
Atlantic Bridge www.atlanticbridge.net
Copyright ©2008 by Marisa Chenery
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Published by Liquid Silver Books, Imprint of Atlantic Bridge Publishing, 10509 Sedgegrass Dr, Indianapolis, Indiana. Copyright 2008, Marisa Chenery. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the authors.
This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.
To my family.
Billie York grumbled under her breath as she made her way up to the Wulf's Den front entrance. It was almost three in the morning. She had been in a deep sleep when her sister-in-law, Janice, had called asking Billie to find her husband, Billie's brother, and haul his ass home. Knowing she was the only one who could do it, Billie assured Janice she would have Hayes home soon.
Now here she was standing out in front of a night club just before closing time, cursing her brother's existence. Every time he had a fight with his wife, Hayes went to some bar and got stinking drunk. And it was always Billie who had to get his drunken ass home since she was the only one who could find him. Hayes tried to hide from her by going to bars and nightclubs he didn't usually frequent, but it never mattered. Billie had a gift, one that only her family knew about---she could find anyone she knew, no matter how brief their acquaintance. She didn't even need to know their name, just what they looked like. She could bring the image of the person's face up in her mind and be able to see exactly where that person was at that exact moment. She'd been able to do it with ease since she was very young. At first she had thought everyone could do it. She soon learned differently once she started going to school and her friends had laughed at her when she had told them what she could do. Now, it was something the family kept to themselves.
Since it was almost closing time, there wasn't a line-up of people waiting to get into Wulf's Den. Billie nodded her head at the large baldheaded bouncer at the door before she stepped inside. He waved her through as he eyed the sweat pants and sweat top she wore. Billie knew she wasn't dressed for a nightclub, but at the moment she pretty much didn't give a damn. She would only be there long enough to collect Hayes and then she was going to go back to bed.
It took her eyes a few minutes to adjust to the dimness inside the club. Once she could see, Billie quickly scanned the room for her brother. He wasn't hard to find. The club wasn't filled to capacity at this time of night. With her eyes focused on where Hayes sat at the bar talking to one of the waitresses, Billie stomped over to him.
Hayes didn't notice her at first as he continued to tell the waitress in a drunken slur how much he loved his wife even though she didn't understand him. Billie rolled her eyes in disgust. The waitress, who happened to look as if she'd stepped off one of the pages of a fashion magazine, gave Billie a small smile before leaving her alone with her brother.
It was then Hayes realized she was standing beside him. He scowled at her. "Shit, Billie, can't I ever get away from you?"
Billie crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Hayes. "No. Do you think I enjoy being dragged out of my bed to hunt you down? Believe me, I don't. I have other things I would much rather be doing than be my brother's keeper. Such as getting a full night's sleep for starters."
"Then why do it? It's not as if I asked you to find me." Hayes reached for his drink. Finding the glass empty, he scowled at it. "Empty. Where's that bartender?" Hayes looked down the length of the bar.
"I think you've had more than enough. Time for you to go home to your wife."
"One more drink for the road, then I promise to go home. I'm perfectly capable of finding my own way you know."
Billie snorted as Hayes just about fell off the barstool while he continued to look for the bartender. "I don't think so. Now give me your car keys so we can get the hell out of here."
"Just go home, Billie. I can manage on my own. How come you only bug me like this and not the others?" The others Hayes referred to were their three older brothers.
"The others don't get stupid drunk every time they take offense to something their wife says to them. Are you going to give me your keys, or do I have to take them from you?"
"Go away, Billie. Do you have any idea how humiliating it is to have your baby sister drag you home as if you were a child?"
"Not my problem. Okay, we'll do it the hard way then."
Quickly taking hold of Hayes' wrist, Billie bent his arm back behind him and forced it up toward his shoulder blades. Hayes yelped and fell forward onto the bar. For good measure, Billie dug her thumb into the inside of his wrist, at the base of his palm, to keep him pinned in place. Hayes began to swear at her as she rifled through his pants' pockets looking for his car keys.
Royce watched the scene taking place over at the bar. He was sitting in the back corner of the club far enough away that neither participant could see him. His lips twitched with amusement.
He had watched the woman enter the club and then head for the drunken mortal who sat at the bar. She hadn't looked at all thrilled to be here. Normally he ignored such goings on, but there was something about the woman that drew his eye. She was pretty in an understated way. Her long black hair fell around her shoulders to the middle of her back. He really couldn't tell what kind of figure she had because of the loose fitting sweats she wore. He had the feeling she wasn't the type of woman who cared what other people thought of her looks anyway.
When the conversation seemed to get a little heated, Royce found himself on his feet heading toward them. Just as he reached them the woman pinned the man to the bar and started to search his pockets.
"Do you need any help?"
The woman turned to take a quick look at Royce and shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I can manage." With a sound of triumph, she pulled out a set of keys from the man's pocket.
Royce sucked in a sharp breath as he caught his first whiff of her scent. Taking another breath, he drew it deep inside his lungs until her scent was all he could smell. The wolf inside him threw back his head and howled with longing. Royce fought the urge to pull her into his arms, to claim her as his. Her scent said she was his mate, but it was her being a mortal that made him want to resist the mating urge that had risen up inside him. He had lost one mate who was mortal. He couldn't take a second mortal as a mate.
Oblivious to what Royce was going through, she released the man's arm and dangled the keys in front of his face. "Let's go."
Unable to stop himself, Royce moved nearer to the woman. She wasn't all that tall, the top of her head barely reached the middle of his chest, but there was a toughness about her that made up for her lack of stature. He took another deep breath, knowing her scent would be forever burned into his mind, never forgotten. When she took a step back and rammed into his chest, Royce bit back a moan of pleasure.
She quickly turned around and apologized. "Sorry about that." A look of interest spread across her face as she stared up at him.
Billie knew she was staring, but she couldn't stop herself. The man standing in front of her was breathtaking to the max. Visions of wrapping herself around his well built body and kissing him until they both couldn't think straight flitted through her head as she looked into his hazel eyes. She usually didn't find herself instantly attracted to a man. Growing up in a houseful of males, she was much more comfortable around men than she was women so she tended to be treated like one of the guys. But she definitely didn't want this particular guy to think of her in that way. He was someone she wanted to get up close and personal with. He had perfect good looks with his square jaw, chiseled lips and straight nose. He wore his golden brown hair long so it fell just past his shoulders. Billie had the strongest urge to run her fingers through its length. And he was tall, which was something she liked in a man. He had to be no less than six foot six.
The silence seemed to stretch between them. Billie could tell the interest she felt was not totally one sided. His gaze swept her body hungrily. Not wanting him to think Hayes was anything more than just her brother, Billie stuck out her hand. "I'm Billie York, and this drunken sot over here is my brother Hayes." Reluctantly, he took her hand. When his large hand closed over hers, Billie felt a jolt of awareness zip through her body.
"I'm Royce Larrsson. Billie is it?"
"It's short for Wilhelmina."
"Nice to meet you, Billie. If you have things under control, I'll leave you to get your brother home."
Not wanting to let him get away that quickly, Billie turned to look at Hayes. He had gotten off the bar stool and now stood none too steadily on his feet watching them. Hayes was a big man, just a few inches shorter than Royce in height and just as muscled. Billie was strong, but she knew if Hayes took a header while she was helping him to the car there would be nothing she could do to stop him from pulling her down with him.
"Actually, if you don't mind, could you help me get Hayes out to the car? You look as if you're strong enough to sling him over your shoulder if it comes to it."
That way she could keep Royce around her for a little while longer. She didn't want him to leave until she tested the waters a little bit more. She wasn't the type of girl to just sit back and let the man come to her. If she met a man she liked, and he didn't seem to be moving fast enough for her liking, Billie had no problem taking matters into her own hands to let him know what she wanted, literally and metaphorically speaking. Sometimes her forwardness paid off, and sometimes it didn't, but she was willing to take that chance with Royce. The longer he stood beside her the more her body stood up and took notice.
Hayes snorted. "I'm not being hauled to my car over anybody's shoulder. I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own thank you very much."
Billie held her breath as Royce looked from her to her brother. He seemed reluctant to agree at first. It wasn't until Hayes tried to walk by her and ended up pushing her into Royce did he give a slight nod of his head in agreement. His arms wrapped around her waist as he steadied her against his larger body. Billie felt all the air rush out of her lungs in a whoosh as her hands came to rest on his hard chest. She could feel every inch of his well muscled body pressed against her own. Like quicksilver, desire rushed through her, making her nipples pebble beneath her sweat top. But what really had her almost panting was the feel of Royce's fully aroused cock nestled against her stomach.
Feeling as if all the moisture had left her mouth, Billie swallowed and lifted her head to look up at Royce. For a split second she could have sworn his eyes were glowing, but then it was gone before her brain could fully register that it had actually happened.
Royce's nostrils flared slightly as he leaned into her and took a deep breath in before he quickly released her. "I'll help you with your brother, then I have to leave."
A scowl settled into place on Billie's face as she watched Royce take Hayes by the arm and walk away as he headed for the club's entrance. She had to wonder what that was all about. She knew Royce was attracted to her, the hard-on he sported was still slightly noticeable by the bulge in his pants. But now he was acting as if she had the plague and he couldn't get away from her fast enough.
Following Royce out to the parking lot, Billie directed him over to where Hayes' car was parked. She unlocked the passenger door and held it open as Royce shoved Hayes into the car. Billie quickly slammed the door shut on her brother. She ignored Hayes as he yelled at her to watch what she was doing.
Billie knew she had the element of surprise on her side. Before Royce could walk away, Billie slammed her body into his, backed him up against the side of the car and kept pushing until he was practically lying on the trunk. With her fingers threaded through Royce's hair, she pulled his mouth down to hers and kissed him for all she was worth.
"Not the car, Billie. I just had it washed," Hayes yelled through the closed window.
She waved Hayes' complaint away with a flick of her hand. Not that she was listening to him. She was totally focused on the task at hand. Royce had stiffened at first when her lips had come in contact with his, but now he seemed more agreeable. His arms came up and wrapped around her waist as he deepened the kiss. When he swept his tongue along the seam of her lips, Billie opened for him and sucked his tongue deep inside her mouth. She moaned as he swept the inside of her mouth, thoroughly tasting her. That small sound had Royce going stiff as a board beneath her.
Wrenching his mouth off of hers, Royce pushed her away. Not expecting it, Billie slid off his body and ended up having to make a grab for the car's trim to hold herself up or she would have ended up on her butt on the pavement.
Once again back on his feet, Royce held out his hand to keep her from coming any nearer. His breath sawed in and out of his lungs. "That was a mistake."
"I wouldn't go that far." Billie smiled at Royce. "I thought it was pretty good."
"I should never have done that."
Billie's smile slowly fell away. "Please don't tell me you're married." That would be all the luck. She finally found a man who appealed to her in every way, and to find out he was married would be a real kick in the pants.
"No, it isn't that."
A wave of relief washed over her. "Then relax. We're both adults here. I'm attracted to you, and you're attracted to me. Why not let nature take its course?"
Royce shook his head and slowly backed away. "I think not."
"Can I at least have your phone number in case you change your mind? Or I can give you mine."
"You don't understand."
Pausing at the edge of the parking lot, Royce gave Billie a stare that was hot and full of longing. Billie felt a pounding ache of arousal build between her legs. Her pussy grew slick as Royce stared at her as if he was memorizing everything about her, then he was gone. Biting back the whimper of loss that rose up inside her, Billie swore under her breath and got into the driver side of the car.
Hayes shook his head at her. "When are you going to learn that most guys don't like a woman to come on so strong, Billie?"
"Shut up, Hayes. I don't want to hear it." Starting the car, she pulled out of the parking lot. Before she turned onto the street, Billie quickly scanned the sidewalk in front of the club. Of course Royce was nowhere in sight.
"You're not going to let him get away." Hayes said it as a statement not as a question.
"Damn right. I've seen his face, and I know his name. I'll be able to find him anywhere."
"God help the man. If you do intend to hunt him down, try not to be so pushy. A man likes to feel he's seducing the woman, not the other way around."
Billie didn't bother to comment on what Hayes had said. She already knew from Royce's response that coming on strong wouldn't work with him. She had to think of another way to keep him from pulling away. What exactly, she had no idea. All she knew was that sometime tomorrow she would be paying Royce a visit. She wasn't going to let him go that easily.
Billie worked at the gym her father owned as a personal trainer. She also taught a self-defense class a couple times of week. Even though the gym was the family business, Billie never felt as if she was expected to work there. In fact, it was her dream job. She loved being at the gym, able to work out whenever she wished. To be around her father and brothers every day was an added bonus. They were all the family she had. Her mother had run out on her father shortly after Billie had been born. So her father had the task of raising his only daughter alone. It was no wonder Billie had turned out to be a tomboy growing up. Her father really had no idea what to do with a little girl. Instead of playing with dolls, she had followed her father around the gym learning how to run it. When she turned fourteen, her father gave Billie her first set of weights, and so began her love of weight training.
Turning back from replacing the set of dumbbells the member she had been training had been using, Billie found Hayes and her other three brothers circled around her. She ground her teeth knowing full well what was coming. They did this every time she showed an interest in a guy, especially when it was one they didn't know. She pinned Hayes with a hard stare. He had to have been the one to tell the others about what happened at Wulf's Den the night before. Not backing down an inch, Hayes crossed his arms over his wide chest and glared back at her.
It was rough being the baby sister to four older brothers, especially when those older brothers had enough testosterone between them to choke a horse. All of them lifted weights and were over six foot. They looked like a bunch of line backers. It was part of the reason why Billie had taken up weight lifting and had learned self-defense. She may be shorter than them, but she could give them all a run for their money.
Leaning back against the rack of dumbbells that ran along the length of the wall, Billie looked at each of her brothers. The York siblings all took after their father in looks, or so Billie had been told since she had no memories of her mother. They all inherited their fathers straight black hair and grey-blue eyes. Keegan, who was the oldest at thirty-five, was ten years older than Billie and resembled their father the most. And being the oldest, Keegan thought it gave him the right to basically butt into the lives of his siblings. The next in line were Eli and Finn. They were identical twins and were two years younger than Keegan. Then there was Hayes. He was two years younger than the twins. Being only six years older than Billie, he was the closest in age to her out of all her brothers.
Billie had to admit her brothers were not hard to look at. With their rugged good looks, longish hair and well conditioned bodies they tended to garner a lot of attention from the opposite sex. Out of all of them only Keegan and Hayes were married. The twins loved women too much to settle for just one, or so they liked to tell everyone.
"All right, let's get on with it. Start your interrogation so I can have it over with and get on with the rest of my day." Billie said blandly.
Keegan of course was the first one to start. "So what is this about you throwing yourself at a guy you just met at a nightclub last night?"
"That is none of your business."
"Like hell it isn't. You're our baby sister. We have to watch over you, especially if you're going to track this guy down."
Billie glared at Hayes again before she turned back to Keegan. "I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm twenty-five years old. I can look after myself. Can you guys give me a break and keep your noses out of my love life? It would be nice not to have the lot of you scaring off a guy I take an interest in."
"From the sounds of it, you managed to do that quite nicely all on your own."
"Yeah, we heard the guy couldn't get away from you fast enough," Eli said with a chuckle.
"After you locked lips with him he almost pushed you onto your butt so he could get away," Finn added.
Billie scowled at Hayes. "Did you have to tell them everything?"
"Yeah, I did. Maybe that will teach you to stay at home and not come running after me whenever Janice calls."
"I'm so going to tell Janice about the gorgeous waitress you were talking to at the nightclub. You know the one that looked like a super model."
Hayes visibly paled and shook his head. "You wouldn't."
"I'm sure Janice will be thrilled to know you were talking to some hot, skinny woman. I'm sure it will make your wife, who is eight months pregnant with your child, feel you don't find her sexy because she thinks she's as big as a house."
Before Hayes could say anything in return, Eli butted into the conversation. "A hot, skinny super model? What is the nightclub called? Finn, we have to check this place out."
Finn nodded his head enthusiastically. "Most definitely. Was there more than one hot chick there, Hayes?"
Jumping on the chance to divert the topic of discussion away from his wife, Hayes nodded. "The place is called Wulf's Den. You won't believe the number of hot women who were there. It looked as if a super model convention was taking place there."
Finn rubbed his hands together. "I know where I'll be going tonight. I have an itch I'm sure one of those ladies won't mind scratching."
Billie pretended to stick her finger down her throat and gag. "And you think I'm bad. Isn't it about time the two of you settled down and started a family of your own like Keegan and Hayes? You aren't getting any younger you know."
Eli gasped in mock horror. "Not in this lifetime."
"And I second that," Finn quickly added.
"I'll be sure to rub that statement into both of your faces when you each find the right woman," Billie said. "The whole playboy persona won't hold up with age you know. Someday it'll turn a woman's stomach instead of her head. Now if you all are done, I have somewhere to go."
