STORY EXCERPT

The man’s tanned body was slick with sweat as the workers entered their final phase of building the bunkhouse for the ranch hands. As Colten Tselner stood on the back porch of the McMaster home and watched one particular worker, his body tightened with need. The human moved like a well-oiled machine under the hot sun, his body slick with sweat. Colten shifted to his other leg. He licked his tongue over his bottom lip as his eyes locked onto the guy, watching his every move. He ached to sink his canines into the man’s flesh.

The worker was Steven Chesney. The wind pulsed with the man’s name. Colten rolled it around on his tongue as if he could actually taste the man. And he wanted to. God, how he wanted to.

He’d been watching the human for two weeks now, waiting for an opportunity to approach the guy. When Colten had first noticed Steven among the other workers, he could have sworn the ground shifted and moved under his feet. His soul seemed to reach for Steven. To recognize the human.

And when Steven had spoken to him, the human’s voice had been like a blend of smoke and heat that seared Colten right through his belly.

Colten hadn’t had a chance to talk to Steven since that first encounter. Steven always stayed busy the entire time he was there on the ranch. And at quitting time, he was the first to leave.

Steven’s hair was the shade of autumn leaves, a blend of colors from red, to gold, to rustic-brown. Colten had gotten close enough to see that Steven’s eyes were like the crystalline paleness of a January sky—the lightest blue imaginable.

The cool air shifted in his direction and Colten inhaled deeply, pulling in the delicious aroma of cinnamon and apple cider—Steven’s scent. Those were two of Colten’s favorite things. They reminded him of the fall, a warm hearth, and a cozy home.

Leaning against the porch post, Colten continued to sip his coffee as he watched Steven over the rim of his mug. It was mid-October and the leaves had already started to change. The nights were a little cooler, but not cold. There were thick autumn clouds in the sky, drifting past at a leisurely pace. There was a clean, crisp scent in the air, as well as the aroma of fresh baked bread.

Sam was in the kitchen cooking. Colten had left the back door open. The wonderful smells of yeast and dough drifted out through the screen door and filled the air around him. Colten loved this time of year. There was just something about the fall that brought nostalgic feelings to the surface.

He watched eddies of leaves swirl around the porch steps before his attention was once more drawn to Steven’s lean, compact frame. Colten rolled his shoulders and gripped his cup tighter when Steven bent over, showing off a nicely shaped ass. That was a sight he’d never tire of.

The sound of tires crunching over gravel pulled his attention away from Steven. A few minutes later Harland and Clayton ambled around the corner. The two men from the Triple-B smiled as soon as they spotted Colten on the back porch.

“What’s up?” Clayton asked with a grin as he came to a stop a few feet from Colten. He gazed at Colten with a glint of mischievousness in his dark eyes. But that was how the Italian always looked, like he was ready to get into trouble at a moment’s notice.

Colten nodded at the guy. “Just enjoying the weather.”

Harland placed his hands on his hips as he gazed at the men still working on the bunkhouse. He wore a pleased smile. “I told you Bear County Construction did one hell of a job,” he said. “And from what T-Rex tells me, some of those men will be staying on as ranch hands.”

Clayton placed a booted foot on the steps and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knee. He used his thumb to tilt his cowboy hat back. “Speaking of ranches, have you guys come up with a name for your ranch yet? Things are getting down to the wire.”

Colten set his coffee mug on the banister and then crossed his arms over his chest. “We’ve decided. We’re going to call this place Big Bear Ranch.”

Clayton chuckled as if he found the name humorous. “I’m surprised T-Rex agreed to that. I have a feeling he’s still wigged over Milo giving birth.”

Colten ran his tongue over his bottom lip and then smiled. “He is, but he’s adjusting to having bears all around him.”

“How’d you pick a name?” Harland asked.

“We just all wrote a name down, tossed them in a hat, and then T-Rex picked one out. Voilà, we have a winner,” Colten said.

Harland chuckled as he shook his head. “And who wrote down Big Bear?”

Colten winked at the man. “I did.”

His eyes strayed to the left when he spotted Steven bent over slightly as he cut a piece of wood that was sitting on an sawhorse. His ass was encased in a tight pair of Levis and Colten felt his cock getting hard. He could almost taste the man’s scent as he eyed the guy’s backside.

“Damn that smells good.”

Colten’s eyes flickered to Clayton. He felt a rumbling growl start in his chest. Dark claws of jealousy speared into his gut. Even though Colten was well aware that Clayton was mated, his bear was standing at full alert.

