STORY EXCERPT

Things were so not working out. Davy had waited at HQ for over an hour, only to learn from one of the bartenders that Josh had taken off with a, quote, serious hottie, about half an hour before Davy had even gotten there.

This was totally unacceptable, and it put Davy in a right foul mood. He snapped at several guys trying to pick him up and only had eyes for his cosmopolitan, until he decided he’d had enough and took off looking for a cab to take him home. So much for that tour of Josh’s apartment.

There were always cabs around on Saturday nights, but for some reason Davy couldn’t find any of them and regrettably started on the long walk home. Maybe he could do with a bit of fresh air.

He was stuck in his own thoughts, mentally yelling at Josh, when he heard a small wolfish yelp coming from an alley. From one of his own kind. He could barely recognize the sound as that of one of the youngest shifters in the pack, and Davy quickly sobered up, taking off at full speed into the alley where he’d heard the sound.

Coming to an abrupt halt, he saw the mangled body of his fellow wolf, his throat cut and a silver stake in his chest.

Davy froze, letting his senses overwhelm him. They were still there, hiding behind a dumpster; two of them.

Davy got ready to pounce when the injured wolf made a whimpering sound and before his attackers could finish him off as they sprang out from their hiding place, Davy picked him up and ran like hell.

Hauling ass for four blocks Davy got ahold of a cab, getting in and yelling to the driver, “To Anton’s clinic now! Step on it, we’re losing him!

* * * *

Anton’s clinic was a haven for injured shifters. It was also open to the public masses, but most of the doctors and nurses there were either weres themselves or mated to one. The rest were simply good friends that had been hired upon recommendations by other weres from local packs.

Davy sat in the waiting room, barely holding it together. He’d called Terry to get his father and see if he could locate the injured kid’s family. Davy had no idea what would happen to the pup. It was already a miracle that the stake had missed the heart. Add that to a slashed throat and…hell, the whole damn pup was a frickin’ miracle; if he lived, that is.

A man Davy recognized, Peter, came flying into the reception area, tears in his eyes, bellowing for information on his son, Myron. Close behind him, Oscar and Terry appeared.

Davy stood, and while Peter rained questions down on one of the nurses, Oscar stepped up to Davy. He automatically tilted his head, bearing his throat to his Alpha in respect.

“David, what happened out there tonight?” Oscar asked, his face grim.

“I’d just left a nightclub and I couldn’t get a cab, so I started walking. I heard the kid yell out and recognized him as pack, so I went to check it out. They’d slit his throat and staked him with a silver stake. I thought he was dead at first though, but…then he made a sound and I just grabbed him and ran. His attackers were still there. Two of them. Oscar, I think they might be hunters.”

Oscar seemed to be holding his breath for a while. “I’m afraid you’re right.”

“What? Dad, you already knew about this?” Terry questioned his father as he walked up to them.

“Yes, unfortunately. There was another attack earlier this week. Granger was out in the woods, running in wolf form, when he was clipped by a rifle. We hoped it was some kind of fluke, but with tonight taken into account…it seems hunters have indeed come to town.” He dragged a hand through his graying hair. “You should go. I need to stay with Peter and make sure he doesn’t get us kicked out before we find out anything about his son. You should head home and get some rest. I’ll call if I hear anything.” Turning to his own son, he continued, “Can you take a cab home? We could use the car here, just in case.”

“Yeah, sure, Dad, I’ll call Roger and have him pick us up. He’s waiting to hear from us.”

ADULT EXCERPT

Davy felt warm and heavy, which made it even harder to wake up. He was in a daze, his mind not yet working properly. Stretching out his body, he didn’t realize he wasn’t alone until he was suddenly draped across someone’s chest.

Struggling to open his eyes, he inhaled deeply and knew the scent belonged to Cole.

Cautiously looking up, his eyes met Cole’s startling green ones. Davy’s breath caught in his throat, not quite sure what his mate thought about him pretty much blanketing him like that without permission.

When Cole’s hand reached up to caress the side of his face, Davy had the strangest urge to purr. His eyes glazed over as he leaned into the touch, not having realized how much he’d craved it. Even something as simple as a caress.

“You make interesting sounds when you’re waking up, you know that?” Cole chuckled at the pleased rumbles Davy hadn’t been able to hold back.

Davy’s blushed, embarrassed, and then suddenly remembered Cole’s injuries and pulled away.

“How’s the shoulder?” Davy asked in a rough voice, still heavy from his long rest.

“Good, I think,” Cole told him, “but I’m lucky that my pitching has nothing to do with baseball.”

“I’m sorry,” Davy apologized. “If it wasn’t for me…”

“David,” Cole tilted Davy’s face toward his, “you’re not to blame for Jenkins and Lucas’s dumbass plan to kidnap you, and I should have stepped in sooner. I knew something wasn’t right. I just…I’m a soldier. I take orders, I don’t…”

“Oh, please,” Davy scoffed. “If you were a wolf you’d be an Alpha or at least a Beta. You may see yourself as a follower, but only because people have made you believe that you were.”

Cole looked surprised.

“Why do you say that?” his mate asked.

“It’s in your eyes, and in the way you carry yourself. And let’s face it, your sexual behavior doesn’t exactly scream submissive,” Davy told him, unable to hide how his face heated up at recalling the last time they were in bed together.

The following silence was almost palpable, and Davy started to inch back from his mate as his insecurities flared up with every passing second. He didn’t get far, though, before Cole grabbed his arm and stopped him from retreating further.

Looking up into his mate’s eyes, Davy could see Cole’s restraint, as he seemed to be waging an internal war of some kind.

“Kiss me,” Davy blurted out, hoping to hell he was right about what his mate was holding back on.

He was.

Cole moved so that he lay on top of him, pressing him into the mattress and kissed him hotly.

Every nerve-ending in Davy’s body seemed to spark all at once, making his skin tingle with the need for more physical contact.

Cole’s body was hot and firm and designed to drive Davy mad.

His wolf howled in triumph, and Davy’s instincts kicked in. He pushed Cole’s body back on his back and straddled him instead.

He slipped his tongue into Cole’s mouth and moaned as Cole fisted his hand in Davy’s hair, and rolled them over again, taking back control.

Davy was hard and wanton for his mate, but just as Cole reached down to palm his cock through his jeans, they were interrupted and broke apart as Roger appeared.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Roger shook his head at them with a disapproving look. “The two of you are certified morons.”

“Ever heard of knocking?” Davy protested as he self-consciously pulled at the covers, hiding the bulge in his jeans.

“You,” Roger said, pointing at Cole, “have just been shot, following which you threw yourself out of a window, all this while human, by the way, which usually isn’t recommended if you’re gonna act like a damn fool. And in case you missed it, the red spot bleeding through your bandaged shoulder means that you’ve just torn open your stitches.”

“Shit,” Cole cussed. “I didn’t even feel it.”

“I shouldn’t…” Davy started saying, horrified at what their little round of foreplay had caused.

“And you,” Roger was suddenly pointing his finger at him. “You shouldn’t even be thinking about sex. You do not have the spare energy for a tryst in your current condition. If you and loverboy here are planning on going hot and heavy, I suggest a big-ass steak or at the very least a box of protein-bars, before even considering going about that kind of activity.”

Davy felt his ears burning red as he and his mate were thoroughly scolded.

“Carol will be on her way in a few minutes with food for you two idiots,” Roger told them. “I’ll have her bring something to stitch you back up with.”