The Fairy Tales Collection (33 page)

“Take your time,” the woman said with a
careless wave of her hand.  “You don’t need to explain your lunch break to me.”

She glanced at Rowan.  “Hello, Rowan.”

“Hi, Bonnie,” Rowan said.

Bonnie studied Rafe’s hand on Rowan’s
thigh.  “Are you working with Rafe this summer?”

Rowan shook her head.  “No, we’re dating
now.  I was just bringing him lunch.”

“Isn’t that nice,” Bonnie said distractedly
as she pulled her buzzing cell phone from her purse.  “Oh for the…”

She sighed and gave the two of them a look
of annoyance.  “I’m on the committee for the town-wide yard sale this year and
I swear to you, it’s going to be the death of me.  The women on that committee
are petty little assholes.”

Rowan laughed as Bonnie shoved her phone
into her purse.  “I’ve got to go.  Apparently there’s some sort of crisis over
who is getting the prime spot next to the bathrooms in city park.  Daphne
texted that Mrs. Tutt and Mrs. Wickenbock are about to exchange blows.”

She hurried off, waving and calling over
her shoulder, “Rafe, just text me if there are any problems.”

As she pulled out of the driveway, Rowan
leaned over and kissed Rafe again.  “No one cares, Rafe.”

She slid off the truck, dusting off her ass
with her hands before stuffing the garbage into the bag and taking one last
swig of water before handing the bottle to him.  “I’d better go.  I’ll be home
around one-thirty, okay?”

He nodded.  “I’ll drop by Gaston’s and walk
you to your car when your shift is over.”

“Aren’t you the sweetest?”  She said.  She
stepped between his legs and draped her arms over his shoulders before tugging
him down.  She pressed her mouth against his and he kissed her thoroughly as he
held her hips tightly.

She pulled away, her face slightly flushed
and her eyes sparkling.  “I’ll see you tonight, all right?”

“Yes, my mate,” he said and she kissed him
again before leaving.

Rafe stared at her ass before sliding off
the truck and slamming the tailgate shut.  He waited until she had driven away
before returning to the yard and picking up his shovel.  His mate’s visit had
made his wolf happy and its good mood radiated into him.  He couldn’t help but
feel happy as he dug into the dark earth.

* * *

“Rowan, call it a night.”

Rowan looked up from the table she was
wiping.  It was dead in the bar, only two customers and both of them were
sitting in Jana’s section, and Gaston had come out of his office and was
standing in front of her.

“Are you sure?”

He nodded.  “Jana went home early last week,
it’s your turn.”

She blew him a kiss as she walked by him. 
“Thanks, Gaston, you’re the best.”

“Big plans?”  He called.

She shrugged.  “It’s only ten so yeah, I
might find something to do.”

He laughed.  “That something to do wouldn’t
be Rafe Taggert would it?”

“Jealous?”  She said and he laughed again
before shaking his head at her.

“Get out of here, Ro.  I’ll see you
Thursday.”

* * *

Rafe’s cabin was silent and dark and she
parked next to his truck and climbed out of her car.  She wondered if he was having
a nap.  It made sense, especially if he was going to be up late tonight.  She
smiled to herself and walked quickly toward the front door.  She couldn’t wait
to see the look on his face when he saw her.

She raised her hand to knock, stopping when
she heard the sound of a screen door slamming.  It was coming from the back of
the cabin and she moved quietly through the side yard.  It was dark but the
moon was out and she could easily navigate around the lush flower beds and
ornamental trees that dotted the yard.  She stared at the moon, it was half
full and absolutely gorgeous tonight, before peeking around the side of the
cabin.

Her breath caught in her throat.  Rafe,
gloriously naked, was standing in the back yard staring up at the moon and she
studied his naked ass in the moonlight as he stretched.  Fuck, he really was
gorgeous and she took another step toward him.  She had no idea why he was
standing naked in his yard and frankly, she didn’t care.  She was struck with
the sudden urge to strip off her own clothes, to drop to her hands and knees in
the soft grass and beg Rafe to fuck her under the light of the moon.  Her hands
were reaching for the buttons on her shirt when he made a low growl and his
body began to ripple.

She froze in place, staring wide-eyed at
Rafe as fur sprouted on his body and she heard his bones cracking.  He threw
his head back, staring at the moon as his body shifted and became something
different.  Something not human.

She stared at the large grey wolf.  His
back was to her but she didn’t need to see his front to know he would have a
white patch on his chest.  She staggered back on wooden legs, her ass hitting
the rough wood of his cabin, and slid down until she was sitting on the
ground.  She watched in shocked silence as Rafe lifted his head to the moon and
howled piercingly.  The sound sent goosebumps chasing across her skin and she
shivered with an odd combination of both fear and lust as the large wolf
bounded into the forest and disappeared.

