STORY EXCERPT

Two pairs of strong hands caressed every inch of her body as Melinda knelt between the powerful males on the expansive bed. The sheets were soft under her knees. Her body tingled from all their attention. She leaned back against one broad chest, arched her back, and thrust her full breasts out for a pair of hands to cup and hold them while nudging the taut nipples. Melinda moaned under the dual attention as wetness dripped down her thighs from her drenched pussy. Oh, she was so ready to be taken by these males, these powerful jaguars.

Lifting a hand behind her, Melinda felt for the soft, long hair of the man. She then held out another hand to touch their third partner. Instead of finding them, the delicious wet dream disappeared. Dressed in bloody scrubs, she stared down at the body of a beautiful, beloved dog that had been crushed under the wheels of a car. The dog panted and whined for her to help him, but she couldn’t. There was nothing more she could do other than help him slip into sleep and a journey for the Rainbow Bridge. Blood welled between her fingers, and Melinda tilted her head back to scream in disgust for the senseless tragedy.

The harsh turn of the sensual dream into the nightmares of the particular rough evening during the long shift at the veterinary clinic yanked her out of sleep with a breathless scream. As well as losing one case to the hit-and-run accident, she helped a sweet feline leave her family after the ravages of cancer became too much for the cat and her family. There were times when Doctor Melinda Evans Hurst, MD, DVM hated her job. She tossed and turned in her bed. She groaned, opened her eyes, and shoved a hand into pale white-gold hair. Sitting up, she dragged her hand down her face. These restless nights after horrible days where nothing seemed to go right for the animals were the absolute worse, and she hated them with a passion. If only she stayed deep in the first dream instead of being tugged to the nightmare. She pulled her knees up to her chest. Rolling her head back and forth, feeling the taut muscles of her neck stretch, she glanced at the clock.

Wee hours in the asshat morning.

“Ahh, to hell and back, sweet Goddess, would you please let me sleep? Damn insomnia. Please bring back those hot males to pleasure me back to sleep,” Melinda muttered with a groan.

It was the sixth time she dreamt of those males. They were always there, tugging at her dreams with such sensuality. She heard of mates who dreamt of one another before meeting and discovered they were true mates, destined to be together. Could these two males be her mates? Still, she never heard of a triad mating. They were powerful, unusual, and supposedly rare. Could these males be part of the Fire Moon Clan, who lived in the nearby valley where she applied to become a member? Were they so close to her, but still out of reach?

With so many questions, and knowing there would be no more sleep, her inner feline rose forward inside her. She felt as her jaguar stretched in her mind, paced around, and pawed to be released. She knew her jaguar was emotional from the passion the males built inside her body and ached for the losses of the beloved pets. She didn’t have the ability to save the precious lives and share her strength with the weakened souls. Now her cat ached for a change and a run through the forest.

Deciding to give in to her cat, Melinda rose from her bed, tugged off the pale-pink nightie and panties, and slid her arms in the simple green silk robe. She gave the ties a loose knot, easy to undo later. Leaving her bedroom, she went to the back exit of the apartment located above the veterinary clinic, which she rented from the other vet who owned the clinic. Nibbling on her lower lip, Melinda raced down the outer staircase.

Downstairs, standing outside the backside of the clinic, where the kennels were kept, her sharp hearing picked up some soft, mournful cries from the six dogs and four cats staying in the clinic. Some were there as boarders while their human families were away from home, while others stayed overnight under care and supervision of a different night technician and nurse.

Knowing the animals would be cared for during her unexpected pre-dawn run, she glanced around once more, sniffed the air to see if anyone strolled about, and pushed off from the bottom step. Reaching the tree line, she crouched next to a fallen tree and pulled off the robe. She rolled and tucked it inside a familiar hole where she would cover herself with the robe again after her run. Another glance and sniff to make sure no one was nearby to watch her change, she called upon her inner jaguar and let her come forward.

The natural magic and gift built within her bloodline, a line she knew nothing about due to her adoption, began to change her body. Five years after her first shift, she continued to hide her changes from the rest of her home clan, the Vernal Moon Clan. It was a secret she tried to keep from the elders and her parents until the High Alpha found out and forced her decision to flee.

