Secret Cravings (5 page)

And she’d finally done the thing she promised never to do. She’d chosen one brother over another. Once Rance found out, his low opinion of her would plummet even more. How could she blame him? Was she so needy that she would do anything that either brother wanted in order to heal whatever was between them? She’d gone pretty willingly to the bedroom with Troy. Too late to change that now.

A short walk couldn’t harm her more. Or could it? Still, she might learn the truth at the end of the short excursion.

Sanity suddenly returned, and she covered her mouth with her hands.
We didn’t use a condom!

“What’s wrong, Kate?” He grabbed her hand, and fixed her with his gaze.

“I’m fine.” She lied. “If we’re going to take a walk, I’ll need my clothes.”

Chapter 4

The air was cool with Christmas promise. Kate and Troy had been walking for twenty minutes already. She’d waited for him to say anything, but he hadn’t said a single word since leaving Gran’s house. In fact, his mood grew darker and gloomier with each step.

“Where are we going?” Kate had an idea, but wanted to hear it from him.

“The creek.”

That’s where the accident had happened. At sixteen, she and the guys had taken Gran’s truck out for a joy ride. It had ended in a rollover, with only her getting hurt. A broken collarbone and a lot of bruises had been painful, but the loss of her two best friends had been horrible.

Suddenly, Troy stopped and grabbed Kate’s arm, jerking her to his side.

“What the hell, Troy! It’s been awhile, but I know the creek is still a mile away.”

When he turned to face her, she couldn’t believe her eyes…or his. Troy’s yellow orbs were deeper, looking more animal than human. She heard a howl off in the distance, and he crouched down, sniffing the air.

“Troy, will you tell me what is going on? That coyote isn’t close enough to bother us. Besides, you’ve got your pistol.”

He didn’t answer, but growled.

Growled?

She heard rustling all around them, and to her shock, watched as every inch of his skin instantly grew black hair.
Not hair—fur.

“Oh my God!”

His face and ears lengthened, and his entire body reshaped and expanded, ripping his clothes to shreds, leaving something she’d seen before.

A very large wolf.

She screamed, and what Troy had become bared its teeth, looking capable of eating her for dinner. Her mind should’ve told her body to flee, but the shock of what she’d just seen short-circuited her survival instinct.

This is a bad dream. This can’t be happening.

The Troy-wolf snarled and jerked his head towards the trees, away from her.
Thank God.
Seven other wolves came into view and began circling them. Four were gray, two were white, and one was black just like Troy looked now. Their fangs looked like daggers. She couldn’t get her mind wrapped around any of this, and her blood seemed to freeze in her veins.

The Troy-wolf didn’t back down. Mentally, she tried to catch up, to process what she was seeing, but couldn’t. Not possible.

She felt a tug on her shirt, turned and found the black wolf had bitten down on her pant leg and was trying to pull her away from Troy while his attention was elsewhere.

Jerking free, she stood up and screamed.

The Troy-wolf turned and attacked the other wolf. Fur and blood shot into the air. The other wolf’s buddies joined in. Not wanting to be close to the fighting canines, Kate stepped back and tripped on a rock, landing her flat on her ass. Pain shot up her spine from the impact, and she let out a groan.

She screamed again, hoping someone, anyone, was close enough to hear, but knowing the chance was slim to none. The fight moved away from her. The Troy-wolf held up to the others, though outnumbered.

If she was to escape, now was the time. Kate leaned up on her elbows, and the pain intensified. All the wolves, even Troy, ran out of her sight, taking their fight elsewhere.

I need to hurry before they come back.

She struggled to her feet, and heard a snarl close to her.

It wasn’t Troy in wolf form. This was one of the other wolves, the one that had pulled on her pant leg. The beast’s yellow stare fixed on her.

She couldn’t outrun the animal, so she tried to step back from it slowly. Then, it happened.

The wolf morphed into someone she knew. Rance stood before her, completely naked. If her mind hadn’t been reeling, she might’ve taken time to admire his naked, muscled body.

“You’re going to hurt yourself, Kate.”

She held up her hand in front of her. “This isn’t happening.”

“Did you hit your head when you fell?”

“No.”

He stepped toward her, and her mouth dried up like a desert.

“Stop, Rance. Don’t come closer.”

“You need to see the doc. You might be really hurt.”

“What the fuck are you?”

His eyes narrowed. “You know already.”

“How could I?”

“You’ve seen this before. I know you remember the accident.”

“What has that to do with anything?” But the memories of that night, though fuzzy, began to clear.

“Think. I came to the hospital that night. You were riding the morphine drip, but I heard you whisper in your sleep what you’d seen.”

“The wolves…in the truck with me. It happened so fast. I didn’t know where you and Troy had gone. But that was only the shock of the accident.”

“Use your head. You are a college woman, aren’t you? We were the wolves.”

“Oh my God.” She knew it was true and the fog around her memory lifted. “I put my arms around you and told you that I loved you. You and Troy changed, right then, into wolves. The truck rolled, a–and...”

“…everything changed.” Rance looked sad.

“Yes.”