“Holy shit,” she said in a soft little
voice.  “Rafe’s a – a wolf.”

She said it again, hoping it would sound a
little more real and to her relief, she didn’t think she sounded completely
crazy.  She sat against his cabin for nearly an hour, trying to comprehend what
she had seen. 

“Okay, Rowan,” she said out loud as she
stood and paced in front of his back door.  “So, Rafe is a werewolf.  That
explains the growling and the eye colour changing and the fangs.  You’re not
crazy.  But, you are dating a – a werewolf.”

She yanked her cell phone from her pocket
and stared fixedly at it before putting it away.  She wanted desperately to
call Belle or Ella but she couldn’t.  Not yet anyway.  They wouldn’t believe
her and she wasn’t sure that Rafe wouldn’t straight up deny what she had seen
when she talked to him about it.  He was obviously keeping it a secret.

“That makes sense,” she said out loud
again.  “If you’re a werewolf you don’t want people knowing you’re one.  That’s
pitchforks and burning territory.”

She took a deep breath and stared at the moon. 
“Okay, so your boyfriend changes into a wolf and howls at the moon.  No big
deal.  You dated Alan Stint for three months and he had an extra toe on his
left foot, remember?”

She burst into wild and a little hysterical
laughter.  She bent over and laughed until her stomach hurt and her ribs were
aching and tears spurted from her eyes. 

“Get a hold of yourself!”  She admonished
sternly when her laughing jag dried up.  “This is serious.”

Totally serious.  Rafe Taggert, the man she
had loved since she was fourteen years old, was a goddamn werewolf and instead
of running away screaming she was standing in his back yard and trying to
convince herself it was no big deal.

It isn’t.  So he’s a little different. 
Who cares?

“A little different?  What if he bites me? 
What if he turns me into a werewolf?  What if I marry him and get pregnant and
have little werewolf babies?”  She nearly shouted into the cool air.

Don’t you think he would have bitten you
already if he wanted to turn you into a werewolf?

Okay, her inner voice had a point there. 
Besides, she had a feeling that Rafe would die before he did anything to hurt
her.  She had no basis for that feeling but it was there and impossible to
ignore.  Rafe would never hurt her.

No, he really wouldn’t.  He was there
when those guys tried to attack you in the parking lot at the Woodsmen Pub,
remember?  Also, what do you want to bet that he was the wolf you were mackin’
on when you were lost in the woods as a baby?

A large shiver wracked her body and she
wrapped her arms around her torso and stared at the moon.  Rafe had saved her
life when she was a baby, he had protected her at the Woodsmen Pub, and he had
gone to her grandmother’s house and led her into the woods the night of the
full moon so he could fuck her.

Another shiver went through her, this one
pure lust, and she licked her lips and stared at the moon.  Shit, her boyfriend
was a goddamn werewolf and she thought it was fucking hot.  She was the freak,
not him.

Maybe.  Or maybe you just know that
you’re meant to be with Rafe.  He’s your mate.

“My mate,” she whispered to the moon.  She
tried the screen door.  It was unlocked and with one final look at the moon,
she slipped inside Rafe’s cabin.

Rafe trotted into his yard.  It was almost
midnight and he would need to have a quick shower before he drove to Gaston’s. 
He had run for longer than he should have but it had been a few days since he
had shifted to his wolf form and he had needed to shift.  He loved being with
Rowan and it calmed and soothed his wolf but it was also difficult.  Not being
able to shift on a regular basis was going to be extremely painful for both him
and his wolf and he ignored the unease growing in his belly.

He would figure out a way to have Rowan in
his life without revealing his true nature.  He could maybe tell her he was a
nature enthusiast and liked to take long walks in the woods every night.  He
could shift and run and, on the night of the full moon, he’d think of something
for why he would be out all night.  He could make this work.

You need to tell her.

He couldn’t.  His father had revealed his
true nature to his mother and look what had happened.  He couldn’t risk losing
Rowan.  Losing his mate had destroyed his father and he knew without a doubt
that the same thing would happen to him if Rowan left him.

The door to his den was ajar and he nosed
it open without shifting into his human form and trotted inside.  He would eat
the rest of the raw meat in the fridge before having a shower and –

He froze, his head lifting up to sniff the
air as he smelled Rowan’s scent.  His wolf howled with approval and he turned
to see his mate sitting on the couch in the living room.  He stared silently at
her, panic roaring through his belly, as she returned his stare.

“Hello, Rafe,” she said and he chuffed in
surprise.

She smiled a little and shook her head when
he backed toward the door.

“Don’t leave.  I know it’s you, Rafe.  I
watched you change in the moonlight.”

Dismay swept through him and he shifted to
his human form.  Rowan’s gaze dropped to his dick and he hardened immediately. 
He cursed inwardly but he couldn’t help it.  His mate was finally in his den
where she belonged and the urge to take her, to sink himself into her soft
warmth was so strong it was almost undeniable.

