s words sting. We both know they"re true, but I don"t say anything in response.
Putting the truck in gear, I pull away from the Stocktons" house and feel my chest ache. Gripping the wheel tighter, I force myself not to look back as I drive away. Just a few more minutes and then I can run. I just need to get back home.
Gwen and I ride in silence all the way back home. Thankfully, she doesn"t keep telling me what I know to be true and just lets me suffer in silence.
It"s the right thing to do. It"s what had to be done. I feel like if I keep telling myself that over and over again, it will be true. It"s like if I keep repeating it, then I"ll somehow believe the lie.
I pull up to the house, jump out of the truck, and head for the woods. Hearing the gravel crunch under my boots, I don"t look back when Gwen calls my name.
"Stone! Where are you going?"
Once I get out back behind our house, I pull off my shirt and throw it on the ground. I keep stomping as I make my way to the tree line, kicking off my boots and taking off my jeans as I go. As I leap into the air, I shift before my paws. .h.i.t the ground, taking off in a full run towards the protected lands.
Feeling my muscles burn and ache is what I need right now. I need to make my body feel the pain that is eating away at my heart. What is wrong with me? Why can"t I stop this feeling, this need?
Pushing harder, I run as fast as my wolf can take me. He"s angry and needs to be in control. I run for miles until I"m beyond the borders of our small mountain town in Gray Ridge, Colorado.
Our shifter community is secret, but strong. And finding another shifter wandering in the woods is unusual. We have other packs around us, and we"re all friendly. So when our town sheriff, Dominic Wolf, found a stray bear cub, I reached out to all the neighboring packs but came up empty-handed.
The first time I saw her, Dominic was carrying her out of the woods. She was fully shifted into a little brown cub, and she was the most beautiful thing I"d ever seen. Her head turned in my direction when I approached them, and her big brown eyes met mine.