When Billie tried to walk away, Keegan moved to stand in front of her, blocking her path. "Oh no, you don't. You're not leaving until you tell us more about the man you met at the nightclub."
Knowing there would be no escape until she told them something, Billie blew a breath out on a sigh. "His name is Royce. He offered to help me with Hayes. Other than that he is gorgeous, muscular and taller than all of you, that is everything I know about him. Now get out of my way before I'm forced to do something painful to you."
Billie bit back a smile as Keegan automatically brought his hands up, protectively cupping his groin as he moved out of her way. She had to give it to her brothers, they were quick learners. None of them took her warnings lightly anymore.
"Tell Dad I'm finished for the day and I'll see you all tomorrow."
Anxious to be on her way, Billie only took the time to collect her purse before she headed out to her car. Once she was behind the steering wheel, she closed her eyes and brought Royce's image up in her mind. Focusing, she honed in on his location. A smile of satisfaction spread across her lips when she found him.
Royce pushed away the newspaper he had been trying to read in disgust. He had come into the kitchen to have a coffee and read that day's newspaper, hoping to distract himself from thoughts better left not thought about. He was failing miserably.
Thoughts of Billie were haunting him. No matter what he tried, he couldn't get the smell, taste or feel of her out of his head. Just thinking about her brought the wolf inside him roaring to life. With the mating urge riding him hard, he'd had one erotic dream after another about her during the night. He'd woken up with his body hard and aching for her. Even now, he was still semi-aroused.
With a snarl, he tried to rid his mind of the memory of how it had felt to kiss Billie, have her body pressed to his. But it wouldn't go away. It had been hundreds of years since he had held a woman in his arms in that way. After the loss of his mate, he hadn't been interested in having another woman in his life. And finding a woman he wanted to take to his bed for only a night held no appeal for him.
Now, after the many years that had gone by since Alicia's passing, he had found another mate. And like Alicia, Billie was not a werewolf. He didn't want to be mated to another mortal. It had caused him too much pain when Alicia had been taken from him. The only thing that had kept him going had been his baby daughter, Nina. She was all he'd had left of his mate. To protect her from the villagers who had killed her mother, and not sure of how his pack would have reacted to his having a daughter who was mortal, he had stepped down as pack leader and gone lone wolf. He took his daughter away and watched over her as she grew to womanhood, as he had all her descendants.
Royce didn't mind being alone. He still had Roxie and her mother, Belinda, to watch out for. He had raised Belinda as his own daughter when her parents had died when she was little. She was mortal as all of Nina's descendants had been. All of them except Roxie. Roxie had been born a mortal, but through a little known spell, she was now a werewolf as he was. And she was the only one who looked so very much like Alicia. That Roxie had even inherited some of Alicia's memories, had caused him at one time to think Roxie was Alicia reincarnated, but Roxie had soon disabused him of that notion. She had already found her mate in the form of Beowulf, the one he had chosen to take his place as pack leader. It seemed only fitting that their two families be joined.
Picking up the cup that sat on the table next to the newspaper, Royce took a sip and then grimaced. The coffee was cold. He was about to get up and pour himself another cup of coffee when his doorbell rang. Royce looked over at the clock on the wall. It was just after four in the afternoon. He had to wonder who it could be. He wasn't expecting anyone.
The doorbell rang again. Obviously whoever was at his door wasn't going to be so easily put off. Pushing back the kitchen chair he sat on, Royce got up and headed for the front door before the person could ring the bell for a third time.
All prepared to send whomever it was away, Royce yanked open the front door. Seeing who it was standing on his front porch had the wolf inside him fighting to have control. Ruthlessly, Royce pushed the wolf back.
"Billie, what are you doing here?"
"Nice to see you again as well, Royce," Billie said with a smile. "I thought I'd drop by and see if you'd had a change of heart since last night."
"How did you find out where I lived?"
"The telephone book?"
"I'm not listed in the telephone book."
"Oh, well, I have my ways. Are you going to invite me in or what?"
"I don't think that would be a good idea."
Actually, he knew that wouldn't be a good idea. Royce didn't know if he could trust himself to keep his hands off her now that she was here in person. He felt as if he was a bomb ready to go off at any moment. Billie's scent was doing a real number on him. For starters, the semi-erection he had been sporting for most of the day was now fully erect. Images of pulling Billie into the house as he dragged her to the floor and sheathed his aching cock inside her moist heat had him clenching his teeth together.
"I promise I won't stay long if you're busy. I thought we could get to know each other a little better before you decide you don't want me around."
While Billie spoke, she moved closer to Royce. Not wanting their bodies to come in contact, knowing if they did it would have the same reaction as fire being set to tinder, Royce stepped back. Billie kept crowding him with her body until she had him back inside the house. Royce didn't realize what she had done until she closed the front door behind her.
Hoping to take control of the situation, Royce stood up straighter and gave Billie a stern look. "Now that you've managed to get yourself inside my house I suppose you can stay for a few minutes. I have coffee if you'd like some." He didn't wait for her reply as he headed back to the kitchen. He heard Billie following behind him.
Royce got a clean mug out of the cupboard. After filling it with coffee from the pot he had made earlier, he placed it on the kitchen table where Billie had taken a seat. He took the chair across from her and waited to see what she would do next. He had a feeling it would be no easy task to get her out of his house. It didn't appear as if Billie was going to take no for an answer. If she had been a werewolf, he would have already had her under him on his bed. To make sure he kept his hands to himself, Royce crossed his arms over his chest.
Billie took a sip of her coffee. Her grey-blue eyes never wavered off his face. Once she put the mug back down on the table, she pulled her gaze away and looked around the room. "Nice place you have here, Royce."
"Thanks. Now what exactly do you want?" he asked in what he hoped was a bored tone of voice.
"Aren't we Mr. Sunshine?" Billie asked sarcastically. "I guess I'll get straight to the point. I find you attractive and I'd like to pursue that. I know it's not all one-sided either judging by the way you kissed me last night. So what do you say about us getting to know each other better and see how it goes from there?"
"Last night was a momentary weakness on my part. I think it would be better to leave matters the way they are right now." His eyes fell to the grey t-shirt Billie wore. It had York Fitness stenciled in black across the chest. "Isn't your last name York?"
Billie looked down at her shirt then back up at him. "You remembered. See? You are interested. York Fitness is the gym my Dad owns. I work there as do my brothers."
"I thought you only had one brother."
"No. I have four older brothers."
Royce let out a low whistle. "That must be fun for you having four brothers watching over you. What do you do at the gym? Do you work in the office?"
"God, no," Billie said with a laugh. "When I first showed signs of wanting to work at the gym my Dad started me off in the office. Let's just say math is not my strong suit, and my phone etiquette sometimes leaves a lot to be desired. I tend to say whatever is on my mind. I'm a personal trainer and I teach a few self-defense classes."
That explained how Billie had easily subdued her brother the night before even though Hayes was almost twice her size. Now that she had mentioned it, Royce could see Billie had a muscular build. Her shoulders were broad and there was noticeable muscle tone showing on her arms. Royce wondered what her legs looked like under the black yoga pants she wore. He bet they were just as well toned. He couldn't help picturing how it would feel to have her legs wrapped around his waist as he drove into her body. Realizing where his thoughts were taking him, Royce groaned and closed his eyes. He tried to bring his body back under control.
"Are you okay, Royce?"
He opened his eyes to find Billie staring at him with a look of concern on her face. Fighting the mating urge was turning out to be a losing battle with her being in the same room. He had to get away from her, but he couldn't say the words that would make her leave. All he could do was look back at her with the longing he felt. Against his will, he let his gaze drift lower. At her chest, he watched it rise and fall with each breath Billie took. His fingers itched to reach across the table and cup her surprisingly full breasts in each of his hands. The wolf, too long denied, roared at him to do it. He dragged his eyes back up to Billie's face and found her lips slightly parted as she drew in one rapid breath after another. The scent of her rising desire wafted over him, more potent than the most expensive perfume. Royce clenched his jaw together until it ached, stopping the animalistic growl that rose up within him. Unable to look away, he fisted his hands on the table in front of him.
The change that came over Royce happened in a matter of seconds. One minute he was all gruff, acting as if he couldn't get rid of her fast enough, and then the next he was staring at her with intense longing. In reaction, Billie felt her heart begin to beat a little faster. But when Royce lowered his eyes to her chest, her body started to go up in flames. Just that one look sent blood rushing to her core as her pussy ached to have him touching her there. His eyes caressed her breasts. It was so intense it felt almost as if he had physically touched them. As if he was cupping them in his large hands. Her breasts grew heavy and her nipples tightened into buds.
When Royce lifted his head and she saw the stark need in his hazel eyes, she held herself still, waiting for Royce to make the first move. There was no denying he wanted her. It was written on his face for all to see. But from the way he held himself so stiffly with his hands fisted on the table, Billie knew he was fighting the desire he felt for her. Why, she had no idea. All she knew was she'd never been so turned on by a man who hadn't even touched her with as much as a finger.
The seconds ticked by and still Royce sat silently across from her, not moving so much as a muscle. Why is he just sitting there? Unable to take it any longer, Billie launched herself across the table. She landed on Royce with enough force to send his chair toppling over backwards, taking them both along with it. He gave a grunt of surprise as his back hit the floor and she ended up half sitting, half lying across his chest.
With half an ear, Billie heard the sound of spilt coffee drip over the side of the table and onto the floor. She began to wonder if she had really gone too far this time. Royce lay stiff and still beneath her. He stared up at her with no emotion in his eyes. With her hands on his chest, Billie moved to slide off Royce. She was about to apologize for her actions, but before she could say a word, Royce growled low in his throat and hauled her up against him.
She had a split second to register the fact that his eyes were no longer flat and emotionless before he threaded his fingers through her hair and brought her mouth down to his. Her eyes fluttered shut as his mouth moved possessively over her lips. Billie sighed. This was what she had wanted. Clutching at his shoulders, she tried to press herself closer to him. In the position they were in, she couldn't get as close as she wanted to be. Billie quietly groaned in frustration.
That small sound was enough to have Royce shifting beneath her. He held her close as he somehow managed to get himself off the chair and onto the floor. He quickly rolled Billie onto her back so he was on top.
Billie gloried in the feel of having every inch of Royce's body held against the length of hers. The floor was hard, and she could feel the puddle of coffee he had rolled her into soaking through her shirt, but Billie didn't care. All that mattered was having more of him.
She let her head fall to the side as Royce released her mouth and kissed a trail along her jaw to the side of her neck. With his teeth, he nipped at the vein that pounded there. He licked the same spot before continuing his downward path. Billie felt the hard length of his cock pressed against her leg. She squirmed under him, wanting to have that part of him pressed to her core even if it was only through her clothes.
Royce placed a firm hand on her hip, stilling her movements as he dragged his lips to the hollow of her throat. Billie shivered at the feel of Royce's tongue inching still lower. His fingers left her hip and grabbed for the bottom of her t-shirt. With one tug, he had it pulled up to her chin. The sports bra she wore beneath it soon followed suit, leaving her breasts bared to Royce's view.
Billie sucked in a sharp breath. Royce bent his head and swirled his tongue around her nipple. With the edge of his teeth, he dragged them across the taut peak before sucking it deep inside his mouth. He drew so hard on her nipple that Billie felt her womb tightening with each pull of his mouth. He then moved on to lavish the same attention onto her other breast.
While Royce sucked at her breast, he trailed his fingers down her side to the top of her yoga pants. A moan escaped Billie's lips as she arched up in anticipation. Undoing the pull string of her pants, Royce slipped his hand past the waistband and into her panties. He pressed the heel of his palm against her sex as he pushed one finger inside her slick opening.
Billie pushed against Royce's hand and squeezed her inner muscles around his finger. Her pussy grew wetter as a second finger joined the first to slide in and out of her. She could feel her arousal building ever higher.
Royce released her breast and shifted until he was kneeling between her legs. Billie groaned with disappointment when the two fingers he had been working her with pulled out of her body. She opened her eyes and looked up at Royce. She saw that strange glow in his eyes again, but right at this moment she didn't care about the strangeness of it. Royce had taken hold of the waistband of her pants and quickly pulled them down her body until he had them off. With a low growl, he knelt between her legs once more and brought his mouth down to her sex.
At the first swipe of his tongue, Billie's hips bucked beneath him. With his hands, Royce spread her legs further apart and flicked her clit with the tip of his tongue. She moaned as he laved her with the flat of his tongue before he gently sucked on her clit. Hands fisted at her sides, Billie panted as her climax edged closer.
Sensing she was close to her release, Royce pushed two fingers deep inside her core as he continued to lick and suck on her clit. Billie clamped her inner muscles around his fingers and rode them as the first intense wave of pleasure hit her. Moaning, she fisted her hands in Royce's hair and pushed closer as her climax tore through her.
Royce lapped at Billie's pussy until the last wave of her climax receded. Once her body relaxed, he pulled away to lay his head on her thigh. He didn't dare look up at her. He knew his eyes would be glowing now that the wolf had risen inside him. He pulled back his upper lip in a snarl as he fought to push it back. With his body hard and aching, the wolf fought him, wanting him to claim Billie fully as his mate. Royce knew if he joined his body with hers, he wouldn't be able to stop his soul from reaching out to her. If that happened they would be fully mated. Neither one of them would be able to stand being separated from the other for very long.
Billie stirred beneath him. "Come here, Royce." She reached down and pulled at his shoulders, urging him up.
He shook his head. "No." An animalistic growl escaped him before he could stop it. He felt Billie stiffen at the sound. "No."
It was hard, especially with her scent and the smell of her release thick in the air around them, but Royce managed to roll away from her. In one fluid motion he stood up with his back toward Billie. He knew she didn't understand the battle that raged inside him, but it had to be this way. He had thought that if he had one taste of her it would be enough. He had been wrong. Having her come under his mouth had only made the mating urge ride him all the harder. He should have known it would make it worse instead of better.
Billie came to stand behind him. "Royce? Did I do something wrong?" She placed her hand on his back.
"No, you didn't." Unable to stand her touching him when he knew he couldn't claim her as his own, Royce took a step away. "I can't do this, Billie. You don't understand."
"Then help me to understand. One minute you're cold and pushing me away, and the next you're all over me as if you can't get enough of me."
"I can't, Billie."
"Well, it didn't look like that a few minutes ago. You seemed more than up to the job."
"That's not what I meant."
"Then tell me what it is."
"If I were to take you like I want to, you will get more than you bargained for, believe me. Just go, Billie."
"I'm not going anywhere until we work this out."
Royce balled his hands into fists in frustration. If Billie wouldn't leave on her own, he would have to make her leave. Quickly turning around, he pulled back his upper lip and growled at her. He snapped his teeth at her as he took a step toward her, letting her get a good look at his eyes. Billie quickly stumbled away. "I said to leave." His voice came out as a half growl.
With no small amount of regret, Royce watched Billie hurriedly pull on her panties and yoga pants. She shot quick glances at him as she did so. Once she was fully clothed, she slowly backed out of the kitchen.
Before she left, she paused long enough to say one final thing to him. "I know you're trying to scare me away, Royce. I don't understand all this." She pointed to his face. "But I'm not the type of woman to be easily scared off. I'm only leaving because you obviously don't want me around for some reason. If you change your mind, you know where to find me. I work just about every day at my Dad's gym."
After Billie was gone, Royce slumped into one of the kitchen chairs. He was in big trouble. Billie may have been a little bit disturbed by his glowing eyes and the growling, but she hadn't exactly run away screaming in fear. Damn if that didn't make him respect her more. A strong female able to stand up to a male werewolf was considered a good mate by his kind. It would seem Billie was more than up to the task even though she was a mortal. Royce let his head fall back and groaned. No matter how hard he fought it, he knew it wouldn't be very long before he went to see Billie. The big question would be how many days he could be keep away.
Billie arrived at the gym feeling cranky and out of sorts. It had been two days since the debacle that had taken place at Royce's house. She had no idea what was wrong with her. She usually didn't become obsessed with a guy, but she seemed to be obsessing over Royce. He was all she could think about. Much to her shame, she had spent most of her work days watching for him to step through the gym doors. When at the end of the day he still hadn't made a showing, she would be a little more than disappointed. She had really thought he would have come to see her by now. She knew part of the reason why she was so out of sorts stemmed from not being around him, which was pathetic. She could have gone back to his place, but Billie did have her pride.
Then there was the whole glowing eyes thing and the growling Royce had done. She didn't think her eyes and ears were playing tricks on her. She wasn't the type of person to imagine things such as that, even though it was as far away from normal as anyone could get. It figured. She had found a guy that she wanted to be around and he turned out to be some kind of freak.
When she walked past the front desk one of the girls working behind it called out her name. Billie continued walking, but turned to see what she wanted. The girl, who was also on the phone, mouthed that her father wanted to see her. Billie nodded and turned back around.