ADULT EXCERPT

Stunned disbelief filled Colten but he forced himself not to react. He was kissing Steven. Their lips were pressed firmly together. Yet he had heard…thoughts. Steven’s thoughts. How?

Colten was confused by the time he lifted his head. He stared into the man’s pretty blue eyes and wondered how he had heard Steven’s thoughts. That shouldn’t be possible. It shouldn’t be, but he’d heard the man as clearly as if Steven had spoken the words aloud.

“I need to go.” Steven’s voice was breathy but the man didn’t move. He stayed pressed into the wall as Colten’s fingers continued to massage the man’s backside. Steven was just as hard as Colten was. Their erections pressed into each other. Colten studied the man’s face as he tried to figure out what Steven was. He smelled human. There was no preternatural scent on him.

Colten’s eyes dropped to the long expanse of Steven’s neck and he couldn’t resist. The man was a fever in his blood, a craving, an obsession. He wanted to taste every inch of Steven’s body. Colten wanted to be buried inside the man. He slid his hand under Steven’s shirt to feel the warm expanse of the man’s belly. The muscles jerked under the palm of Colten’s hand. He smoothed his hand upward, over the flat planes of Steven’s abdomen until he reached a taut nipple. Colten pinched the tiny bud and smiled when Steven arched his back and gasped.

He tried to catch any more thoughts from Steven, but all had grown quiet. Colten lifted the man’s shirt and then lapped his tongue over the sensitive nipple. He blew a tuft of air over the wet skin and watched as the nipple tightened even harder.

Steven began to vibrate as his hips shot forward. Colten knew when a man was close to coming. He worked the snap of Steven’s jeans as he licked, teased, and suckled at the man’s chest. Colten was aching and heavy and beyond reason. All he could think about was making Steven come. Colten didn’t even care about his own pleasure. He was focused on Steven’s needs and the desire to watch the man go up in flames.

Steven’s hand landed on Colten’s wrist just as Colten lowered the zipper.

“Don’t stop me.” Colten’s voice was desperately pleading and he didn’t care. He was beyond reason. His bear was close to the surface and if Colten couldn’t see the human explode with his orgasm, he just might be the one to go up in flames instead. “I need to touch you so badly that I feel like I’m going insane.”

Steven hesitated and then his hand fell away. He gave a slight, almost-imperceptible nod but his eyes stayed locked on Colten’s. There was uncertainty and a touch of fear swimming in their depths, but Colten could also see desire.

Colten kissed Steven’s lips as he wrapped his fingers firmly around Steven’s erection. The skin was hot and pulsing in his hand. Colten drove his tongue deep as he used thumb to smear the pre-cum over the head of Steven’s cock. The man hissed and squirmed as his fingers locked into the strands of Colten’s hair.

He squeezed the shaft tightly before stroking his hand up and down, up and down. Colten needed more. He shoved at the waistband of Steven’s jeans, bringing them to midthigh. Steven was so lost that he didn’t protest.

As Colten stroked the man’s shaft with one hand, he used his other hand to slide a finger in Steven’s mouth, groaning as he watched the man lick and suck at it. “You’re killing me,” Colten whispered.

Steven didn’t seem to hear. He worked Colten’s finger as if the man were truly sucking Colten’s cock. Colten forced his finger out of the man’s mouth before slipping the wet digit into the crease between Steven’s cheeks. He took the man’s lips in a searing kiss, tightening his hold on the man’s cock, as Colten sank his finger deep inside Steven’s body.

Steven cried out, his head slamming into the wall as his body arched outward. Steven’s ass squeezed Colten’s finger as hot ribbons of cum shot from the man’s cock. He jerked and writhed, riding the waves of his pleasure as Colten wrung every last drop of seed from Steven.

The man dropped to his knees so quickly that Colten’s fingers were forced from Steven’s body. Colten slammed the palms of his hands into the wall and gazed downward as Steven released Colten’s heavy shaft that had been trapped behind his jeans. Steven took the weight in his hands and then swallowed several inches into his mouth.

The move stole the very breath from Colten’s lungs. Steven created a tight, wet suction, his tongue dancing over the head of Colten’s cock. The man suckled and licked until Colten was vibrating from the inside out.

He was getting head in the tack room and about to shake apart as Steven devoured him. Colten had known that he wanted Steven, was almost positive that Steven was his mate, but he hadn’t realized that Steven had already burrowed himself deeply under Colten’s skin. He was gazing at the most erotic sight he’d ever witnessed as Steven repeatedly swallowed Colten’s cock down his throat.