“We need to talk,” she said as she stood up
from the couch.

He licked his lips and tried to keep his
fangs from popping out.  He could smell her lust, could smell her sweet cream,
and he studied her crotch with a desperate need.

“Rowan,” he said hoarsely.  “I – “

“We need to talk,” she repeated, “but
considering that most of your blood is currently in your dick and I’m pretty
sure you won’t be able to concentrate, I think fucking first, talking second. 
What about you?”

His cock twitched wildly and she grinned at
him.  “Do you know what I’ve been doing since you changed and ran into the
woods, Rafe?”

He shook his head and she traced her
fingers over her flat abdomen.  “Touching myself.”

He inhaled sharply and she smiled at him. 
“It’s true.  Well, mostly true.  I spent the first hour convincing myself that
what I saw was real, and the last half hour sitting on your couch and rubbing
my pussy.  You make me so fucking hot that I don’t even care that you’re a
werewolf.”

“I’m not – “

“I don’t care,” she interrupted a bit
testily.  “I need you and I need you right now.  You’re going to fuck me, Rafe
Taggert, and then we’re going to have a nice long talk about what exactly you
are and what exactly it means for us.  Do you understand?”

“Rowan, we shouldn’t – “

“Your mate needs you,” she said softly. 
“Will you deny me what I want?”

“No,” he rasped.  “Never, my mate.”

“Good.  Now fuck me,” she demanded.

He lunged across the living room, tearing
at her shirt as she shoved her jeans and her panties down her legs.  She kicked
her way out of them as he pulled her shirt over her head and then flicked open
her bra.  She shimmied out of it and he stared hungrily at her naked body.  He
wanted to fuck her desperately but he reigned himself in.  He didn’t want to
hurt her and if he took her now before she was ready, he would.  He cupped her
breast and leaned down to kiss her, grunting in surprise when she pushed
against his chest. 

“No,” she said.  “I don’t want kissing, I
don’t want teasing – I want fucking.”

Without replying, he turned her around and
pushed her onto the couch on her hands and knees.  He knelt behind her, shoving
her thighs apart and wrapping his hand in her hair.  He yanked her head back as
he shoved his cock in to the hilt.  She was soaking wet, his worry about hurting
her was immediately forgotten, and he squeezed her hip as she cried out.  Her
pussy clenched around him and he made a low growl before fucking her roughly. 
He was reaching beneath her to touch her clit when she tightened around him and
climaxed with a loud cry of pleasure.  Her back arched and he held her shoulder
as he drove in and out of her. 

“Touch yourself, my mate,” he demanded as
her small body rocked beneath him.

She rubbed her clit obediently, gasping and
making small whimpers of pleasure as he took what was his.  Her body was
starting to shake, her hand rubbing furiously between her thighs and when she
screamed his name and climaxed for a second time, he howled loudly and came
deep inside of her.

* * *

“Drink this, Rowan,” Rafe said.  He handed
her the glass of juice and she took a few small sips.  She was sitting on the
couch, wrapped in a blanket and he gave her an anxious look as he sat next to
her.

She frowned at the space he left between
them and wiggled over until she was curled up against his naked body. 

“Are you okay?”  He asked.

She nodded.  “Yes.  I needed it like that,
honey.  Stop worrying.”

“I’m not worrying, I – “

“You are,” she said with a small smile
before kissing his bare chest.  “I told you – I’m tough.  Besides, I liked it
like that – all rough and kind of desperate.  It would have been better if we
had been outside under the moon though.  Don’t you think?”

His cock twitched and she grinned at him. 
“I’ll take that as a yes.”

“We could go outside right now,” he said.

“We need to talk,” she replied.  “Now that
we’ve taken the edge off, we really should talk about you being a werewolf.”

“I’m not a werewolf,” he said a bit
indignantly.  “I’m a shifter.  A wolf shifter.”

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to hurt your
feelings.”

“You didn’t,” he said.  “It’s just –
werewolves are a stupid myth about ugly creatures who can’t control their urges
during a full moon.”

She cocked her head at him.  “So, don’t
take this the wrong way because I don’t think you’re ugly or not in control,
but you did lure me out of my grandmother’s cabin the night of the full moon so
you could fuck me.”

He turned a dull red.  “That was my wolf. 
He wanted you badly and I lost control briefly.  It can be, uh, a little more
difficult to control the urge to mate during a full moon and knowing you were
so close to my den made my wolf a little – “

“Den?”  She asked.  “You call your home
your den?”

He nodded and she smiled.  “That’s awesome. 
So, you’re not a werewolf, you’re a wolf shifter and you think of your wolf as
separate from you, right?”

“Yes.”