This was just what she needed. She wasn't in the mood to have a heart-to-heart chat with her father. Her brothers may be overprotective when it came to her, but Tom York was even more so. Billie had lost many a boyfriend when she was growing up because of all the male chest thumping that had gone on in her house. Sometimes it had really sucked being the only female in the house.
Before going to her father's office, Billie made a quick stop over to her desk and locked her purse in one of the desk drawers. On the way she grabbed a cup of coffee. She had a feeling she was going to need a lot of caffeine just to get her through what was turning out to be a bang-up day.
She knocked once on her father's office door, then pushed it open. Her father sat behind his desk talking on the phone. Seeing her, he waved for her to come inside. Billie shut the door behind her, then went and sat down on the chair in front of the large desk. She sipped at her coffee as she silently watched her father. Tom was a large man, a trait all his sons had inherited from him. At almost sixty years of age, his black hair was liberally sprinkled with grey. His body was still well toned, attesting to the number of hours he still spent lifting weights. Even at his age he put some of the younger male members to shame. His grey-blue eyes flicked to her face as he ended his conversation and hung up the phone. Billie braced herself for the barrage of questions that was soon to follow.
Tom sat back in his chair and gave his daughter a hard stare. "What is this I hear about you throwing yourself at a strange man at some nightclub?"
Billie bit back a groan. She was tempted to ask her father which time he was referring to, but thought better of it. That would only make matters worse. "So the boys blabbed, did they?"
"They felt it was something I should know."
"Of course they did," Billie said under her breath.
"What was that?"
"Nothing. Look, Dad, I acted on the spur of the moment. As things stand now, I may not see Royce ever again."
"So that's why you've been so snarky for the last couple of days? This Royce turned you down?"
"I prefer not to get into any details with you, if you don't mind. You're my father and I really don't feel comfortable having my sex life dissected by you."
"So you already had sex with him?"
"No!" When her father's eyes bored into her, Billie sighed in defeat. She had never been able to keep things from him when he used that look on her. "Okay, sort of. Not that it's any of your damn business."
"Sort of? As in you had oral sex with him?"
"Jesus, Dad, you're starting to make feel as if I'm a teenager again. I'm old enough to have a sex life if I want one. Can we please move on to something else?"
"You know I worry about you, especially when it comes to the men in your life. I worry that without your mother having been around I haven't raised you the way I should. That I didn't give you enough chance to have more feminine things around you. You've never dated a man more than a couple of months."
Billie put her cup of coffee down and walked around the desk until she stood at her father's side. She bent down and wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "You did nothing wrong, Dad. I don't think it would have mattered if Mom was around or not. I think I still would have turned out a tomboy. Kind of hard not to with four older brothers. As for my lack of staying power when it comes to men, I just haven't found the right one yet. Let's face it. He would have some pretty big shoes to fill. He'd also have to be able to hold his own against you and the boys."
Her father chuckled as Billie once again stood up straight. "Is that so? And do you think this Royce is man enough to face me down?"
Billie nodded. "Most definitely. He's one of the few who you'd have to look up to, and has enough muscle to go head to head with any of the boys."
"I see. So when do I get to meet this paragon of maleness?"
"Didn't you listen before when I told you I may not be seeing Royce again?"
"Yes, but I don't think that will be the case. What man in his right mind would reject you?"
Billie groaned. "One minute you're acting all uptight and fatherly because there is a new man in my life, and then the next you want to meet him. I'll never understand you." She reached over the desk and picked up her coffee cup. "I'm out of here before you drive me insane."
"I only try to drive you insane because I care."
"Whatever you say, Dad."
When her last client of the day left the gym floor, Billie decided she wasn't quite ready to go home. It was late in the afternoon, hours until the gym would be closing that evening. Still feeling out of sorts with herself, she decided an hour of lifting weights was what she needed. In no way was she only staying later in case Royce made an appearance, or so she was trying to convince herself.
On her way to the women's change room, Billie noticed that all her brothers were on the gym floor as well. As she walked past each of them, she could feel their eyes following her. Billie felt the urge to turn around and stick her tongue out at them, but decided it was too childish even for her. Instead, she ignored them and didn't as much as turn her head to look back at them.
It only took a few minutes for her to change into her workout clothes, and put on the mp3 player she kept in one of the lockers inside the change room. One of the perks of being the owner's daughter was being able to claim one of the lockers as her own without fear of having her lock cut off at closing time. Her father had to put that rule into effect when too many members were leaving locks on the lockers for days at a time, even after having friendly reminders taped to the locker, which had gone ignored. Now, if any locks were found on lockers after closing time they were automatically cut off and the contents put in the large lost and found box at the front desk.
With the music on her mp3 player blaring in her ears, Billie headed back out to the gym floor. Deciding to work on her chest first, she headed for one of the flat benches to do some benching. She slapped on the weights on the long barbell, then went and lay on the bench under it. Taking a firm grasp of the bar, she lifted it off the rack and slowly lowered it to her chest before pushing it back up so her arms were straight once again. She did nine more reps like that before she replaced the bar on the rack. When she sat back up on the bench she noticed the commotion near the front desk.
Putting her mp3 player on pause, Billie swore under her breath as she quickly got up. Her brothers had someone cornered at the desk, someone who was quite a bit taller than they were. Billie's heart started to beat faster at seeing Royce in their midst. He didn't seem overly concerned that Keegan was practically standing toe-to-toe to him, and hearing her brother's raised voice, the conversation wasn't exactly a friendly how do you do.
Not wanting her brothers to drive Royce away after he had finally come to see her, Billie quickly made her way over to the front desk. None of her brothers noticed her coming up behind them. She decided Keegan would be the first one she would have to take care of. With the bottom of her foot, she kicked him in the back of one of his legs, just behind his knee, hard enough to knock him to his knees on the floor. He quickly looked back to see who had dared to do such a thing to him with a snarl on his face. When he saw Billie behind him with her arms crossed over her chest glaring at him, he got back on his feet and wisely moved away from her.
"Can you tell me what you think you're doing, Keegan?"
"Nothing. We're just introducing ourselves to Royce here."
"Is that so? And while you were 'introducing' yourselves, did any of you think that maybe you should go and get me since Royce is obviously here to see me? I don't think he planned on getting an in-his-face introduction from my dumb ass brothers." Billie finally allowed herself to look Royce in the face. He wore a bemused smile. "Sorry I wasn't here when you first arrived, Royce. If I had been, you wouldn't have had to put up with these guys."
"No apology needed, Billie."
Much to Billie's surprise, Royce's look of bemusement changed to one of intense longing. Billie felt her face flush as his hot gaze raked her from head to toe. She couldn't tear her eyes off him. Now that she was near him, all she could think of was how good it had felt to be in his arms. How good he was at using his tongue. Her heart started to pound as she remembered the intense orgasm he had given her on his kitchen floor. Not caring about the strange way he had acted the last time she had been with him, nor caring that her brothers stood nearby, Billie took a step closer to Royce. She needed to be in his arms.
Royce met her halfway. He picked her off her feet and easily held her in his strong arms as he claimed her lips in a searing kiss. Billie's world fell away. As Royce hungrily moved his mouth against hers, she didn't acknowledge her brothers' protests, or care that she and Royce were putting on a show for the gym members. All that mattered was getting closer to Royce.
"Billie!"
Her father's voice boomed across the room. That too she ignored.
"Wilhelmina!"
The sound of her full name being bellowed across the gym finally snapped Billie out of the sexual haze that had come over her. Breaking contact with Royce's mouth, she turned her head to watch her father stomp his way across the gym. He didn't look at all pleased at catching his daughter making out with a man she barely knew in front of a bunch of strangers. Billie shoved at Royce's chest hoping he would put her down before her father reached them, but he didn't so much as budge.
Much to Billie's horror, Royce kept her pinned to his chest with one arm as he held out his other hand to her father. Billie figured Royce wouldn't be earning any brownie points from her father for manhandling her in front of him.
"You must be Billie's father," Royce said calmly, as if it was an ordinary occurrence for him to be holding Billie so close against him.
Her father accepted Royce's proffered hand and shook it briefly. "And you must be Royce. If you wouldn't mind, put my daughter down."
Royce let Billie slowly slide down the length of his body. She bit her bottom lip to keep the moan that rose up inside her from escaping. There was no mistaking the evidence of Royce not being unaffected by her closeness. It made her wish she and Royce were alone somewhere, able to pursue what they were both feeling.
Once her feet hit the ground, her father turned his attention to her. "Billie, why don't you go and take a shower before you change your clothes. You must need one after working out. The boys and I will keep Royce company for you."
Yeah, right. There was no way she was going to leave Royce to the sharks for that length of time. "Actually, Dad, I only managed to do one set on the bench press before I noticed the boys had cornered Royce. So I'm good. All I have to do is change my clothes, which I'll go do now. Just promise me you won't tear him to pieces before I come out."
"I promise we'll be on our best behavior."
Somehow Billie didn't think that would last long after she was out of sight. Feeling the need for speed, she almost ran to the women's change room.
Royce let his eyes rest on each of the York men. They all looked to be cut from the same cloth. There was no mistaking Billie's brothers as anything other than the offspring of the man who stood in front of him. Billie's father was the total opposite of his daughter. He was tall, muscular and seemed to be the type of man who had no qualms about getting in your face if he needed to, same with her four brothers.
He decided to let them try to intimate him with their hard stares. It of course wouldn't work. All he could think about was Billie. She had been all he had been able to think about for the last two days. She was inside him so deep, he didn't think he could ever get her out. The one taste he had of her was far from enough. Even though he hated it, and had fought it to the bitter end, he could no longer deny what his whole being was clamoring for him to complete. He had to claim Billie as his mate fully or he would suffer the consequences. And so he had finally broken down and come to the gym to see her.
Billie's father was the first one to break the heavy silence that had descended after she had gone to change. "My daughter didn't think you would be coming to see her, but I told her you would be around eventually."
"Well, I found myself unable to stay away."
"Billie does tend to leave a lasting impression on people."
"That she does."
"Do you mind if I ask you your age? You're a lot older than the others Billie has taken an interest in."
There was no way Royce was going to tell her father his actual age. Being a werewolf, his lifespan was exceedingly longer than what mortals considered normal. His kind wasn't immortal, but they were pretty darn close. The oldest of their kind lived to be three thousand years old. Royce had already seen more than fifteen hundred years. To a mortal, he looked no older than thirty-five.
"I can't see what bearing my age has to do with anything."
"It doesn't," Billie said as she approached them. "Now would the five of you back off and leave Royce alone?" She came to stand next to Royce. "I'm going for the day, if you haven't already guessed that. I'll be back in tomorrow. If I'm a little late, don't go forming a search party or anything."
Billie didn't wait around long enough to see if the males in her family had anything more to say. She turned on her heel and headed for the gym's entrance. Royce fell into step beside her. Once they were outside, she led him to the parking lot. At her car, she turned to face him.
"I can't help being a bit surprised to see you again, Royce. I'm glad to see you, don't get me wrong, but I was under the impression you didn't want to see me again. That kiss you gave me back there says you've changed your mind again. Are you messing with my head, or do you really want to pursue this?"
Royce crowded Billie with his body until he had her trapped between him and her car. He put his hands on the car's roof and leaned down to look her in the face. "I'm not messing with your head, Billie. I've come to the conclusion that there is no denying what fate holds in store for you. It's just not worth the pain and suffering."
"Okay. You've lost me with the pain and suffering part."
"What I mean is I was too hasty when I decided that I didn't want you around. I'd like for us to start over. Get to know one another better. Take things a little slower. I'm not used to having a woman pursue me." As he spoke, Royce took another step closer to Billie until their bodies were almost touching. He could feel Billie's breath fanning his face as her chest rapidly rose and fell.
"My brothers are forever telling me I sometimes come on a little too strong." Billie's words came out breathy. Her eyes were riveted to his mouth as he spoke.
"I'm not complaining, Billie. But you do have to give a guy a chance to be the one to take the lead, or he may start to question his masculinity." He gently brushed her lips with his. "A man likes to know he can seduce the woman he wants."
"And is that what you are trying to do to me? Are you trying to seduce me?"
"Most definitely."
"Well then, it's working."
"Good." Royce quickly took a step away from her. "Then how about I take you out this evening?"
"How about we just go back to your place and you can show me the inside of your bedroom instead?"
Royce shook his head and chuckled. "Don't you know patience is a virtue? We're going to take things slow and easy."
Billie groaned. "I'm not known for being particularly patient when I want something. But, for you, I'll try. When do you want me to pick you up?" Seeing Royce's arched brow, she shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay. When will you be picking me up?"
"Around seven okay with you?"
"Fine. How should I dress?"
"Something suitable for a nightclub. I want to take you to Wulf's Den. There is someone there I want you to meet."
"All right. I'll see you at seven then."
Billie rattled off her address before she got inside her car. Royce watched her drive away before he crossed over to where he had his car parked. He was pleased with how things had gone with Billie. This was a big step for him. After his first mate's death, he had focused all his attention on raising his infant daughter. Then in time, he had watched over his grandchildren and all those that came after them. In all that time, he had not once become involved with another woman. The loss of his mate had affected him greatly. He hadn't wanted to find another to take her place, and he never had been one for casual sex. But now all that had changed since Billie had come barging into his life. Now, after hundreds of years had passed, he was ready to move on. He only hoped he wasn't making a mistake. If he claimed her as his mate and he ended up losing her as well, he wasn't sure he could survive another loss such as that.
Billie stood in front of her closet and felt herself begin to panic. There was absolutely nothing inside it that could remotely be classed as nightclub wear. She would have been fine if the dress code was jeans or yoga pants, because that was all that hung in her closet. There were no skirts, no dresses, or even dress slacks, of any kind. She was screwed.
Not wanting to mess things up with Royce before she even managed to make it out on their first date, Billie quickly picked up the cordless phone in her bedroom. She needed help, and she knew of only one person who could help her. After hitting the button that had the phone number of Hayes' place saved in the phone's memory, she waited for her sister-in-law to pick up on the other end. The phone rang twice before Janice answered.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Janice. It's me, Billie."
"How are you doing, Billie? Oh, and thanks for bringing Hayes home the other night."
"I'm doing good thanks. And you're welcome. The reason I'm calling is I need to ask you a really big favor."
"All right. Fire away."
Billie took a deep breath before she continued. "I'm going out on a date tonight and I need to dress with a little more style than I usually do. I need you to help me find a dress, or a skirt and nice top, to wear for tonight." She heard a noise that suspiciously sounded like the phone being dropped on the other end. "Janice? Janice, are you still there?"
Janice's voice came back on a second later. "Sorry about that. Can you repeat that last part?"
"I need to find a dress or a skirt to wear for tonight."
"I just had to hear you say that a second time so I would know my ears weren't playing tricks on me. Are you serious?"
"Of course I am."
"Who are you and what have you done with my sister-in-law?"
Billie rolled her eyes. "Are you going to help me or not, Janice? I'm kind of desperate. Royce is picking me up around seven and I haven't got a goddamn thing to wear."
"Calm down. I'll help. I'll be at your place in ten minutes. We should just have enough time to go to the mall and get you something to wear."
"Are you sure you're up to a shopping trip in your condition?"
"Billie, I'm eight months pregnant. I'm not suffering from a debilitating illness. Besides, I wouldn't miss this for the world."
"I'll see you in a few minutes then."
After she hung up the phone, Billie went into the living room to wait for Janice. Hayes and his wife only lived a few miles away from her apartment so she wouldn't have long to wait. Exactly ten minutes later, Janice was buzzing up to apartment. Billie grabbed her purse and spoke into the intercom to let her know she would be down in a minute.
Stepping off the elevator, Billie found Janice standing outside the apartment building waiting for her. She had her back to her. From behind, Janice didn't look like she was eight months pregnant, but when she turned around, her baby belly stuck out prominently.
Billie hurried over to Janice. "Thanks for coming to my rescue on such short notice."
Janice smiled. "Like I said on the phone, I wouldn't have missed this for the world. Now let's get a move on so we can get you back home on time."
After they got into Janice's car, her sister-in-law headed for the nearest mall. As she drove, Janice asked, "So, are you going to keep me in suspense about Royce? I must say I'm very curious to learn more about the man you threw yourself at when you fetched Hayes the other night."
"Hayes is worse than a gossipy old woman. Is there anyone he hasn't told that story to?"
Janice chuckled. "Probably not. I had to stop him from calling Keegan that late at night. The only way I was able to stop him was reminding him how drunk he was. You know Keegan has no patience for Hayes when he's drunk."
"And you think I do? If there was someone else who could find him when he takes off, believe me I would gladly give the job over to them."
"Well, is it true? Did you tackle a six foot seven inch guy onto the trunk of Hayes' car and then try to have your way with him in the nightclub's parking lot?"
