STORY EXCERPT

“No more, Cass,” Raz snarled and grabbed my arm. “We’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

“I’m fine,” I slurred and tried to pull away.

“Settle your tab, and let’s go,” Rash said firmly, and he gave the pretty bartender the signal that I wasn’t having any more drinks.

“I’m the oldest,” I replied angrily, falling back onto the stool when I tried to stand up too quickly.

“Then act like it,” Ragu said coldly as he grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me so our noses were touching. “Someday we will learn what happened to you, Cass.”

“Do you want me to leave? Is that what you want?” Their faces paled, and I ignored them as I signed the credit card slip the bartender was holding for me. I added a fat tip and thanked her. My litter-mates stood there frozen as I stormed out. Well, I would have if my body was working right then. Instead, I was stumbling all over the place and trying to keep upright.

“You want to leave?” Rash asked as they caught up to me outside the club. He lifted my arm over his shoulder and helped me walk. “What happened, Cass? Why won’t you tell us? You hide it all so well that the younger litter has no clue that you even went through anything. It was never our place to tell what we were feeling from you when we all shifted, but if you don’t stop this shit, that will change.”

“And that’s the way it stays,” I growled and went to one of the waiting cabs. I opened the door but didn’t get in. “And yes, I want to leave. I’m tired of always being responsible for everyone else. I should not be in charge of anyone or have their lives in my hands.”

I wanted to say, “So I can’t fail them like I did Rolf.” But then they really would pester me to know.

“We’re adults, Cass,” Ragu growled and spun me around to face them. “You take charge, and we let you, but we’re more than capable of taking care of ourselves.”

“So be it,” I said with a nod and pulled my arm away. “Then I’m going home to pack.”

“Cass, no!” Raz gasped as tears filled his eyes. I shook my head and crawled into the cab, closing the door on their faces.

“The Bellagio, please,” I said and slumped down in the seat. The driver had heard all of that but wisely didn’t say a word. Good man.

I stared out the window at the lights and glamour of Vegas and wished I was alone on a deserted island. At least that way I could choke on my memories and pain without hurting my family. But then again, if they ever found out what had happened with Rolf, they wouldn’t love me anyways and wouldn’t care.

I made it about halfway to the elevators I needed to ride to our rooms when lo and behold there was more family of mine in my face.

“Cass, are you drunk?” Sari asked, his jaw just about hitting the ground. “Where have you guys all been tonight?”

I glanced over at Cam, the youngest of our litter, and blind, as he looked down at his shoes. Yeah, since he couldn’t see, I was pretty sure he was just hiding his reaction to the conversation. He knew where Ragu, Raz, and Rash had been but hadn’t said anything. What was there to say? They didn’t know anything about my life really, or my pain, just that something had happened.

“Yeah, what of it?” I snarled, sounding more cat than man. “I’m going to pack.”

“Okay, but we’re here a few more days,” Curtis said slowly. They were all standing around one private craps table. And of course, it was all of them. “So there’s no reason to pack.”

“I’m leaving,” I replied and went to stumble away. “I’m leaving. I’m packing up my shit from Curtis’s, and leaving.”

“We weren’t done talking to you,” Raz called out as they raced over to me. Great, just fucking great. “This ends tonight, Cassiel Cowell, or so help me god—”

“Or what?” I shouted in his face and shoved him hard. If I’d been sober, he would have gone flying, but instead I almost landed on my ass. “What are you going to do, Raz? Tie me down so I can’t ever leave? I want some fucking peace for once, and I’m leaving.”

“Why would you want to leave us?” Shem asked quietly as he moved closer to me. My other brother was blind, too, but since I was yelling like a madman, it wasn’t hard to figure out where I was. The problem was Shem, more than any of my siblings, pulled at my heart strings. I loved them all, but Shem was so sensitive and helpless at times that I’d do anything for him.

“I just have to, Shem,” I whispered and backed away. “I can’t keep doing this anymore. My litter won’t leave me alone, you and your litter have no clue who I really am, and I never get any peace.”

“Because you never sleep?” he asked so only I would hear. “Why do you never sleep, Cass?”

“You knew?” I gasped. “What else do you know?” I shook my head and took another step away. “It doesn’t matter what you know. I’m leaving.”

“Why won’t you tell us, Cass?” Ragu begged and grabbed my arm. “It can’t be as bad as you think it is, brother. Just tell us and let us share your pain and help you.”

“You-know-nothing,” I ground out in between clenched teeth. He dropped my arm as if I burned him. They all stood there with their mouths open in shock, so I took the advantage and booked it. The confrontation had been enough for me to sober up some.