“The accident was because we couldn’t control ourselves around you. Our gift is sacred and is not to be shared outside the tribe.”

“I wouldn’t have told anyone. You were my best friends. I loved you, and you broke my heart.” She put her face in her hands and let the tears fall.

Rance put his arms around her. Knowing she shouldn’t, she still leaned into him.

“I know you wouldn’t have,” he said. “But that didn’t change the fact that we couldn’t control our gift around you, honey.”

“This is too much to process for one night. My whole world just got turned upside down. My best friends are werewolves and that’s why they ended our friendship.”

“Not like the movies, but yes, we can shift into wolves.”

“Your mother and father?”

“Yes. Everyone of the tribe.”

“What about Troy? Shouldn’t you be helping him against—” Kate stopped. “They’re werewo—shifters, too?”

“Yes. And they’re trying to help him.”

“But they were attacking us. You were with them?”

“He’s lost to his animal spirit. When I bit your pant leg to pull you away, I tried to communicate with him but couldn’t reach him.”

She cringed. “You were trying to save me.”

“Yes. I know Troy would never hurt you if he were in his right mind. Still, if we hadn’t come when we did, he might’ve killed you.”

Kate saw blood oozing from several lacerations on Rance’s body. “You’re hurt.”

“We heal faster than normal humans. Your ankle is swollen. Let me get you back to Gran’s, then I’ll call the doc.”

“No doctor. I’m fine. Nothing but a couple of bruises. Nothing broken.”
Physically, I’m fine. Mentally, I must be insane.

“You will see the doc, Kate. End of discussion.”

In defiance, she put her hands on her hips. “I’ll walk home.”

* * * *

Rance always liked Kate’s feistiness, but tonight he couldn’t enjoy it. Troy was in danger, and Rance didn’t give a damn about the tribe finding out about what happened between him, his brother, and Kate all those years ago. Sure, there would be hell to pay but at the moment, there were other pressing matters. First, he had to make sure Kate was okay, and then he would join the others to try to find Troy.

“Stop arguing. You obviously can’t walk, so I’ll carry you.”

“You’re naked. You want to lug me home that way?” Her eyes dared him to deny it.

“Yes.” He scooped her up in his arms. Her body felt good next to his.

“How about you change into a wolf and I can ride on your back to Gran’s?”

“Now you’re being a smartass. You must be feeling better.” He snorted. “I’ll get there as fast as I can.”

“I’ve lost my mind. I bet I’m lying on the ground right now, with a concussion.”

“If you have a concussion, you need to see the doc right away.”

“I didn’t hit my head. I only hit my ass.”

And what an ass!
His dick hardened in response to the thought, as well as the feel of her body against his skin. He could imagine how thrilling it would be to take her from behind, sliding his dick past her tight ass ring.

He needed to get her to Gran’s fast. Troy had imprinted on her, and if the others couldn’t keep him occupied, he would head straight back to Kate. What his twin would do then, Rance didn’t want to find out.

He dashed down the path. Carrying her didn’t strain a single muscle, but it did stir up his body. His cock was rigid. The urge to claim her as his mate right then rolled through him like an unstoppable wave.
Fuck!
What if being with Kate had the same effect on him as it did on Troy?

She whispered, “Do you remember that time we went swimming by the dam?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Did you almost change into a wolf in front of me then?”

He hadn’t thought she’d seen the tiny shift. “No, my full shifting powers came later than Troy’s.” Rance thought about telling her that both his and Troy’s first full shift happened the night of the accident, but he didn’t. She wouldn’t understand.

“Now that I know about you, can we be friends again?”

He lied, “Why not?” The vision of Kate’s unconscious body on the ground near the truck was
why not.
Mating outside the tribe was not only forbidden, it was dangerous and could be deadly. Tonight, his brother’s predicament proved that.

She snuggled into him and his cock got even harder. Thankfully, he was holding her and she couldn’t see. He lifted her higher, fearing the tip of his dick might actually hit her ass. Best to speed up.

“You said that Troy was lost to his animal spirit.”

“I did.” His gut clenched, fearing for his brother’s sanity.

“Does that happen often?”

“No.”

“Why did it happen to him?”

He didn’t answer. The truth he suspected would hurt her.

“I’m the reason, aren’t I?”

Trying to console her, he said, “You don’t know that.”

“You do. Troy and I had sex tonight. Did that do it?”

Rance stopped and stared down at her. His brother had sampled Kate’s delights, and had been burned. Rance had always thought the council sanctioning couplings was archaic, but now he knew it was necessary.

She blinked back tears. “I didn’t know.”

He hated the guilty pain she felt. “It’s not your fault, Kate.”

They didn’t speak the rest of the way to Gran’s. Rance sat Kate down on the porch.

His dick hadn’t softened, so he moved to the darkest part of the steps. “You have some clothes I can borrow?”

“No. Only Gran’s housecoats, and they wouldn’t fit. I’ll get you a towel. It’s the best I can offer.”

He’d take anything to hide his erection. “Kate, you sure you’re okay? No dizziness? Nausea?”