Billie groaned. "I'm going to kill Hayes. I didn't exactly tackle Royce. It was more like I made sure Royce knew how I felt about him. And I didn't have my way with him. It was just a kiss."
"I guess with you sprawled on top of him, Royce couldn't mistake your intentions. If you're going out on a date with him tonight it must have paid off."
"I'm not so sure."
"What do you mean? The way I heard it, the two of you were getting kind of hot and heavy at the gym earlier. And in front of Dad no less."
"Oh. My. God. Does Hayes have nothing better to do then tell everyone my business? I can just picture him running to get his cell phone the moment Royce and I walked out of the gym."
"He means well, Billie," Janice said with a laugh.
"It would so serve him right the next time I have to chase his ass down to leave him stranded in the middle of nowhere."
"Enough about Hayes. We're here and I intend to enjoy this girls' shopping trip. I have the feeling once the baby comes I won't be doing this for a while."
Billie realized Janice was right. The mall loomed up ahead. In no time at all, Janice found a parking space and they were headed inside. Billie hoped this would be a quick in and out trip, but she soon found out it would be far from it as Janice dragged her from one store to another. At the first store they went to, Billie detested all the clothes. She found them to be downright dowdy. In the next one she fared no better. She would have been fine if she liked frilly, flowery concoctions, which she didn't. The third clothing store turned out to be the charm.
The style of clothes looked to be designed not for middle aged women, as the first store's clothes had been, or for preppy teenagers, as was the second store. Billie had already decided whatever she bought would be black, and something in a style that if she had to wear a dress to someplace else, she could get away with wearing it and not look out of place.
It didn't take her long to find a rack that held a large assortment of black dresses. As she looked through the rack, Billie noticed Janice had gone to look at another rack nearby. When Janice made a sound of exclamation, she turned to see what had caught her sister-in-law's attention.
As soon as Billie saw which dress Janice had pulled off the rack, she started shaking her head. "Ugh. No way."
"Ah, come on, Billie. At least try it on. I think you'll look incredible in this."
"Are you kidding me?
"No, seriously, you have to try this on."
Billie eyed the dress. It was a sleeveless sheath dress made out of a satiny material and was the color of a rich, dark red wine. She'd never worn anything in that color or that style in her life. From the looks of it, she had a feeling the dress would be form-fitting as well. "I don't know, Janice. I want to impress Royce not make him turn away in disgust."
Janice shoved the dress at her. "Billie, I can guarantee you Royce will not be disgusted. I bet he'll feel the exact opposite. More like he'll be picking his jaw up off the floor as he wipes the drool off his chin."
Taking the dress from Janice, Billie made her way over to the fitting rooms. Once she had the dress on she could see Janice was right. The dress looked better on than it had looked on the hanger. It hugged her curves in all the right places. The length of it fell to just above her knees. Billie gave herself one final look over in the mirror inside the fitting room before she stepped out to show Janice.
She was immediately blinded by a bright light as Janice used her cell phone to snap a picture of her. Billie blinked away the stars that appeared before her eyes. "Was that really necessary and what are you doing now?" She suspiciously watched her sister-in-law punch a bunch of numbers on her cell phone.
"It was absolutely necessary. As for what I'm doing, I'm sending the picture to all your brothers."
"You're just as bad as Hayes."
"I think they all need to see you in that dress to remind them how much of a woman you actually are. Your brothers tend to forget the fact that you aren't just one of the guys."
"Or you'll have them trying to be even more overprotective than they already are."
"There, it's done," Janice said as she typed in the last number. "Now get back in there and change. We need to go get you some shoes to match that sexy dress. Time's a wasting."
Billie had just enough time to grab a quick bite to eat since Royce hadn't said anything about taking her out for food as well, and have a shower after she got back from shopping with Janice. Normally, she let her hair dry on its own, but that wasn't an option. She dragged out her hardly used hair dryer and quickly blew her hair dry. Billie left her hair loose around her shoulders.
Inside her bedroom, she rifled through her underwear drawer. It was then she found she didn't have a bra to wear with the dress. All she had were sports bras and there was no way she could wear one with her new dress. That left only one alternative---she would have to wear the dress braless. Even though she was far from flat chested, Billie had built up enough muscle in her upper chest to give her built in support.
With that settled, she pulled on a pair of panties that could be considered almost sexy. Slipping the dress over her head, Billie smoothed it down her body. She did up the zipper, which was concealed at her right side and ran down the seam of the dress. Lastly, she put on the new high heels Janice had convinced her to buy.
The shoes themselves were pretty enough. They were high heeled dress sandals that had a strap that did up around her ankles. They also matched the color of her dress. Once she had them on her feet, Billie stood up and took a few practice steps. The heels were a lot higher than she was used to, but surprisingly she found them easy to walk in.
Now dressed, Billie headed for the living room to wait for Royce. At exactly seven o'clock, her buzzer sounded. Pushing the intercom button, she told Royce to come up as she pushed the button on the console to release the secured front entrance door. A short while later Royce knocked on her apartment door.
Billie took a deep breath and opened the door. She felt all the air leave her lungs in a whoosh. Royce had changed his clothes as well. He now wore a dark charcoal dress shirt with black dress pants. His shirt was open at his throat, revealing some of his chest. Billie felt her eyes drawn to the enticing patch of skin that showed. She had the greatest urge to run her tongue across it.
Royce cleared his throat. "Are you ready to go, or are you just going to stand there and stare at me for the rest of the evening?"
Coming back to herself, Billie blinked her eyes a couple of times. "Sorry. I'm ready. Just let me get my purse, then we can go."
With purse in hand, Billie closed and locked her apartment door. Royce threaded his fingers through hers as they stood waiting for the elevator. She turned her head to look at him. His eyes seemed glued to her body.
Feeling a little self-conscious, Billie ran her hand down the length of the dress. "Hopefully the dress isn't too over-the-top because this is the only dress I own. Hayes' wife, Janice, helped me pick this out at the store today. So, if you don't like it, it's all her fault."
When she opened her mouth to say more, Royce cut her off with his lips. He pulled her up against his body and thoroughly kissed her until her legs felt ready to give out. Ending the kiss, he smiled down at her. "The dress is fine, more than fine actually. I have to wonder how many males I'll have to scare off before the night is through. They'll take one look at you in that and they'll want to claim you as their own."
"Well, in that case, we don't have to go to Wulf's Den tonight. My apartment is just over there. I'm sure we can think of another way to get to know one another better," Billie said in a coy tone of voice.
"No, we're going. And no throwing yourself at me in the hopes of changing my mind either," Royce replied with a laugh. "I'm going to do this properly. I'm taking you out on a real date, and then we'll see about what other ways we can amuse ourselves."
Billie was all set to try one more time when the elevator arrived. Before she could say another word, Royce took her by the hand and led her inside. Luckily for him there was another couple already on the elevator. As the door slid closed, Billie admitted defeat and resigned herself to the idea of spending the evening at a nightclub.
After helping Billie into the passenger seat of his black BMW sports car, Royce slipped into the driver's seat next to her. He couldn't resist taking another look at her. When she had opened her apartment door and he saw her standing there in that dress, he felt as if someone had sucker punched him in the stomach. He had known Billie had a gorgeous body hidden under the casual clothes she seemed to wear most of the time, but actually seeing her wear something that showed off her curves was a nice surprise.
It also made him think of how good it would be to strip Billie out of her tight-fitting dress, and explore her body as he licked every inch of her. Just the thought of having her beneath him as he buried his aching cock deep inside her, made him wonder if he shouldn't have taken her up on her offer to go back to her apartment. But then he remembered the promise he had made to himself, to take things a bit slower with Billie. Spending a couple hours at Wulf's Den with her wouldn't kill him. At least he didn't think it would.
Besides wanting to take her out on a real date, he wanted Roxie to meet Billie. That was the main reason why he decided they would go to Wulf's Den. He wasn't looking for Roxie's approval. It was more to show her that he had finally moved on. That she could stop worrying about him being alone. And that he was ready to give up being a lone wolf, living on the outskirts of his pack. Those days were long behind him now. With any luck, by the end of the night, he hoped to have found a new lease on life in the form of Billie as his mate.
Wulf's Den was a lot more crowded than it had been on the night Billie had come to get Hayes. There was quite a lineup of people waiting to get in as well. Seeing how long the line actually was, Billie groaned to herself. It looked as if Royce and she wouldn't be getting inside the nightclub any time soon.
Much to her surprise, Royce led her past the line of people and up to the front door. She noticed the same baldheaded bouncer stood by the entrance. He was sure to send them back to the end of the line to wait like everyone else. But that didn't turn out to be the case. From the way Royce talked to the bouncer, it was obvious they knew each other and were on pretty good terms.
"How are you doing, Carl?"
"Good." Carl's eyes skipped over to Billie. "Not alone for a change I see."
"Not tonight." Royce pulled Billie closer to his side. "This is Billie. Billie, this is Carl."
"Nice to meet you, Carl."
"Nice to meet you too, Billie. And it's nice to see the old man over here out with someone as pretty as you." He then turned his attention back to Royce. "Candice is in there with Roxie. You should introduce Billie to them both, especially Candice. She won't have to feel as if she is the odd man out anymore with Billie here." For Billie's benefit, he added, "Candice is my ma ... my wife."
"I already planned on introducing her to Beowulf and Roxie. I'll make it a point to see Candice as well."
Royce pulled open the entrance door to the club and ushered Billie inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dimness. Royce didn't seem to be affected as she was. He kept walking without missing a step. He seemed to know exactly where he was going. Instead of going to one of the few empty tables, Royce walked past the bar to a set of stairs that lead to a room on the upper floor. At the door, he knocked once then walked inside.
The five people inside what Billie saw now was an office stopped talking and turned to look at them. Royce put a possessive arm around her shoulders and brought her over to the small group. The three women out of the group were sitting on a couch against one wall, while the two men were over at the desk that sat not too far away from it. Billie had to do a double take when she saw the men. From their similar looks, she had to guess they were brothers. The only real difference between them was the one sitting behind the desk had black hair, and the one sitting in a chair in front of the desk had chestnut colored hair. It was their looks that made her stare. They were perfect looking in every sense of the word, just as Royce was. Billie had to wonder what the chances were of having three such good looking men in one room. She knew it didn't happen around her very often.
Not wanting to be rude, Billie dragged her eyes off the two men and turned her attention onto the three women on the couch. They were pretty, especially the small blonde, but it was the woman sitting next to her that snagged Billie's attention. There was just something about her that stood out to Billie.
The woman stood and held her hand out to Billie. "Since Royce is standing there not making any introductions, I'll do it. I'm Roxie."
Billie accepted Roxie's outstretched hand and gave it a shake. "Nice to meet you, Roxie."
Royce turned and gestured to the small blonde. "This is Candice, and sitting next to her is Taryn." Both women said a quick hello before Roxie turned to face the two men. "Over there sitting behind the desk is my husband Beowulf. And that's his brother Wade, who also happens to be Taryn's husband." Both men nodded their heads in her direction.
Royce finally spoke up. "I haven't met Taryn before either." He looked the other woman over as a confused scowl formed on his face. He turned to Roxie. "Can I have a word with you outside?" Taking Roxie by the arm, Royce said to Billie, "This should only take a moment."
As soon as the door was shut behind them, Royce turned to confront Roxie. "I thought Wade's mate was a mortal. Taryn is a werewolf."
Roxie gave him a broad smile. "Isn't it great?"
"What is great? That Wade found one of our kind for a mate instead of a mortal?"
"No, dumb ass." Roxie rolled her eyes. "You aren't getting it. I meant isn't it great that Taryn is a werewolf now."
"What do you mean now?" Royce pinned Roxie with a hard stare. "How is that possible?"
"It turned out that Taryn was half werewolf, something even she didn't know about until recently. To make a long story short, I used the spell on her."
Royce stiffened. "I thought the spell was only meant to work on you. That it would only change you from a mortal to a werewolf."
"Well, you thought wrong."
"So your theory that the spell only worked originally on you because Gren used my blood, the sire of the werewolf blood in your line instead of using his own, turned out to be correct?"
"Not exactly." Roxie gave him a sheepish look. "The first time we tried the spell on Taryn we used her father's blood. It didn't work. So ... so I used my blood the second time and it worked like a charm."
"You did what!"
"Keep your voice down."
"Are you telling me that spell, combined with your blood, will change anyone into a werewolf?"
"That, I'm not sure about yet. The spell could have only worked because Taryn had some werewolf blood already. I'm trying to convince Candice to let me try it on her, but she is afraid she'll get her hopes up and it won't work. Seeing as how Carl is a werewolf, it would be a wonderful gift for Candice and him."
Royce rubbed his forehead. "I think I feel a headache coming on. Do you have any idea what would happen if werewolf society at large learned about this?"
"Do you have any idea how much you sound like Beowulf saying that?" Roxie crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a long look. "You do realize this could be a blessing for you as well?"
"What do you mean?"
"Did you take a stupid pill today, or are you being deliberately thick in the head to annoy me? I'm talking about Billie. You've found a new mate, and she happens to be mortal. A mortal who has no werewolves in her family tree I bet." Roxie took a step closer and placed her hand on Royce's cheek. "Knowing what you went through with your first mate, I have a feeling you're having a hard time dealing with the idea of having another mortal as your mate. I can change that. I could try the spell on Billie and make her like us. Then you wouldn't have to worry about her so much."
Royce took Roxie's hand off his cheek and placed a kiss on her palm before he released it. "I don't know, Roxie. Yes, you're right I'm worried about Billie being a mortal." He let out a sigh. "I haven't claimed her as mine yet, and she has no idea I'm a werewolf. I'm not sure how she would feel about being turned into one. Give it time. It's too early to be thinking about it right now."
"I understand. Just remember the offer stands. Meanwhile, I'll keep working on Candice. And before you can pull the Grandpa thing on me, I know to be careful. You and Beowulf worry too much. Now let's get back in there before Billie wonders what the hell is going on."
Billie took a sip from the glass of red wine Royce had ordered for her. They were now back downstairs sitting at one of the tables in the back corner of the room. She watched the people out on the dance floor as they moved in time to the music thumping out of the club's sound system. The night wasn't exactly going as she had thought it would. Ever since she and Royce had left the small group sitting upstairs in Beowulf's office, he had become a bit withdrawn, lost in his thoughts.
It had to have been something that had been said when he had taken Roxie out in the hall. For when they had returned, Royce had left her with the other women as he went and had a hushed conversation with Beowulf and Wade. Not that she had minded. Billie found Roxie, Taryn and Candice to be very friendly. When they had found out her family owned a gym and what she did there, Roxie had been really interested in hearing what she taught in her self-defense classes. Even Taryn had shown an interest. From there the evening had pretty much gone downhill.
Royce was still lost in thought when Billie turned back to face him. Deciding enough was enough she picked up her wine glass and downed the rest of it in a couple of big gulps. She set the glass down hard, drawing Royce's attention. "Look, I can see you're really not into this. It was nice that you brought me here to meet your friends and all, but sitting here while you stare at your drink isn't exactly what I would call a good time. To be honest, the nightclub thing isn't my cup of tea. It was a great idea to start with, don't get me wrong, but I think maybe it's time I went home. I'll get myself a cab."
Before she had a chance to get up, Royce's hand shot out and clamped around her wrist. His eyes seemed to take on that glow they sometimes had for a split second, then it was gone. "Don't go, Billie. I'm sorry." He rubbed his thumb back and forth across the inside of her wrist. "I seem to have screwed this up royally. Don't for a second think I'm not into you, because I want you. And seeing you in that dress, all I can think about is stripping you out of it. I want to make love to you until all you can think about is having me inside you."
Billie felt her body go into overdrive as an ache built between her legs. Her breath sawed in and out of her lungs as images of Royce doing what he had just said filled her head. "Then take me the hell out of here. Now. If you haven't already figured it out yet, I'm not the type of girl that needs to be wooed first. I want you, and when it comes to men, I like the direct approach. So get me out of here and take me to bed."
"There has to be something to be said about a woman who knows exactly what she wants," Royce said with a grin. He pulled Billie to her feet and gave her a hard, thorough kiss. "I'll make this up to you, all night if I have to."
With her hand held firmly in his larger one, Royce quickly led her out of Wulf's Den. Billie had enough time to wave good bye to Carl and Candice, who had come outside earlier to be with her husband, as they hurriedly walked by. Out of the corner of her eye, Billie saw Candice whisper something in Carl's ear. The big man chuckled and then wished Royce good luck. At this point, she didn't care why Carl figured Royce would need it. All she could think about was the pounding need that was taking over her body. Knowing exactly what was going to happen once they were alone, Billie couldn't focus on anything else.
The ride in the car went by in a blur for Billie. It wasn't until Royce parked his car in the driveway in front of his house, did she realize where he had taken them. Not that she really cared where they were. So long as there was a bed, and they were alone, that was all that mattered.