The way the Alpha looked at her and wanted her, it kept her from mentioning the truth about what happened when she applied to become a full member of the local Fire Moon Clan. She didn’t say a word about her unusual coloring. Since she hadn’t received word about her application status, she ended up taking the job and apartment with this small clinic outside the valley.

ADULT EXCERPT

“Must have you,” Luca grumbled in Collin’s ear when he pressed the naked man against the cold window of the patio door.

“Inside. I have stuff inside,” Collin said, groaning when Luca rolled his hips and nudged his arousal against him. He managed to reach behind him, fumble for the handle, and yank the door to the side.

They nearly toppled into the living room when the door opened. Only their quick catlike reflexes saved them. Luca grumbled and pushed Collin further into the room until they found the sofa.

“Got something here?” Luca looked around the relatively well-kept and styled room.

“I left something in the box on the side table. The one with the old-fashioned map print,” Collin said, waving a hand to the far table.

“Who did you have last in here?” Luca demanded.

Collin shook his head. “No one since I met you. I put it there with hope of something.”

“Something?”

Collin nodded.

“Looks like this is the something we both wanted.”

“Yeah, I think this is what I imagined.”

“Then you better go lie down and get it,” Luca said as he stepped back and began to shed his clothes.

“So bossy and aggressive, I like. Are you going to tie me up?” Collin said with a low purr.

“I will if you don’t behave and do what I tell you,” Luca threatened with a show of sharp teeth.

With a husky laugh, Collin dropped back on the sofa, threw his hands behind, and searched for the box. He managed to open the latch, flip the top back, and find the bottle of lube he stashed there in case he ever found himself lucky with Luca. It was the truth when he told Luca there was no one who had crossed his radar since they met. When he brought the lube in front of him, he double-checked the expiration date.

“Still good?” Luca raised an eyebrow.

“Caught my check, didn’t you?”

“It’s been a while for me, too.” Luca moved toward Collin and the sofa and knelt on the edge.

“I’m surprised. The darn thing isn’t expired. We’re good,” Collin said as he waved the bottle.

“Good. Keep it handy,” Luca said before he bent over and captured Collin’s lips in a heated kiss.

Once again the passion flared between them. While Luca kissed the length of Collin’s neck, he slid his right hand down to Collin’s crotch. He cupped him and gave his sac a little extra squeeze.

Collin felt his cock jerk and twitch in Luca’s hand. His balls pulled up, and he was afraid he was going to explode before they did anything. He moaned when Luca wrapped his fingers around his rigid cock and began to pump with short, sharp strokes from his base to his sensitive knob. There Luca rubbed the head, constricted under the rim, one finger glancing over the glans. Then Luca went back to the quick pumps.

“Oh hell…” Collin leaned his head back against the sofa’s arm. He tried to suck in air to control his body under the heady touch.

“I want to watch you come,” Luca said as he continued the heat and friction with those tugs and jerks.

“No…Not without you,” Collin said with a moan and a shake of his head.

His moan was muffled when Luca’s warm lips came down on his mouth. Their tongues tangled around one another as Luca plunged his passionately into Collin while he kept his hand moving over Collin’s cock. Luca teased and tormented him.

Collin’s mouth mimicked everything Luca did, from the sensual dance of their tongues, to a nip on Luca’s bottom lip with his teeth.

The slapping sound of flesh-on-flesh filled the room as Luca pumped his cock with ever-increasing speed. Grunts fell from Collin’s lips when Luca leaned back as they both dragged air into their lungs.

Collin closed his eyes, and his cock splattered a shot of cum all over Luca’s hand and their bellies. His hips lifted and moved under Luca’s touch. He shuddered with a moan as Luca continued to pump him until he was emptied. His body twitched with a few more post-orgasm shudders. His cock was still hard and ready for more action.

He heard the snick of a cap opening before he felt fingers and cold lube brushed against his puckered opening. He twisted his head to one side as his fingers dug into the cushions, and he moaned as Luca worked fingers into him. Luca increased the steady pressure in and around his rectum, and it sent sensations flying through the rest of his body.

Luca sank another finger down to his knuckle, twisted, and flexed before he thrust in and out. He nudged against the sensitive gland which had Collin moaning and twisting on the sofa. He lifted one of Collin’s legs to the back of the sofa and the other around his hips as he moved forward. Placing the broad head against the well-lubricated opening, Luca slid his thick shaft all the way to the root in one thrust.