ADULT EXCERPT

“And that time will come, but you’ve got some claiming to do.” I watched Merrick as he leaned over the bed seductively and presented his ass to me. “I think we were about here, right?”

“Yes,” I hissed and practically pounced on him. I pulled back the cheeks of his ass as I shifted, ready for the pleasure instead of the hurt serious talking could bring. Lining up my cock, I pushed over half of myself inside of him. I wasn’t a small guy when in human form, but in my half-and-half form I was even bigger, so I had a good nine inches to give my mate.

“Claim me, Cass. Make me yours,” Merrick cried out. I felt a thrill go through my body at the idea. Mine. Someone that was all mine. Well, mine and Logan’s, but the sentiment was the same. I thrust hard, my control gone, and bottomed out inside of him.

“So hot,” Logan moaned. I glanced at him and realized he had moved. He was now sitting on the green, plush comforter with his legs spread wide as he stroked his cock. I was wondering why he wasn’t joining in when he answered my question before I’d even asked it. “I like to watch. I really like to watch before I get in the mix.”

“Voyeur.” Merrick snickered.

“If you can talk, then I’m not doing my job right,” I said as I pulled out of him slowly. I thrust back into him so hard I knew he’d have a bruise on his ass tomorrow. But he didn’t seem to care, because he went wild under me.

“Oh yeah, Cass. Pound into his sweet ass,” Logan groaned. Him watching while pleasing himself moved up the erotic nature of our joining to another level. My hips started snapping harder than I ever thought possible. I was grunting, Merrick was grunting and then some, and I swear Logan was whimpering. If there was no other pleasure or stimulus, I was ready to blow just from the sounds Merrick was making under me.

“Gonna come,” I panted as I leaned over Merrick’s back. “Want me to fill you up with my cum?”

“Fuck yes,” he hissed and tilted his head to the side. I couldn’t have held back if I wanted to. Seeing his sleek neck stretched out for me, with its corded muscles straining and his jaw ticking as I plowed into him, undid me. I licked once over the soft skin where his neck met his shoulder and sank my canines into him. “Oh, sweet mercy!”

I grunted as he came, his ass clamping down on me. I drank him down, feeling our mating bond snap into place before lifting my head and roaring out my release. I pumped my seed deep into my mate as my hands convulsed on his hips from the intensity of my orgasm. His tight hold massaged my dick perfectly, milking everything I had to give him.

He collapsed onto the bed, and I didn’t have any strength left to keep myself up, landing on top of him. Merrick groaned and squirmed as I gently licked my bite to close the wound.

“Fuck,” Logan gasped, and we both turned our heads to watch as he came, pumping his cock faster than any human could ever move their hand. He shot all over his chest and even hit his chin.

“I think he really likes to watch.” Merrick chuckled, and I felt the vibrations throughout my body.

“Oh god, don’t do that,” I moaned as his muscles tightened around me. My whole body spasmed at the attention to my sensitive dick. Logan crawled over when he was spent and kissed Merrick gently.

“Was it as good as it looked?” he asked as he gasped for breath.

“Probably better,” Merrick moaned as I rolled off of him. I felt pride that I’d sent my mate into such bliss, and it turned me on to see him lying there completely spent and debauched. I turned to Logan with a feral grin on my lips.

“Your turn,” I purred as I crawled over to him.

“Give me a minute,” Logan panted, but I wasn’t having any of it. He lay flat on his stomach, and I climbed behind him, straddling his thighs as I rubbed my claws gently over his ass. “Or not.”

“I vote for not.” I pulled one cheek of his ass to the side and rubbed my now painfully hard cock against his hole.

He’d been stretched out earlier before we started talking, but I didn’t worry about him not being slick enough since my dick was covered in my own cum from being inside Merrick. Logan went to push himself up, and I firmly kept him in place as I pressed the head of my dick past his tight ring.

“Shit,” he hissed in pleasure as he tried to push back and take more of me into him. “I’ve never done it at this angle.”

“Makes you so nice and tight,” I purred as I slid in farther, working my cock into him as slowly as I could without dying of need.

“I might end up becoming a voyeur, too,” Merrick whispered as he watched where our bodies joined. “I can see how it’s appealing.”

“See, and I just felt left out when you guys were kissing and stretching each other.” I froze and felt Logan go stiff under me at the confession. I panicked and thrust hard into him to distract them from what I said. I so didn’t want to talk about that right now.

“I don’t like to bottom, but I think I change my mind on that,” Logan whimpered as I held still and gave him time to adjust to the penetration. “Or maybe it’s who I was doing it with.”