Once Royce turned off the ignition, Billie slipped out of the car. She came around the front of the car and waited for Royce to join her. Seeing her there, he wrapped his arm around her waist and led her up to the front door. Billie felt her skin tingle where his hand rested against her side. A shiver of excitement surged through her.
It only took Royce a moment to unlock the front door. He pushed it open and gestured for her to go ahead of him. Inside the entranceway, she turned around and watched Royce close and lock the door. He then leaned back against it as he let his gaze travel up and down her body.
"I think I'll have to call your sister-in-law and thank her for making you buy that dress."
"I'm sure Janice would love to hear she was right after all. She said the dress would have you slack jawed and drooling," Billie said softly. The way Royce was looking at her was doing wicked things to her body. Wherever his eyes touched, she swore it felt as if he were physically touching her.
Royce chuckled. "Well, she isn't too far off the mark with that comment. What it does do is make me want to slowly strip you out of it, very slowly, and kiss every inch of skin I expose. And when I finally have you naked beneath me, you'll be begging me for more."
Billie moaned. Her breasts grew heavy and her nipples tightened into peaks at the mental image Royce painted with his words. She didn't have to look down to know he could see her pebbled nipples clearly showing beneath her dress. Needing him to touch her, now, Billie let her purse slide off her shoulder and onto the floor at her feet.
"If that is what you want to do, then what are you waiting for? Or are you all talk and no action?"
One minute Royce was standing at the door, and the next he had her in his arms. He had moved so fast Billie couldn't be sure if she actually saw him walk over to her. He was suddenly just there.
"Oh, I'm definitely not all talk and no action," Royce said in a low tone as he slowly lowered his head until his lips were hovering above hers. "I'll prove it to you."
Billie wrapped her arms around Royce's neck as his lips came down on hers, claiming them in a searing kiss. He swept the seam of her lips with his tongue. She allowed him entrance as she greedily sucked his tongue inside her mouth. Royce groaned and held her tighter against him. Billie felt the hard ridge of his cock pressed against her stomach. In reaction, her pussy grew wet, wanting that part of him deep inside her.
Royce continued to kiss her as he picked her up off her feet and headed for the stairs. She tried to wrap her legs around his waist when he took the stairs two at a time, but the dress was too tight to allow it.
Inside his bedroom, Royce let Billie slide down the length of his body until she was standing on her feet. She bit back a whimper as he pulled away from her. She soon gasped as Royce lowered his head and dragged his tongue across one of her nipples, wetting the material of her dress. He continued downward until he was kneeling on the floor before her. Taking hold of a foot, he placed it on his hard thigh and gently began to undo the strap around her ankle. As he worked on the tiny buckle, he kissed her knee. Billie quickly placed her hands on his shoulders as her legs started to tremble.
Once he had the first shoe off, he switched to her other foot. When both shoes were removed, Royce stayed on his knees in front of her and ran his hands up along the outside of her legs. At the hem of her dress, he slowly gathered the material in his hands, lifting it until it was bunched at her waist.
With maddening slowness, he hooked two fingers inside the top of her panties and pulled them down her legs until she could step out of them. He tossed them aside before he placed his hands on her inner thighs and spread her legs further apart. The first flick of his tongue across her clit had Billie clutching at Royce's shoulders.
Billie forgot to breathe. Royce wasn't showing her any quarter as he licked and sucked at her clit. Already more than just aroused before he had even touched her, she could feel her climax rushing up to meet her with each swipe of his tongue. With a moan, Billie let her head fall forward. Royce growled deep in his throat. She felt the sound vibrating against her sensitive skin. No longer able to hold still, she arched her hips against his mouth. Spreading her even further, Royce stiffened his tongue as he alternated between jabbing it into her hot core and flicking it against her clit. With her hands fisted in the material of his shirt, Billie moaned as her released washed through her. Unable to remain upright, she sank onto her knees in front of Royce.
She still wanted more. She wanted to have her naked skin pressed against his. As she looked into his glowing eyes, Billie undid the concealed zipper and pulled the dress over her head. Tossing it aside, she reached for the buttons of Royce's dress shirt. In a matter of seconds, she had then all undone. Pushing the two halves of his shirt open, she leaned forward and ran her tongue across his chest. It was thickly padded with muscle. Her fingers trailed down his washboard abs until she reached the top of his pants. Her hand brushed up against the large bulge there as she made short work of pushing open the top button. Once she had the zipper down, she reached inside to wrap her hand around the hard length of Royce's cock. He moaned as she pumped her hand up and down his shaft.
Royce only allowed her to pleasure him in that way for a few moments more before he pulled her hand away. "Enough. I need to be inside you," he said in a gruff voice.
He shrugged out of his shirt and pulled her up against his chest. Billie gasped at the feel of his skin next to hers. Lifting her arms, she threaded her fingers through his hair and kissed him as he picked her up. He crossed over to the bed and gently placed her in the center of it. Without breaking contact with her mouth, Royce quickly shed his pants.
Now as naked as she, he came down on top of her. Billie felt the head of his cock against her slick opening. Arching her hips, she rubbed her pussy against it, wetting it with her juices. When he made no move to enter her, Billie pushed down on him, taking the very tip of his cock inside her body. Fully aroused once more, she sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and bit down.
Biting him seemed to open a flood gate. With a growl, Royce placed both hands on her hips as he rammed into her, sheathing himself to the hilt. Billie whimpered. She gloried in the feel of his thick cock buried deep inside her, filling her to capacity. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she arched her hips against his as she squeezed her inner muscles around his hard shaft. As he started to move inside her, Billie felt a part of her reaching out to Royce. As if her very soul touched his.
Royce kept his hold on her as he slowly pumped his hips between her legs. The long slow strokes were pushing her ever nearer to another climax. She was so close, but Royce continued his maddening pace, keeping her on the very edge of her release.
Swirling his tongue along the shell of her ear, Royce whispered, "I want you to bite me, Billie. I want you to put your mark on me."
At first she was unsure what he wanted her to do. When she hesitated, Royce wrapped a hand around the back of her neck and lifted her until her mouth was pressed to the side of his throat where his neck and shoulder met. His body grew stiff and his hips jerked as she opened her mouth and lightly grazed her teeth along his skin before she gently nipped his neck.
"Harder, Billie. I want to feel your teeth on me."
She felt his cock grow even harder inside her as she increased the pressure against his skin. Realizing what kind of effect her biting him was having on him, Billie bit down even harder. Royce made a sound that was half a moan and half a growl. Pumping his hips faster, he rode up higher on her body so his shaft rubbed against her clit with each stroke in. Billie clutched at his back as he pushed her into an intense orgasm. Her inner walls clamped down around his cock, squeezing him. Royce moved his hands under her bottom and angled her hips so she could take more of him. With a groan, he rammed into her one final time as he too reached his release. Billie felt his cock pulsing deep inside her as he came. She held him tight as he collapsed on top of her.
Once his breathing returned to normal, Royce held himself up on his elbows and looked down at Billie. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen from his kisses. She was his now. He had felt her soul join with his, making her his mate. The wolf had risen up inside him as they had made love, thrown back his head and howled. He was still hard, buried to the hilt inside Billie's body. The mating urge was still riding him. The wolf inside demanded he take her again, but this time as a male werewolf dominating his mate.
Billie's eyes fluttered open when he brushed a kiss across her mouth. "You can't sleep now. I'm far from finished with you." To show her, Royce pulled out of her until only the very tip of his cock remained inside her. He pushed back into her one slow inch at a time. By the time he had fully seated himself once more, Billie was panting with need.
Pulling free of her body, Royce gently pushed Billie onto her stomach. He then urged her up onto her hands and knees. Coming to kneel between her spread legs, Royce ran his hands down the length of her back. Billie arched under his touch. With a low growl, he held her still as he bent down and gently nipped the back of her neck.
A whimper of need escape Billie's lips as she tried to impale herself on his erect cock. Royce growled once again. With one hand on her hip to keep her from moving, he used the other to guide his erection into her slick opening. Billie moaned. In this position he was even deeper than he had been before. He felt the tip of his cock hit her womb as he rammed into her.
Needing to posses her, Royce grabbed her hips with both hands and slammed into her again. His pace increased, no longer able to go slow. The wolf wanted her hard and fast. Billie panted and pushed back against him, meeting him stroke for stroke. Her inner muscles clamped down around his shaft. He knew she was close to coming. Wanting to push her over the edge, he reached around her body until he found her clit. Still pumping his hips, he rubbed the nubbin of flesh. Billie whimpered as her climax tore through her. As her body squeezed his cock, he threw back his head and howled, filling her with his cum.
When the last wave of his orgasm fell away, Royce shifted so they lay on their sides. Still fully erect, he kept their bodies joined. He pulled Billie close, holding her with her back against his chest. Pulling the covers over them, he kissed the back of her neck. In a matter of moments he felt Billie relax as sleep claimed her.
Coming awake by slow degrees, Billie reached out to the spot next to her in the bed. It was empty. The sheets still held the warmth from Royce's body, so she knew he hadn't gotten out of bed that long ago. Now fully awake, she stretched her arms over her head. Her body ached in all the right places. Royce was an inventive lover she had to give him that. He had taken her in more ways than she had thought possible. The man did not quit. She had never before slept with a man who could keep an erection for hours even after coming several times. She could more than easily get used to that.
Easing up on her elbows, Billie looked around Royce's bedroom. The night before she had been too distracted to see what it really looked like. All she had been interested in was seeing where the bed was. Now that lust wasn't clouding her brain, she took the time to look around her.
The room had been decorated to a man's taste. The colors were dark and rich. No pastels to be found in this room. The walls had been painted a deep tan to match the thick wall to wall carpeting on the floor. The furniture was solid looking and the color of dark oak.
When her gaze rested on the night stand beside the bed, Billie found a framed photograph sitting on it. Sliding across the bed, she picked it up to take a closer look. It was a picture of Royce standing with two women. The younger of the two Billie recognized. It was Roxie. The older lady, who Roxie greatly resembled, Billie assumed must be her mother. The way the three of them were standing together in the photograph, she didn't think it would be too much of an assumption to say they were related in some way. It also explained Royce's interest in Roxie. Billie had heard his loud shout of exclamation at the club the night before. That could also explain his quietness after he had spoken with Roxie. Obviously he had been worried about something Roxie had told him.
At that moment Royce returned to the bedroom. His wet hair was slicked back and he only wore a towel around his waist. Evidently he had been in the shower. Billie swallowed. The man's body was perfection. There wasn't an inch of fat on him anywhere, and she should know considering she had explored every part of him during the night. She let her gaze run down his sculpted chest to his washboard stomach. Coming level with the towel, Billie felt her mouth suddenly go dry. The towel was tented in an interesting place that drew and held her gaze.
"I see you are finally awake." Royce moved closer to the bed.
Billie reluctantly dragged her gaze up to his face and sat up with the sheet held to her chest. "I see you already had a shower. Why didn't you wake me up? I would have enjoyed washing your back, among other things." She let her gaze flick down to his crotch then back up again.
Royce chuckled. "I'm sure you would have, but I thought it best to let you sleep."
"Well, you didn't have to get out of bed before I did. You could have slept in with me."
"I would have except your cell phone has been ringing every fifteen minutes for the last hour."
"It has?"
"Yes. It woke me up. I didn't realize it was your cell phone until I followed the sound downstairs and heard the noise coming from your purse." Royce stopped talking and cocked his head. "It's ringing again. I'll go bring your purse up for you."
Billie shook her head. Royce had to have the most acute hearing of anyone she knew. She couldn't hear a thing. It wasn't until he stepped back into the bedroom with her purse did she hear that indeed it was her cell phone ringing.
Putting the picture down on the bed next to her, Billie quickly took her purse from Royce and fished out her cell phone. "Hello?" She wasn't surprised to hear Hayes' voice coming from the other end.
"Finally. I've been trying to get a hold of you all morning."
Billie looked at Royce and rolled her eyes. "Hayes, you'd better be calling me to tell me Janice has gone into labor, because that is about the only thing that would justify you calling me so early in the morning."
"It's ten o'clock, Billie. I'd hardly say that it's too early to be calling someone, especially when it's my sister."
"It seems early to me, okay? I just got up."
"What do you mean you just got up, and where were you sleeping? I called your place first and I kept getting your answering machine."
"Do the words 'it's none of your business' mean anything at all to you, Hayes?"
"You're our baby sister, Billie. You know we'll never stop looking out for you."
"Oh, lucky me," Billie replied sarcastically. "You can tell Dad I'll be at the gym later. You can also tell the rest of the boys that you talked to me and I'm alive and well. One more thing, if you don't stop calling me, Hayes, I may have to do some head hunting. And I don't mean the head found on top of your shoulders."
With a snap, Billie closed her cell phone ending the call. She looked up to find Royce watching her with a bemused expression on his face. "Sorry about that. You don't have to worry. He won't be calling me again."
"You do have a way with words. I have to give you that. Just remind me never to get you angry at me."
Billie felt her face flush. "Sorry. I sometimes forget myself. I'm not exactly very ladylike. I grew up with a house full of men with no woman around to teach me the softer things of life."
"Stop apologizing." Royce sat down on the edge of the bed facing Billie. "What about your mother?"
"I never knew her. She left my father shortly after I was born."
"That must have been hard on you growing up, having a bunch of males watching over you."
Billie shook her head and chuckled. "Not really. I learned early on that if I wanted my freedom I'd have to learn how best to handle my brothers. Believe me, they tried their hardest to make me do what they thought was best for me, but I never let them win. They still do try, much to their detriment."
Royce gently stroked her cheek. "Well, I for one wouldn't change a thing about you. You're perfect just the way you are. Where I come from a strong woman who can look after herself is thought of highly."
Even though they had made love for most of the night, Billie ached to have Royce inside her just from having him sitting near her. She had a feeling she would never get enough of him. She felt a closeness to him that hadn't been there before they had made love. It was almost as if she were now connected to him in some way. She really didn't know what to make of it. It was still too early to be thinking of a happily ever after with Royce. Considering her track record with men, the chances weren't that good.
She soon lost her train of thought when Royce leaned in and placed his mouth on hers. He nipped at her lips before he pushed his tongue inside her mouth. She could taste the mint toothpaste he had used to brush his teeth. Letting go of the sheet that she still held to her chest, Billie wrapped her arms around Royce's neck and inched in closer until her nipples brushed up against his wide chest. The sound of her cell phone ringing made her pull away from him.
With one hand still threaded through the hair at the nape of Royce's neck, Billie picked her cell phone up off the bed. She scowled when she saw who was calling her now. "Damn. Are they going take turns calling until they drive me crazy? Now it's Keegan phoning me. If I don't answer this he'll keep calling until I do."
Royce kissed the tip of her nose. "Then you'd better answer it."
Billie flipped open her cell phone and barked, "Keegan, I told Hayes to leave me alone. I'm fine. I'll be coming to the gym shortly, but if you guys keep calling me you are only going to make it so I'm really late. I'm hanging up now." The sound of Keegan's raised voice could be heard before she snapped the phone closed once more.
She put the phone down on the bed and put her forehead against Royce's. "I think you'd better take me home so I can get to the gym. If I don't, I can promise you the twins will be calling next. Eli and Finn wouldn't want to be left out on the fun. And if I were to turn off my phone, knowing them, they'd probably come searching for me. It wouldn't surprise me if they already knew where you live. I wouldn't have put it past them to have had one of them following us last night."
"I think you're right. I'd better take you home soon. Do you want some breakfast before we leave?"
"No, it's okay. I'm not a breakfast person anyway."
"All right. You can use the bathroom. While you do that I'll get dressed and then I'll take you home."
Giving Royce's half naked body one last look, Billie sighed with regret as she slipped out of the bed. She felt Royce's eyes on her as she moved about the room collecting up her scattered clothing. Before heading for the bathroom, she turned her head to look over her shoulder at him. He was looking at her with his eyes doing that glowing thing again. After seeing his eyes glowing every time they had made love during the night, Billie strangely didn't find it so weird anymore. Same with the animalistic growls he made. If anything, they turned her on. Sighing once more, she turned back around and headed for the bathroom.
After Royce dropped her off at her apartment, Billie took only enough time to take a shower and change her clothes before she headed out to the gym. As she drove through the late morning traffic, she found herself already starting to miss Royce, and she couldn't help but feel that it made her pretty pathetic. It hadn't even been an hour since she'd last seen him.
Finally arriving at the gym, Billie headed for the entrance. She took a deep breath before she went inside. She knew what she would find. No sooner had she let the door go so it could swing closed behind her, she found herself surrounded by all four of her brothers.
"Well, would you look at that? I have my very own welcoming committee waiting for me. Now don't I feel special?"
This time it wasn't Keegan or Hayes who confronted her, it was the twins. "We saw you last night at Wulf's Den, Billie," Finn said while Eli nodded his head in agreement.