“And usually you’re in control except for
full moons and then the wolf takes over?”

He shook his head.  “No, that’s not – I
mean, the last full moon yes my wolf took over but that has never happened to
me before.  Even in my wolf form, I usually maintain control.”

“But you and your wolf were so hot for me
that you couldn’t, huh?”  Rowan said.

“Shamefully, yes,” he replied dryly.

She kissed his chest again.  “Nothing to be
ashamed of.  I like that you want me that badly.  I want you just as much.”

“Rowan,” he said hesitantly, “not that I
want you to be but, uh, why aren’t you freaking out over this?”

She thought silently for a moment.  “I
guess – I guess I knew there was something off about you.  You did growl and
your eyes turned green when we were having sex.  Plus, I was sure I’d seen
fangs that night we had sex in the woods.  I mean, I didn’t know you were a
wolf shifter but once I saw you change, it all just made sense.”

She took another drink of juice before
offering him the glass.  “The thing is, Rafe, I
was
freaked out when I
first saw it happen.  I basically fell on my ass and stayed there for a good
hour.  But knowing that wolf shifters exist isn’t - I don’t know - all that
surprising to me.  I never really thought that humans were the only species
that existed on the planet.  It seems kind of arrogant to believe that.”

He handed the juice back to her and she
finished it as he said, “Why aren’t you at work?”

“It was slow so Gaston sent me home early,”
she replied.  “I thought I would surprise you by coming by your place.”

“I guess you were the one surprised.”

She laughed.  “You got that right.  I do
have some questions, okay?”

He nodded and she squeezed his hand. 
“Relax, Rafe.  I’m just curious about a few things.”

He relaxed a little and she leaned against
him.  “First question – if you bite me will I turn into a shifter?”

He shook his head.  “No.  Shifters are
born, not made.”

“Okay.  Good to know.  Do I need to worry
about you shifting when we’re having sex?”

“Of course not,” he said.  “That’s kind of
gross, Rowan.” 

“Hey, you can’t blame me for asking.  You
get a bit hairier and you grow fangs when we’re having sex, remember?”

“That’s as far as it will go,” he said.  “I
have excellent control over my shifting.”

“Does it hurt when you shift?”

“No.  It mostly just…tingles.”

“If we have babies together, will they be
shifters?”

He jerked against her and she raised her
eyebrows at him.  “Well, will they?”

“Uh, maybe.  They have a fifty-fifty chance
of being a shifter.”

“Are there other wolf shifters living in
town?”

“No.  My pack lives across the river.”

She studied him quietly.  “Do you miss your
pack?”

“Sometimes,” he said, “but I have been
alone for a long time.”

“Not anymore,” she said firmly and his
heart made an undignified leap in his chest.

He gave her a cautious look.  “Rowan, you
can’t still want to be with me after – “

“Does anyone else know you’re a shifter?”

“There are a few who know,” he said.

“Were you the wolf in the forest when I was
a baby?”  She asked.

He grinned, his white teeth flashing in the
dim light, and she laughed.  “It was you.”

“Yes.  I was drinking at the river when you
came toddling out of the trees.  I shifted to my human form and you told me
your name and how old you were.  I was going to take you back to my pack so
that I could take my father’s truck and bring you into town but then we heard
your grandmother and you started calling for her.”

“Why didn’t you just stay in your human
form?”  She asked curiously.

“I was naked.  I didn’t think your
grandmother would appreciate a naked teenager holding her granddaughter in the
middle of the forest.  I told you to stay where you were and wait for your
grandmother, and you said you would so I ducked into the bush and shifted to my
wolf form.  That’s when you decided to try and take a dip in the river.”

She laughed.  “You’re kidding me.”

“I’m not,” he said.  “I had to grab you
before you could fall in and even though I was in my wolf form you weren’t
afraid of me.  You called me doggie and started hugging and kissing me and
that’s when your grandmother showed up.”

“I wish I could remember,” she said.

“You were very young.”

“And it was you at the Woodsmen Pub.”

He nodded.  “I’m sorry for scaring you.”

“You didn’t.  Well, maybe a little, but I
kind of liked it,” she said cheekily.

He laughed and kissed the top of her head
as she said, “Are there different types of shifters.”

He cleared his throat.  “Yes.”

“Is Bennett Saxby a bear shifter?”

His mouth dropped open and he stared at
her.  “How did you…”

He trailed off and she laughed.  “That’s a
definite yes.  Belle said she saw him shift into a bear when she was a girl,
remember?  Does Belle know he’s a shifter?”

He nodded and she frowned a little.  “She
didn’t tell me.”

“Shifters are wary of humans knowing of
their existence.  It’s why Bennett’s father moved them away after he saved
Belle as a child.  Bennett told Belle when they started dating but he would
have asked her not to say anything to anyone.”