STORY EXCERPT

The grip on his arms was painful. Ryan struggled to speak. “I was… trying to help you.”

The little one backed off. It was strange how he seemed to be in command of the larger bears around him. Ryan was sure that wasn’t how it worked, but the bigger shifters seemed more than happy to do his bidding.

“Not my fault you’re stupid enough to pick up strangers. Let’s go, I want to get back into Bear Country before anything else—”

A howl in the distance stopped him before he could say anything else. The shifter didn’t just freeze up, his eyes flew wide, as though he couldn’t believe what he just heard.

“We have to go. Go! Right now, come on!”

“What about this one!”

“Twist his neck off! I don’t care! We have to leave!”

“No!”

Ryan somehow managed to break away. He didn’t know if it was because the bears were distracted by that howl, but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t letting them near his throat!

He ran. As hard and fast as he still could.

Which wasn’t that hard and not that fast either, but he didn’t care. He had to try. He’d just about been ready to give up and leave it to chance, but the fact that there was someone out here with them, someone who could help him, brought out that inner urge to fight, to survive one more time.

He had to get to them!

The howl sounded again. It called to him.

“What are you idiots doing? Get him!”

He could hear them coming after him, the snapping of branches and shrubbery as the bears gave chase. He couldn’t let them catch him. He had to get away. The howl sounded again and it felt like safety and freedom were calling his name.

It was getting closer. He could almost see what it was in the distance.

Huge.

Another bear? No, the werewolves were just as big, it was how people could tell the alphas apart from the natural wolves. And if that was an alpha… Ryan didn’t care if he didn’t know them. He didn’t care if they were just as dangerous. If whoever this was, was enough of a distraction and it allowed Ryan to escape, then he was going to take that chance to get away.

Right now.

“Never mind him! Run away! Hurry up!”

Were they giving up? The sight of the coming wolf was making them retreat?

Ryan’s surge of energy left him. He collapsed onto the pinecones and needles and dirt. He barely had the strength to turn his head and look back at the way those assholes came.

They really were retreating. They were leaving. He was going to live.

He vaguely felt something bigger, much bigger, stop short over him. A large snout came down around his hair, giving him a sniff.

Ryan wasn’t sure what this feeling was. He could barely look up at the wolf itself. He should be scared that it would try to eat him.

But he felt safe. He felt as though…

Ryan reached a weak hand up. He touched the fur, and a buzz of something powerful, something electrical, shot through his fingers and into his arm. More energy, more strength. He looked up just as the huge wolf shifted back into a man. A naked man. A man who looked like he should be on all the magazines and billboards.

Holy shit, that was a six pack.

More like a sex pack because that energy that rushed through him made Ryan push himself to his knees. Still a little wobbly, but he couldn’t ignore the intense urge he had to lean in and lick at the guy’s chest.

So he did.

That was… really weird. He knew it was weird, but he pushed himself closer, unable to stop himself.

“You… you’re a human.”

Ryan might have said something in response to that, but he couldn’t be sure, everything was a complete blur and this guy tasted nice.

“I need… You can’t just…” The man grabbed Ryan by his arms, gripping hard enough that Ryan cried out from the pain of it, forgetting all about the sudden hit of lust that took him as everything went completely black.

ADULT EXCERPT

“What… holy fuck, what was that?”

“A mating.” The man stood, stripping out of his clothes. “You’re in heat.”

Ryan glanced down, took note of the man’s huge dick. “Are you in heat, too?” He was pretty sure he already knew the answer. The guy was rock hard.

He opened the cap of whatever that small bottle was and coated his prick with it before getting onto the bed. All at once, it felt as though Ryan didn’t have an orgasm at all. His testicles tightened up, he felt the need to fuck again. Powerful and intense. He couldn’t ignore it.

Ryan lifted his knees, looking up at the man and waiting for more, waiting for him to do something.

He did. Thick fingers pressed against his pucker, circling, teasing. Ryan mewled.

“Sensitive,” said the other man, but he continued to frown. In concentration?

Ryan began sweating again, his heart racing as those fingers gently pushed back and forth, a little more each time, stretching him just a little further with each motion.

“I-I’ve never done this before.”

Those fingers pulled back quick, eyes wide on him.

“With someone I just met,” he clarified.

Ryan couldn’t describe the look on the man’s face. It looked like a flicker of relief, followed by a coating of jealousy.

“Well, that’s fine. You’re going to get to know me very well soon, so this won’t be strange.”

“What’s your name?” Ryan felt like he should know that much. He’d never just fucked a person he barely met, and he definitely knew the names of the people he did have sex with in the past.

Again with that strange sense of being closed off. The man pressed his lips together briefly before finally giving in. “Derek. Derek Mitchell. There, now you know me.”

Ryan almost pointed out that wasn’t the same thing as actually knowing someone, but then he was stopped as he felt those fingers pushing back against his hole, fingertips teasing against his insides, rubbing up against his inner walls before pushing deeper still and—

Ryan arched his back, moaning again, his cock bobbing against his stomach as he nearly came when that sweet spot deep inside him was grazed up against.

“There it is.”

Ryan could hardly catch his breath. He gasped for it, but then those fingers pulled back, leaving him feeling empty and alone even though Derek was still between his legs.

Nope. He was letting those feelings hit him way too soon because then he felt it, the sweet sensation of something even thicker pressing against his hole. Obviously, it was Derek’s cockhead. It barely touched his pucker before Ryan was groaning softly.

He bit down on his knuckle, an old habit he’d been trying to break, but fuck it, this was too damned good.

“You want my dick inside you?”

Ryan nodded. He desperately needed it, to the point where, if he didn’t get it, he was probably going to start crying. For real. He felt that strange swell of emotion inside him and the only thing he knew for sure was how badly he needed this.

A hard breath came from Derek, and he didn’t say anything as he pushed his cock forward, spreading Ryan wide, making him moan and cry out. It hurt. At first. The pleasure was there with the pain, slowly overshadowing it, until it was completely gone and there was nothing left but how good it felt. How full he was.

Derek was fully inside him, still on his knees, and he pulled Ryan’s legs up higher around his waist.

Ryan tried to help the man adjust, wanting more. It seemed in his best interest to let Derek do as he wanted because this felt too damned good to not go with the flow.

Then Derek was looking at him one more time with those glowing green eyes. Ryan thought for sure he saw a wolf within them.

“Don’t make me regret this.”

Ryan didn’t know what that meant, and he didn’t get the chance to ask before Derek pulled back, and with a heavy helping of strength, thrust forward. Ryan’s eyes popped wide. His head fell back against the pillows. He opened his mouth to cry out long and loud but the only noises that escaped his throat were soft little gasps and tiny moans.

He reached down, fisting his cock while Derek fucked into him.

This was it. This was exactly what he wanted and Ryan was left with the sudden impression that he’d been looking for this for his whole life and just never knew it until now.