"What? Are you guys following me now?"
"No. We just happened to be there. Eli and I have been there a couple times already. We've decided Wulf's Den is going to be our regular place to go out at night. The girls are definitely hot." Finn stopped speaking when Eli loudly cleared his throat to let him know he was getting off topic.
"I see. So you just happened to show up at Wulf's Den the same time Royce and I were there because you have now decided the women are better looking there than any place else. If that is the case, then how come I didn't see the both of you?"
Eli snorted. "As if you would have noticed us even if we were standing right in front of you. The way you and Royce were looking at each other when you left the club, it was easy to see what you two were leaving to do."
"And you and Finn were only at Wulf's Den to find some women to discuss politics with," Billie snapped back. "Look, I have stuff to do before I can leave for the day, and I would very much like to get at it. And before you bring up the topic of my dress, yes, I wore the one in the picture Janice sent to you all. End of story."
"Leave your sister alone, boys."
Peering around her brothers, Billie saw her father standing behind them. After the boys moved off, she went over to him. "Thanks, Dad, for getting them to back off. I'm really not in the mood for their protectiveness today."
Billie had no idea what was wrong with her. She was feeling antsy and out of sorts with herself. The more she thought about Royce, the worse it became. She was turning into one of those girls who obsessed over their boyfriends, and she didn't like it one bit.
"I could tell." Her father looked at her for a few seconds before he continued. "This Royce must be something special. In the past you never let your brothers get to you quite so much."
"I guess you could say that he is." Billie sighed. "I hope it's that way. I really don't know."
Her father nodded. "I'll try and put a rein on your brothers then. Just promise me you won't fall too hard, or too fast for Royce until you know for sure he's the one. I know from personal experience that it doesn't always work out, no matter how hard you try to keep it going."
"I promise."
Billie knew he was referring to her mother. She had been the love of her father's life and he had not been able to forget her, or get over her leaving him. That was the main reason why Tom York had never remarried, let alone dated another woman. Going up on tiptoe, Billie kissed her father's cheek before she left him standing in the gym's lobby.
She was losing it. That had to be the only logical explanation for what she was going through. It was only a little past noon, almost two hours since she had watched Royce drive away from her apartment, and the need to be with him made her feel as if she wanted to climb the walls in desperation.
The later it got, the more uncomfortable Billie became. She barely managed to stay civil to the gym members she had training sessions with that day. Having sensed her mood from her earlier outburst when she had first arrived, her brothers had wisely kept their distance.
Though she was torturing herself by using her ability to locate people, it didn't stop her from checking every few minutes to see where Royce was, which didn't help matters either. If anything, it increased the need by small increments each time she did it. She just couldn't seem to stop herself.
Another hellish hour went by. After ending her last training session of the day, Billie once again looked to see if Royce was still where he had been the last time she had checked. Her eyes snapped open and she gasped as a wave of need slammed into her. Royce was no longer at his house. He was sitting in his parked car in the visitor's parking at her apartment. The knowledge that Royce was waiting for her to return to her apartment was more than Billie could take. She had to go to him.
In a matter of minutes, Billie had retrieved her purse and was rushing toward the gym exit. In her haste she just about knocked Janice over who had just arrived and was standing in the lobby.
She put out a steadying hand as she quickly apologized to Janice. "Sorry. I didn't see you there. Hayes is still on the gym floor." Billie then stepped around her sister-in-law.
"What's the hurry? I didn't come to see Hayes. I came to see you. I've been dying to hear how your date went with Royce. I figured it went well since you weren't at your place when Hayes started calling you practically at the crack of dawn."
Billie didn't stop her forward movement. She turned so she could walk backwards as she spoke to Janice in return. "I have to go see Royce. Yes, it went really well. And Royce says he has to call and thank you for picking out that dress for me to wear. Sorry, but I really have to go. I'll phone you later."
"I told you Royce would love you in it," Janice shouted at Billie as she slipped out the gym's front doors.
She arrived at her apartment in record time. After she parked her car, she headed for the visitor's parking. Billie was practically running by the time she spotted Royce's black BMW. Just before she reached it, Royce stepped out of the car. He turned in her direction and swept her up in his arms. Not caring that everyone in her apartment building could see what they were doing, Billie grabbed a fistful of Royce's hair and pulled his mouth down to hers. At the first touch of his lips, she felt some of the anxiety she had been feeling slip away. It was quickly replaced by a raging need like none she had ever felt before.
It took a surprising amount of self-control on Billie's part not to suggest they get into the backseat of Royce's car and make love like a pair of horny teenagers. Instead, she pulled her mouth away and looked up at him. The desire coursing through her body still had her in its grip. "I need you inside me, Royce. I haven't been able to think of anything else but you since you left. There has to be something wrong with me. This can't be normal."
Royce seemed as affected as she. His chest quickly rose and fell with each breath he took. "It's normal." He took her hand and started heading for the front entrance to her apartment building. "I suggest we get inside before I do something that could very well get us arrested. I need to be inside you as much as you need me to be there. It has been a very long time since I last went through this. I'd forgotten how bad it could be in the beginning."
Billie quickly used her key to unlock the secured door. They hurried over to the elevator. Royce pushed the up button. "I'm not sure what you mean about forgetting how hard this could be. If you mean this desperate feeling I have that if I don't make love to you soon I'm going to go crazy, it is far from normal for me. I'm not the type of woman who becomes so obsessed with the man she is with that he takes over her life."
The elevator doors slid open before them. Once inside, Billie quickly pushed the button for her floor and the one to close the elevator doors. She wasn't in the mood to have anyone else joining them. Keeping her hands fisted at her sides, she watched the numbers light up at each floor that went by until the elevator stopped at her floor.
At her apartment door, Royce yanked her back into his arms. She felt the hard length of his cock nestled against her stomach. Billie sucked in a breath as the ache between her legs intensified and her body grew wet. He ground his hips into her, leaving no doubt that he was as turned on as she was. "I won't take over your life, Billie. I'm now just a part of you, as you are a part of me. Forever."
Before she could ask what he meant by forever, Royce took her mouth in a kiss that made her legs go weak. Blindly, she fumbled with her keys until she got the right one into the lock. When the apartment door swung open, Royce walked her backwards inside and slammed the door shut behind them. Now that they were away from prying eyes, Billie let go of the tight rein she held over herself.
With her hands on Royce's chest, she pushed him back against the closed door. She had waited too long to let him take control. It was her turn to do all the things to him that she had been picturing in her head while they had been apart. Skimming her hands down his sides, Billie took hold of the bottom of his t-shirt and pushed it up to his chest. Royce continued to kiss her as if he wanted to devour her. His tongue plunged into her mouth, thoroughly tasting her. Billie moaned. It wasn't enough. She wanted more.
Breaking contact, she pulled his shirt over his head and let it drop to the floor. She took a step closer as she dragged her lips down the side of his throat. She swirled her tongue across the small mark she had left there the night before. Royce groaned and bucked his hips against her when she lightly nipped him there.
Billie licked a path across his collarbone and down to his chest. Before moving lower, she circled her tongue around each of his male flat nipples. Going down on her knees before him, she made short work of opening his jeans. She watched Royce's face as she slowly inched his jeans down past his hips. His eyes glowed mutedly as he looked down at her with stark desire.
Focusing her attention onto what she desired the most, Billie took Royce's cock firmly in her hand. She pumped it up and down his shaft until a small bead of moisture appeared at the very tip. Gently, she used a finger to rub it into his skin. With the same finger she stroked it down the length of his cock before wrapping her fingers around him at the base of his shaft. Royce growled deep in his chest as she bent and swirled her tongue around the head of his cock.
Lifting her eyes up to his face once again, Billie parted her lips and took as much of him as she could manage into her mouth. Royce gasped with pleasure as she greedily started to suck. She felt him grow harder. Unable to keep her gaze on him, she let her eyes drift shut so she could completely focus on what she was doing to him. With each moan she wrung out of him, she felt her inner walls clench. Wetness dripped between her legs. She was more than ready to have him deep inside her.
Royce gently pulled her away. Helping her up onto her feet, he yanked her yoga pants down until she could kick them off. Her panties quickly followed. Billie removed her shirt and sports bra, leaving her to stand naked before him. Royce let his gaze roam up and down her body as he shed his jeans. Billie found her eyes drawn to his cock, which was thick and hard.
Sinking down to her knees onto the carpeted floor, Billie crocked a finger at Royce to join her. He didn't hesitate. On his knees in front of her, he bent his head and sucked one of her nipples deep inside his mouth. Billie moaned. With each pull of his mouth, she could feel it deep inside her core. No longer able to wait to have him, Billie pushed at Royce's shoulders until he sat on the floor. He leaned back on his hands, supporting his weight.
Billie moved to straddle his hips. Placing her hands on top his shoulders, she slid her wet pussy along his cock, coating him with her juices. With her bottom lip between her teeth, she arched her hips and impaled herself on his hard shaft to the hilt.
Slowly, Billie rocked against Royce. She squeezed her inner walls around his shaft as she rode him. She felt the first tremors of her orgasm begin to build in intensity. Leaning forward so the tips of her breasts brushed against Royce's chest, Billie dragged her teeth across his skin where his neck and shoulder met. She felt Royce stiffen beneath her. As her climax rose up to meet her, she bit down hard on Royce's neck, which sent him into an instant orgasm.
Spent, Billie collapsed onto his chest. Royce wrapped his arms around her. His cock was still hard, keeping their bodies joined. Once she was able to catch her breath, Billie kissed his chin before she sat up straighter. "I can feel you're ready to have another go at it." She gave his cock a squeeze. "You are going to spoil me with that keeping hard trick of yours. How will my future boyfriends ever be able to compete with that?"
With a growl, Royce threaded his fingers through her hair and brought her face closer to his. "There will be no others, Billie. You are mine, and I don't easily give up something that is mine."
The way he looked at her so intently, Billie couldn't hold back the shiver of longing that shot through her. How she wished she could think as positively as Royce. Out of all the men she had dated, he was the first one she had allowed herself to think maybe, just maybe, he could be the one. "How can you be so sure this will work out? Yes, we're great in bed together, but I haven't exactly had much luck keeping boyfriends around in the past."
Royce brushed a light kiss across her lips. "That's because you were waiting for me to find you."
"Is that so?" Billie's voice came out breathy sounding as she became aroused once more. "I thought it was the other way around. I thought I was the one who found you."
"Either way, you knew the others weren't for you. There's no going back now, Billie." Holding her as if she weighed nothing, Royce stood up. With his cock still buried deep inside her, he walked in the direction of her bedroom.
Royce lay on the bed next to Billie, watching her sleep. They had made love twice more before she had drifted off. He could have gone much longer, given the fact that a male werewolf could keep an erection for hours at a time even after climaxing, but he had thought it best to let her rest. He decided he had made a fine start in proving to his mate that only he could keep her so well satisfied. He definitely wanted her spoiled for other men.
Billie stirred beside him as her stomach growled loudly. Her eyes fluttered open when it did it again. "Hungry?"
She gave him a half smile. "Kind of." Her stomach growled for a third time. "Okay, I'm really hungry. I sort of forgot to eat today. I was a little distracted."
"Well we can't have that. How about we order some food and have it delivered here?"
"Sounds good to me. Do you like Chinese food? There's a great place not too far from here. I order from them all the time."
"Chinese is fine with me."
Royce watched Billie slip out of bed and walk naked out of the room. He could hear her moving around in the living room. When she returned, she held a takeout menu in one of her hands. Just watching her pad across the bedroom in all her naked glory caused blood to rush to his cock. He had forgotten how strong the mating urge would ride him after he claimed his mate. It had felt as if he had been in hell during the hours Billie had gone to work. The wanting, the longing to be with her, had filled his mind until he couldn't think of anything else but Billie. That she had gone through the same thing had shown him that they were truly mated. He had felt her soul reach out to his the first time they had made love. Being she wasn't a werewolf, and didn't know what that had meant, he hadn't known how their separation would affect Billie.
Plunking down on the bed beside him, Billie opened the menu. "All right. What would you like to have?"
"Whatever you want is fine with me."
"And if I were to say octopus and squid were my favorites, would you still be fine with that?"
From Billie's straight face, Royce couldn't be sure if she was joking or not. "You really like those things?"
Billie shook her head and then smacked him over the head with the menu. "No, they aren't my favorite food. I just said that to show you that saying whatever I wanted was fine with you may not necessarily be what you would like. So hurry up and pick something before I get so hungry I have to start eating you."
Royce smiled and flipped back the bed sheet. "Be my guest. As long as you start in the area of my hips, I'm game."
He watched as her eyes were drawn to his manhood. He all too clearly remembered what it had felt like to have her mouth on him, pleasuring him until he had felt as if he were ready to explode. In reaction, his blood began to surge, sending most of it to his groin. Much to his dismay, Billie gave his now fully erect cock one last look of longing before she pulled the sheet back over his hips.
"Food first. At the rate we're going I'll be lucky if I can walk tomorrow." She shoved the menu into his hands. "Now pick something already."
Turning his attention to the menu, Royce quickly picked out a couple items. As he watched Billie phone in their order, he was shocked by how much he had come to love her, and how badly he wanted her to love him. It scared him a little. It left him too exposed, able to be more easily hurt. If anything happened to Billie because he had taken her as his mate, Royce knew he would never be able to forgive himself. He wasn't yet ready to tell her exactly what he was, but he knew he would have to do it soon. The sooner he eased her into werewolf society the better. He had learned with his first mate that keeping Billie on the outskirts could be a fatal mistake. And it was one he didn't want to repeat.
Outside in the parking lot of Billie's apartment, Gren sat in his car and watched as a male mortal walked into the building carrying a large bag of Chinese takeout. From where he sat, Gren easily saw him buzz up to one of the apartments. A few minutes later a woman came to the door, handed the delivery guy money and then took the bag of food. The woman was the one he had seen Royce with earlier.
He had started watching Royce the week before. After months of lying low, not wanting to draw unwanted attention upon himself, he had decided now was the time to act. To show the ones who held the most power that he was still a force to be reckoned with. And Royce was the key.
It had been the spell that he had spent years trying to find that had turned Roxie into a werewolf. She had been the first mortal it had actually worked on. That she had ended up being the werewolf from an ancient prophecy, he felt had had no bearing on its validity. He attributed it to the fact he had used Royce's blood and not his own. Royce was Roxie's grandfather, though many times removed. She was special, and as the sire of her bloodline, Royce's blood could have very well been what the spell had needed to work. To test his theory, he would need more of Royce's blood, which Gren knew the other man wouldn't agree to give him.
So he had decided he would follow the lone wolf and watch for an opportunity to arise where Royce would have no choice but to comply. He had to find Royce's weakness and use it against him. It had never occurred to Gren the very thing he sought would present itself so quickly, or so easily.
Having watched the passionate kiss that Royce and the woman had shared in the parking lot earlier, Gren knew the lone wolf had once again found himself a mate. He knew what had happened to Royce's first mate. Royce had left his mortal mate unprotected, and in his absence, the local villagers had burned her to death for practicing what they thought was witchcraft. Her death had Royce stepping down as leader of his pack and going lone wolf, taking his infant daughter with him into hiding.
Now, once again, Royce had a weakness Gren could exploit. He had seen enough for today. Starting his car, he pulled out of the parking lot. He would return in the morning and see where Royce's mate went during the day.
Billie placed the bag of Chinese food down on the kitchen table. The delicious smells coming out of it made her mouth water and her stomach rumble. She set two places at the table and pulled out the containers of hot food. Impatiently, she started to tap her fingers on the table top. Royce had been in the bathroom when she had come back upstairs with the Chinese. She hoped he wouldn't be much longer, but she knew men could take forever in the bathroom at times. She couldn't understand why people always said women hogged the bathroom more than men. From her experience living with her father and brothers, Billie knew it was the men who liked to take their time.
Figuring she had waited long enough, Billie started filling her plate with food. "If you don't get out here soon the food will be cold," she called out to Royce.
She looked up when he stepped out of the bathroom. He wore only his jeans. His hair was damp in places where he had obviously used water to fix the spots where she had tunneled her fingers through it earlier.
He eyed the mound of food she had put on her plate. "Are you sure you have enough there?" he asked with a hint of laughter in his voice.
Billie looked down at her plate, then back up at Royce. She shrugged her shoulders. "What can I say, I like to eat. I work out enough I can get away with eating whatever I want and as much of it as I want."
"I can attest to that. You are by no means fat, and you aren't one of those stick thin women who starves themselves either. You're solidly built." Royce blinked when a chicken ball smacked him in the middle of the forehead. "What was that for?"
"Solidly built? Just what every woman wants to hear from the man she's sleeping with."
"Well, you are." A second chicken ball sailed across the table. This time it hit him square in the chest and bounced into his lap. Royce picked it up and put it on his plate. "I meant it in a good way, Billie. There's nothing worse than holding a woman in your arms, having to handle her as if she were glass because you're afraid if you hold her too tightly she'll shatter."
"Okay, I can see your reasoning, but can't you think of better way to describe it? Solidly built makes me think of pickup trucks that are used at construction sites. I know I'm not the most feminine woman on the planet, but I'm not that bad."
Royce made a show of studying her before he said anything else. "All right. How about sleek and strong? Like a leopard or some other large cat."
"Or a wolf." Much to Billie's surprise, all the humor left Royce's face and he went very still. "What? A wolf is strong, and it's built for running. I know I envy wolves being able to run wild in the forests. It must be an exhilarating feeling."
"It is exhilarating," Royce said quietly.
He had spoken so softly Billie was sure she had heard him wrong. "What did you say?"
"I said yes, it would be." Royce then seemed to come out of whatever had come over him. He motioned to her plate. "Eat up, or I'm going to think your eyes are bigger than your stomach."
Billie watched as Royce somehow managed to dish up twice the amount of food she had onto his plate. He then proceeded to put a remarkable dent into it in a short amount of time. She shook her head. She had a feeling with Royce around she was going to find it hard to keep food in her apartment. As she picked up her fork and started to eat, Billie couldn't help but wonder why her bringing up the topic of wolves had caused Royce to react the way he had.
Billie caught herself looking at the clock hanging on a wall in the main gym for the hundredth time in the last half hour. It wasn't nearly as bad as it had been the day before. This time she got smart and didn't use her ability to see where Royce was every few minutes. But it still was annoying that she should feel so attached to him that being away from him for a few hours would do this to her.
Royce was going to be meeting her at the gym when her shift was over. He had at first insisted he would drop her off and then pick her up, but Billie had quickly vetoed that. Even though she was going over to Royce's place right after work, she didn't want to put him in the position of having to drive her back to her apartment in the morning so she could get her car. It just made more sense for her to follow him back to his house.
To help pass the time until Royce was to arrive, Billie was keeping busy by making sure all the free weights were put back in their proper places. She was in the middle of pulling forty-five pound plates off the barbell at one of the flat benches when Finn came up to her.
"Billie, do you think you could take a prospective member on a tour of the gym?"
"Isn't there anyone else who can do it?" Showing people around the gym while trying to sell them a membership wasn't something she enjoyed doing. Given her state of mind at the moment, she didn't know if she could trust herself to stay in the salesperson mindset that she needed to have to convince someone to buy a gym membership.
"Nope, just you. I would do it, but I have a training session to do. The others are busy as well, and Dad is out at some meeting."
She slid the last plate onto the rack of weights and nodded. "Fine. I'll do it."
Finn flashed a smile at her. "Thanks, Billie. I owe you one."
Heading for the front desk, Billie took another quick look at the clock. Royce would be arriving in fifteen minutes. If she was quick enough maybe she could have the tour done, and the paperwork finished if this person decided to join the gym before Royce arrived.
At the front desk Billie could see a man standing by the counter. He was tall, very tall, probably only an inch or two shorter than Royce. He was standing with his back to her, but he turned around when he heard her approaching. She noticed he was extremely good looking, and from the way he smiled at her, well he knew it. The only thing about him that set Billie on edge was his eyes. His light brown eyes had a hint of cruelty to them. The friendliness that he was trying to portray with his smile didn't seem to reach them.
Billie stuck out her hand to him. "Hi, I'm Billie. I understand you're interested in joining the gym?" He took her hand and gave it a quick shake. Before he released it, he rubbed his thumb back and forth across the back of her hand. Billie resisted the urge to wipe her hand on her pants.
"I'm Gren. Yes, I'm very interested, especially now that I've met you."
Plastering on what she hoped was a believable smile, Billie motioned for Gren to follow her. "Well then, let's get started on the tour. Once you've seen the gym, we then can talk prices."
"By all means. Lead on. So far I definitely like what I'm seeing."
Billie ground her teeth together as she led Gren onto the gym floor. His innuendo wasn't lost on her. Ignoring his last comment, she took a deep calming breath then started her sales pitch. As she took him around, she could feel Gren's eyes watching her every move. Completely out of character for her, she felt a chill of uneasiness run down her spine. There was just something about him that had Billie wanting to get as far away from him as possible. Hoping to get this over with quickly, she picked up the pace.
Royce pulled opened the door and stepped into the gym's lobby. He was about to tell the girl behind the front desk that he was here to see Billie when he detected the scent of another werewolf inside the building. And it was one that he easily recognized. Curling his lip back in a snarl, he followed the scent trail as he battled to keep the wolf inside him at bay. That Billie's scent was mixed in with the other had the wolf rising up, wanting to battle the other who was with his mate.
Not caring that he probably looked pretty threatening to the people he passed, Royce followed the fresh scent to the bottom of the stairs that led to the floor above. He took them two at a time. At the top, he headed for the one door that stood open. He could hear Billie's voice coming from inside the room. The sound of the male voice that answered her had him growling through his clenched teeth.
He stepped inside the room and barely managed to hold back from going wolf when he saw Gren standing next to Billie. Instead, he growled a warning at the other werewolf. "Get the hell away from her."
Gren ignored his warning. "Ah, the lone wolf has arrived. Your mate was just showing me around her family's gym. I'm trying to decide whether or not I want to join."
"I won't tell you again, Gren. Get away from her. Now." Royce pulled his upper lip back in a snarl.
"I mean your mate no harm, at least not yet. You have something I want, something that I used with a certain spell."
"There is no way I'm giving you any of my blood. And who is to say the spell will work on another."
Gren bared his teeth at him. "I'm sure it will work on another. Maybe I'll do you a favor and try it out on your mate here. Wouldn't you like to have her as one of us, able to live for thousands of years? That way you won't have to watch her grow old and die while you remain young looking."
Royce glanced over at Billie. He could tell from the confused look on her face she had no idea what was going on. Quickly, he turned his gaze back on Gren. "Roxie was special. You know that. It's because of that the spell worked."
A look of hatred came over Gren's face at the mention of Roxie's name. "Ah yes, your precious granddaughter. How can I ever forget what she is? The one from the ancient prophecy chosen to rule over all the packs. If it wasn't for me, she'd still be a weak mortal. And what do I get in return? I get abused."
"You would have killed Beowulf. You deserved what you got."
Gren growled low in his throat. "Watch your step, lone wolf. Remember you have a weakness now. If you don't give me what I want, I won't hesitate to use it against you." He turned and looked pointedly at Billie.
Unable to hold back any longer, Royce howled with rage as he launched himself at Gren. With one leap he was on the other werewolf and had pushed him back into one of the mirrored walls. The mirror shattered on impact. Holding Gren pinned to the wall, Royce stuck his face into his. "You ever threaten my mate again, you die. I'll gladly do what Roxie should have done in the first place. Dogs who go bad need to be put down."
Hearing that others had entered the room behind him, Royce growled menacingly, then roughly shoved Gren away from him. He kept his eyes on the other werewolf as Gren made a show of brushing himself off. He gave Royce a look that said they would be meeting again before he stepped around the newcomers and left.
Fighting to keep the wolf inside him leashed, Royce kept his back to the others in the room. This had not been the way he had wanted to tell Billie about his kind. As with Roxie and Beowulf, Gren had done something to bring it all out into the open. Heedless of the pieces of shattered glass that still hung on the wall, Royce swore and rammed his fist into it, wishing it was Gren's head he was hitting instead.
Unsure of what exactly had just happened, Billie turned to face her brothers. It was no surprise they had all come rushing up here to see what was going on. If it wasn't the loud howling and growling that had taken place, she was pretty sure the sound of the mirror shattering had sent them running. Right now all Billie could think about was getting rid of them before Royce did anything else that was too animalistic and couldn't be easily overlooked or ignored.
Keegan gazed at the glass on the floor, then back up at Royce. "Billie, are you all right?"
She nodded. "I'm fine. It's over now. You can all go back to what you were doing."
Not to be put off, her oldest brother shook his head. "We're not going anywhere until you tell us what happened. It sounded as if a bunch of wild animals were attacking each other up here."
Which Billie had to admit was what almost happened. Seeing both men's eyes glowing as they growled at each other made them appear more animal than human. But what had gotten her the most was when Royce had leapt across the room in one jump. One minute he was standing at the open door and the next he was half way across the room, slamming Gren into the wall. It didn't seem humanly possible, which probably was the case.
"It sounded worse than it actually was." Billie took a quick look back at Royce. He was still breathing heavily and appeared to be fighting to bring himself back under control. "The prospective member Finn had me show around the gym, Royce knew him. They're not exactly on friendly terms, to put it mildly."
"So your boyfriend decided to pick a fight with him?" Keegan asked harshly.
"He wasn't the one to pick the fight. It was Gren. He's not the type of person we want at the gym. There is something about him that gives me the creeps. Royce was just warning Gren off when he showed an interest in me. If it wouldn't be too much ask, can you guys make sure he left?"
Billie had known that would be more than enough to get all four of her brothers out of the room in a hurry. She knew if Gren happened to still be in the building he would be lucky if her brothers didn't literally kick his ass out onto the street. She waited until they were alone before she turned around to confront Royce.
"Okay, I got rid of them. What was that all about?"
Royce slowly turned to face her. "I never intended for you to find out this way."
"Find out what? I don't understand, Royce. You're going to have to spell it out for me I'm afraid."
"Not here." Royce ran his fingers through his hair, making sections of it stick up. "Christ, I wasn't ready to tell you about any of this."
Billie crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him. She could see he was uncomfortable with the situation. "Tell me what? Is it about this mate business Gren referred to? That will do for starters, but I have questions of my own. Such as, why he called you a lone wolf. Why he referred to you as Roxie's grandfather. Or better yet, what is with the whole glowing eyes and growling the pair of you had going on?"
She didn't know why, but she couldn't help feeling a little pissed off that Royce had been keeping secrets from her. She knew she was being irrational. It wasn't as if they had been seeing each other for years. She really hardly knew anything about Royce. All she knew was she felt more connected to him than she had ever felt to any of the other men she had gone out with.
Royce closed the distance between them and reached out to hold her by her upper arms. He bent his head down so he could look her in the face. "Look, I know there must be a million questions running around in your head. I just can't answer them here. It's too public. I have a feeling you aren't going to believe what I have to say at first. And if that is the case, I'm going to have to give you the proof you will undoubtedly ask for. I'd rather it was at some other place where if you freak out on me your brothers won't come running to your rescue."
"All right. Then where?"
"I need to go make some phone calls first. I'll call you after that, okay?"
"Fine. I'll be at my apartment once I get this mess cleaned up."
Royce leaned in and kissed Billie's forehead. "I promise I'll explain everything to you. You can tell your father I'll pay for the damages as well. I'll see you in a bit."
Billie watched Royce walk out of the room. She would give him an hour. If she didn't hear from him then, she would go find him. As Hayes knew from first hand experience, there was no hiding from her.
"So what exactly are you going to do about the Gren problem?" Royce asked Roxie.
They were sitting in the living room of her parents' house. Belinda, Roxie's mother, sat with them. He had called Roxie after he had left Billie at the gym and asked her to meet him here.
Roxie shook her head. "I don't really know. If we had some kind of werewolf jail or something, I'd be all for locking Gren up and throwing away the key, but we don't."
Before Royce could say anything more, Belinda spoke up. "Roxie, I know you don't want to be the one to make the hard decisions, but you have to. You rule over the packs. That means you are the one responsible for keeping them in line. Maybe it's time to do something to stop Gren, permanently."
"You aren't suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Roxie asked. "I never knew you were so bloodthirsty, Mom."
Her mother, who was sitting next to her on the couch, patted her hand. "Well I was raised by a werewolf, my dear." Belinda looked over at Royce and smiled before she turned back to her daughter. "Dad may have been a lone wolf, but over the years he made sure he kept tabs on what was happening in werewolf society. When I was growing up I wasn't sheltered from it as you were."
"I'm seeing a whole different side to you." Roxie looked over at Royce. "I guess I have you to thank for raising my mother to be so tough. Way to go, Grandpa."
Royce scowled at Roxie. "I've told you a thousand times not to call me that."
"You are my grandfather, aren't you? And you let my mother call you dad."
"That's different. I raised your mother as my daughter. I'm the only father she's known. You on the other hand only call me that to try and get a rise out of me."
"Whatever." Roxie grew serious. "Leave the Gren problem with me for now. I'll have a talk with Beowulf about it and see what he thinks. All I can say is try to be more careful. Now what was the other thing you wanted to discuss?"
Royce took a deep breath before he answered. "It's actually a favor I want to ask of you and your mother. It has to do with Billie."
"You haven't told her about you being a werewolf, have you?"
"No. I thought maybe you and your mother could help explain it to her. She may accept it more if you both were here when I told her."
"Unbelievable," Roxie said. "First Beowulf, then Wade, and now you. What is with you idiot male werewolves claiming mortal women as mates without letting them know what exactly they are getting themselves into?"
"It just happened. You know how strong the mating urge is, Roxie. I admit, I should have said something to Billie before, but it isn't something you can just lay onto a mortal and expect them to believe. Look what you did to Beowulf when he went wolf on you. You used your magic to keep him in wolf form for twenty-four hours. I don't call that taking it well."
Roxie flicked his comment away with her hand. "I wasn't exactly thinking straight that night. Sorry if seeing you and Gren go at each other at Wulf's Den upset me. Fine, I'll talk to Billie with Mom. When are you going to bring her around?"
"I was thinking today. Say in the next hour or so."
Roxie narrowed her eyes at him. "Why the big rush all of a sudden?" She then swore under her breath. "Billie was there when Gren gave his ultimatum to you. She was a witness to it all. Nice one."
Before Royce could try and stand up for himself, the doorbell rang. Belinda got up to answer it. He heard her greet the person who stood at the door. Much to his shock, it was Billie's voice he heard answering back. He had no idea how she knew where to find him. He hadn't had a chance to call her.
Belinda returned to the room with Billie in tow. Billie nodded her head at Roxie before she moved to stand in front of Royce. "I thought you were going to call me."
"I was going to. I had to discuss something with Roxie and her mother before I did. How did you know where to find me?"
"I have my ways."
"That is what you said when you showed up on my doorstep." Royce had a feeling it couldn't be a coincidence that Billie could seemingly find him so easily. "Seriously, how did you find me?"
Billie rolled her eyes. "Fine. I sort have a little secret as well."
"And that would be?"
"I guess you want me to go first. All right. I have an ability that lets me locate people I've come in contact with, no matter how briefly I've associated with them."
"Really?" Roxie asked with interest in her voice. "You can find anyone you want?"
"Yes. So long as I've seen your face I will be able to find you."
"How does it work? Do you get flashes of images in your head, or do you get complete addresses?"
"I bring the person's face up in my mind then I focus on them. I don't really get an address or images. It's like I just know where to go to find them. It's kind of hard to explain."
Royce chuckled. "Now I understand why your brother Hayes wasn't thrilled to see you that night at Wulf's Den. He hadn't told you where he was going and still you found him."
"I've lost count the number of times I've had to bring his drunken ass home. Without fail, when Hayes gets into a fight with his wife, he goes somewhere to get sloshed. Then Janice calls me to find him and bring him home. He hasn't been able to get away from me yet, though he does try. You wouldn't believe some of the places he has gone to hoping I wouldn't be able to find him." Billie shuddered dramatically. "At least the others don't make me go hunt them down."
"The others?" Roxie asked.
"My brothers. I have three older brothers besides Hayes."
Roxie gave a low whistle. "Four older brothers? Dating must have been fun for you when you were growing up."
"It was rough at times. Add my father into the mix and sometimes I was lucky to date at all."
"I can sympathize with you, dear," Belinda said. "I grew up with a father who took great relish in scaring off almost every boy I brought home."
"Hey, I wasn't that bad," Royce said with a laugh.
It wasn't until he felt Billie's eyes boring into him did he realize what he had said. Turning his gaze onto her, he could see her looking at Belinda and then back at him. It wasn't hard to see that she was trying to figure out how he could be Belinda's father when he looked much younger than she did. Clearing his throat, Royce motioned for Billie to come sit down beside him on the loveseat.
After she was seated next to him, Royce took a deep breath before he began. "I guess this is where I say it's my turn now. I can see from the look on your face you're finding it hard to believe I'm Belinda's father."
Billie snorted. "You think? There is no way you can be her father. You look to be the same age as Roxie."
"Looks can be deceiving, Billie. In actual fact, I'm Belinda's grandfather, not her father. I only raised her as my daughter when her parents died."
"Okay, you're losing me here."
"I don't know of any other way to explain this without just coming out with it. So here it goes. Billie, I'm a werewolf."
Billie started to laugh. "You're kidding, right? There are no such things as werewolves."
Royce had known she wouldn't believe him, but it still didn't make it any easier for him. "No, I'm not kidding, and werewolves are indeed real."
"No, they aren't." Billie must have realized he was serious because she stopped laughing. "Royce, you can cut the crap. I'm not that naïve to believe that werewolves exist. Next you'll be telling me the bogeyman is real too."
Belinda broke into their conversation. "If I may make a small suggestion, Dad, I think maybe you should show Billie or you're not going to get anywhere."
Royce nodded his head. Belinda was right. He could sit here and argue with Billie until he was blue in the face and she still wouldn't believe him.
Moving off the loveseat, Royce stood so he could look down at Billie. He kept eye contact with her as he drew on the magic inside him and willed the change upon himself. Billie's eyes grew round as his eyes began to glow and his body began to shimmer, blurring as it took on his wolf form. Once the change was complete, Royce shoved his muzzle under her limp hand. Billie then fell back onto the loveseat in a dead faint.
Billie could hear someone calling her name as if they were a great distance away. Pushing through the darkness that surrounded her, she blinked open her eyes. Royce, Roxie and Roxie's mother were all hanging over her.
"What happened?" She tried to sit up, but Royce wouldn't let her.
"Give yourself a minute, Billie. You may still feel a bit woozy."
It then all came rushing back to her. Royce had actually changed into a wolf before her very eyes. One minute he was a man, and the next he was a wolf with fur the exact same color as his hair. She then groaned with disgust when she remembered how her world had suddenly gone black when he had pushed his muzzle into her hand.
"Tell me I didn't faint."
Royce chuckled. "You were out like a light."
"I've never fainted before in my entire life. I can't be one of those women who faint."
"Why not? Is it too much of a woman thing for you?"
"No. It's just something those wimpy women do, and I'm no wimp."
Royce chuckled again. "No one would call you a wimp, Billie. I've seen you put all four of your brothers in their place. You're definitely not a wimp."
This time when she tried to sit up, Royce helped her. He sat down next to her and took her hand in his. "Do you believe me now, Billie, that I'm a werewolf?"
How couldn't she believe it? The proof had been enough to make her faint, much to her disgust. "I'd be fooling myself if I didn't. Change again. I promise this time I won't faint."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure or I wouldn't have asked you to do it. I didn't get to see much of you in your wolf form."
Not bothering to get off the loveseat this time, Royce shifted into wolf form. Billie was surprised by how quickly, and seemingly painless, the change took place. Looking into the large wolf's eyes, she knew it was Royce looking back at her. As a man he was exceedingly handsome, but as a wolf, Billie could only think of one word to describe Royce---beautiful.
He edged closer as she reached out and placed her hand on the top of his head. His golden brown fur was soft to the touch. She let her hand drift down to his back where she dug her fingers into his thick fur. Royce leaned closer and licked her cheek. Billie gave him a hard stare.
"You can lick my face as long as you don't go around licking your privates while you're a wolf. That's just disgusting."
Royce snorted and shook his large head. Roxie who was standing nearby began to laugh, reminding Billie that she and her mother were still in the room. Billie turned to Roxie.
"Okay, Roxie, it's your turn. Gren said you were a werewolf as well. I want to see you as a wolf."
Roxie smiled. "With pleasure. And don't worry, I don't lick myself either. But I do have one nifty trick that Royce can't do."
Billie watched Roxie shift into her wolf form. She was slightly smaller than Royce, and her fur was just a touch lighter than his. Billie felt all the air leave her lungs in a whoosh as Roxie shifted again. Instead of shifting back into her human form, Roxie shifted into a form that only could be described as half human and half wolf. Roxie was much taller, even taller than Royce. Her body was covered in the same golden brown fur that she had as a wolf. Billie also noticed she had a wolf's tail.
"Damn, Roxie. You could kick some serious butt in that form. You're huge."
"Been there, done that," Roxie said in a voice that was gruffer than her normal voice.
"Nice, you can talk as well. I'm jealous. I'd love to be able to change like that, even if it was only into a wolf. My brothers would freak."
Something unreadable flickered in Roxie's eyes just before she shifted back into human form. Out of the corner of her eye, Billie saw Royce had changed back as well and was shaking his head at Roxie.
Roxie ignored Royce. "Would you really like to be like Royce and me, Billie?"
"Don't even suggest it, Roxie," Royce said in a hard voice. "We don't know for sure it will work on Billie."
"You're talking about the spell Gren wants Royce's blood for, aren't you?" Billie asked Roxie. When Royce turned to look at her, she said, "Don't look at me like that. I do have more than half a brain, and I was in the same room as the two of you. I can assure you I have perfect hearing."
Roxie bit back a smile. "I can see you're not going to have any problems handling Royce, Billie. And yes, I mean that spell. Gren used it to change me into a werewolf. Little did he know his doing so also fulfilled an ancient prophecy."
"Royce told Gren that was the only reason why the spell worked on you when it had failed with the others Gren tried it on."
"Well, that isn't exactly true. As far as Gren knows, I'm the only one the spell has changed into a werewolf. He doesn't know I used it on Taryn."
"You used it to change Taryn into a werewolf?" Billie asked with wonder.
"Yes. And contrary to what Gren thinks, Royce's blood isn't the key to making the spell work either. It's my blood."
"So you can make anyone into a werewolf then?"
"That is something we don't know for sure," Royce answered. "Taryn was born half werewolf. Her father is a werewolf and her mother was a mortal. She already had werewolf genes, just as Roxie had them through me."
"I also thought at first the spell only worked on me because Gren used your blood, the sire of my bloodline, with the spell," Roxie added. "I was proven wrong when we first attempted the spell on Taryn using her father's blood. It was my blood that changed her."
"But who is to say it only worked because you both possess werewolf genes to start with? I'm pretty sure Billie won't be having any relatives who happen to be werewolves popping out of the woodwork anytime soon as Taryn did."
"That could be true, but what if it had no bearing on the spell's validity? You claimed Billie as your mate, wouldn't you rather take the chance and have the spell work than not and watch her grow old and die as you live on for a great many more years?" At Royce's groan, Roxie cringed. "Sorry. I forgot Billie doesn't yet know about the whole mate thing."
Billie didn't know what to feel. Listening to Royce and Roxie talk was bringing home to her that there was a lot more going on than the fact that they were werewolves. She wasn't particularly thrilled to hear Roxie say Royce had claimed her as his mate. It sounded too cavemanish for her liking.
Before Royce and Roxie could continue to argue whether or not the spell would work, Billie broke into the conversation. "Let's drop the spell business for a minute. Explain how Royce claimed me as his mate. As far as I knew we haven't reached that permanent commitment stage yet."
Roxie gestured for Royce to take over. He turned sideways on the loveseat so he could look at Billie. "When a male werewolf meets a female who is his mate, her scent sets off his mating urge. That alone tells him she is the one for him. It's not something he can ignore. It will ride him hard until he claims her."
"And how exactly does he do that?"
"By making love to her."
"Let me get this straight. So when you made love to me for the first time you knew you would be claiming me as your mate?"
Royce nodded. "Correct. That's when our souls joined together. That is also why you started to feel uncomfortable being separated from me for long periods of time. Just as I do when I'm not around you."
Billie grew quiet as she mulled that bit of information over in her mind. "Okay, now I know I'm not going crazy. For a while there I thought I lost it when I started to miss you and it really hadn't been that long since I had last seen you."
"It will get easier to handle with time."
"Next question. How can you be both Roxie and her mother's grandfather? You don't look that old."
Royce sighed. "Werewolves don't age the same as mortals. Our kind can live up to three thousand years old."
"Three thousand years old," Billie repeated softly. "How old are you, Royce?"
At first Billie didn't think he was going to answer her when he didn't say anything right away. "I'm a little over fifteen hundred years old."
Billie took a few deep breaths as the room started to spin. I'm not going to faint again, I'm not going to faint again. She repeated that inside her head like a mantra until the room righted itself once more. She had no idea why now of all times she was turning into such a ninny. She was tough, and prided herself on it. Stuff like this shouldn't be sending her into an old fashioned case of the vapors. She was made of sterner stuff than that.
"All right. All I can say to that is, holy shit, you're too old for me."
"That is what I said to Beowulf when he told me exactly how old he was," Roxie said with a laugh. "Beowulf is close in age to Royce."
Billie shook her head. "Unbelievable." She looked down at her hands, which were clasped tightly together in her lap. "So I'm mated to a fifteen hundred year old werewolf. I'm only twenty-five, but you'll still outlive me by at least another thousand years. Unless I agree to let Roxie try the spell on me." She looked back up at Royce.
Royce reached out to take one of her hands in his. When she didn't unclasp her hands, he pulled away. "Even if you do let Roxie try the spell, Billie, there is still no guarantee it will work. Your being a mortal doesn't change how I feel about you. My first mate was a mortal as well."
Billie felt an emotion that could only be described as jealousy wash over her at hearing Royce say he already had a mate in his life before her. It was an emotion she didn't normally feel. Of course Royce had to have had another woman who meant something to him, one he had to have had a child with. You couldn't have grandchildren without having a child first. Obviously this other woman was no longer in his life. At least Billie hoped she wasn't. "What happened to your first mate?"
A look of pain flashed across Royce's face. "Alicia was different. She could do things no one else in her village could do. She had magic of her own. Because of that, the rest of the villagers shunned her, forcing her to live on her own outside of the village. A village boy watched me go wolf one day outside her hut. When the villagers heard his story, they rose up against Alicia. They accused her of witchcraft, dragged her out of her hut and then burned her. Alicia was able to save our daughter by hiding her inside the hut when she heard the villagers approaching. I later found Nina. I was too late to save her mother, but I was able to save her. I stepped down as pack leader and left to raise my daughter where she would be safe. And I've watched over all her decedents since then."
Billie kicked herself for being jealous of a woman who had died hundreds of years before she had even been born. That Royce had loved Alicia was apparent. The look of pain that had quickly passed over his face said it all. It also made Billie wonder if she had a chance of filling the empty place in Royce's heart that had been created when Alicia had died. She couldn't help feeling she wouldn't be able to. Now that she knew the story about Royce's first mate, Billie understood why he had resisted her in the beginning. He didn't want another mate to take Alicia's place. Only with the mating urge riding him, and unable to resist it, had he claimed her as his own.
Suddenly feeling the need that to get away, to try and sort this all out without Royce sitting next to her, Billie stood up. "I have to go. I need to think this through before we go any further. It's an awful lot to just dump in my lap."
Royce stood up beside her with a look of concern on his face. "Are you going to be all right?"
She nodded. "I think so. I just can't be here right now, with you."
Not wanting to give Royce a chance to try and change her mind about leaving, Billie turned around and quickly walked out of the house.
She drove around the city for what felt like hours. Whenever she got the urge to turn back around and go to Royce, Billie ruthlessly pushed it away. In the end, she found herself at a city park that was a couple of blocks away from Royce's house. She sat in her car and watched a Little League baseball game that was taking place at the baseball diamond.
Billie knew it was only a matter of time before she sought Royce out. As he had said, they were connected now. She knew there was no going back even if she wanted to. Strangely enough, she was finding herself more accepting of the whole mate business, which was better than she had expected. She had never been in love before. At one time, she had thought it was something she would never find, much less wanted. Too many years of having to watch her father be alone, all because he couldn't stop loving the woman who had walked out on him, had been enough to make her leery of the whole thing. But now that she had time to think, to accept what was between her and Royce, Billie knew she had finally found it. The big question was whether Royce could ever love her in return. Even though he had claimed her as his mate, Billie didn't think being in love had much to do with it. Being mated sounded as if it was more a physical need rather than an emotional one.
Then there was the spell that could change her into a werewolf, if she were willing to try it. It was not something she could easily reject out of hand. If there was even the slightest chance it would work, and if Royce could come to love her, it wouldn't be fair to the both of them if she chose to stay a mortal. She really didn't relish the idea of growing old and feeble while Royce stayed forever young. He may say that it would make no difference to him, but it would for her. It also was something she knew she wasn't ready yet to try. She had her father and her brothers to think about as well. They were all so close that Billie knew she couldn't keep something like her being turned into a werewolf from them. The whole not aging thing would be kind of hard for them not to notice.
With a groan, Billie laid her head back onto the headrest of the car's seat. Her thoughts were still swirling around inside her head, but at least she now had put some order to them. And out of them all, one thing never changed---she still wanted Royce. His telling her what he truly was hadn't changed that fact.
Sitting up straight, Billie started her car. It only took her a minute to reach Royce's house. She pulled into his driveway and parked her car. Before she reached the front door, Royce opened it and stood waiting for her in the doorway. The way he was holding himself so stiffly with no emotion on his face, Billie knew he was holding himself back, waiting to see what her reaction would be.
With her face as free of emotion as his, Billie came to stand in front of him. She lifted her head until she could look Royce in the face. "I'm done thinking. I don't care that you're a werewolf. I still want you."
Royce growled with pure need as he swept her up into his arms and took her lips in a searing kiss. He carried her inside the house and slammed the door closed behind them. Moving faster than any mortal man ever could, Royce had them upstairs and in his bedroom in a matter of seconds. He didn't stop kissing her until he had her on his bed with him stretched out on top of her.
He lifted his head and looked down at her. "Are you sure you're okay with this, Billie? I did try to save you from this, but in the end I couldn't resist you."
Billie swallowed the lump that suddenly formed in her throat. She had known Royce hadn't wanted a mate, but it still hurt to actually hear him say it. "Yes. I've come to accept the fact that you never wanted this in the first place. It didn't help that I forced myself on you. But what is done is done."
Royce scowled down at her. "Is that what you think? That I didn't want you?" At Billie's nod, he touched his forehead to hers and shook his head. "You've got it wrong, Billie. When I saw you that first night at Wulf's Den and I got a good whiff of your scent, I knew you were my mate. All these years of being alone, I'd finally found another to spend my life with. Do you have any idea how many hundreds of years I have waited to find you?"
"But why did you fight it in the beginning? I thought you were resisting me because you didn't want another to take Alicia's place?"
"It wasn't because of Alicia. I loved her, and she'll always have a special place in my heart, but I never planned on mourning her for the rest of my life. I know she wouldn't have wanted that. I just never found the right woman until now. It was your being a mortal that made me hold back. I had already lost one mate who was mortal. I don't think I can handle it if something happened to you as well. Werewolf society can be pretty primal at times."
Billie snorted. "I can look after myself, Royce. Nothing is going to happen to me."
Royce kissed the tip of her nose. "I know that now, but as long as you are a mortal, I'm still going to worry. But I do know this, I don't regret that I claimed you as my mate. I want you and only you. I only have to think about you and I get a hard-on. And I've done nothing but think about you since you left Belinda's house. I need to be inside you, Billie."
Billie moaned with need when Royce rocked his hips into hers. She felt the hard length of his cock pressing against her through his jeans. The time for words was over. The need to have Royce buried inside her overrode everything else. Reaching up, she wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and brought his mouth down to hers. He hadn't pledged his undying love for her, but she hadn't wanted that, at least not today. After everything that had been said, it wouldn't have rung true for her. That he wanted her, needed her, was good enough for now.
Slanting her mouth across his, she kissed him with all the desire that was coursing through her body. She sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and bit down gently before she pushed her tongue inside his mouth. Royce wrapped his arms around her and rolled until they were lying on their sides facing each other. He pushed one hand under her shirt until he could cup her breast. Billie groaned as he pinched her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, rolling it between them.
She pulled back, breaking contact with his mouth. Royce's eyes were glowing. She now knew what that meant. His eyes were glowing with desire. The sight of them made her want him even more.
Billie nipped Royce's chin. "I'm going to make you howl before I'm through with you."
"Are you now? And how exactly are you going to do that?" Royce asked her with a voice husky with desire.
"Oh, I can think of a few things." Billie pushed herself against him until he rolled onto his back. She then rose up and moved over him so she could straddle his lap. "First, let's get rid of your clothes."
It didn't take her long to rid Royce of his clothes. Once they lay scattered on the floor, she made short work of removing her own. Leaning forward, she dragged her tongue across the spot where Royce's neck and shoulder met. He went stiff under her and groaned.
"You like it when I bite you here." She licked the spot again. "Is that a werewolf thing?"
"Yes," Royce answered with a groan. "Female werewolves mark their mates with a bite there. It warns other females away."
"I see." She gently nipped his skin. "I'll have to remember that."
When she moved away without biting him, Royce groaned again. "Don't be a tease, Billie."
"I have no intentions of teasing you. Be patient."
She inched down lower on his body. She pressed feather-light kisses to his chest and stomach. When she reached his hard cock, she kissed the very tip of it. It jumped at the brush of her lips. Taking a firm hold of him, Billie licked him from base to tip before she swirled her tongue around the head. She repeated the process until Royce was clutching at the bed sheets.
Deciding she had tortured him enough, she opened her mouth and took as much of him as she could inside. As she sucked, she moved her hand up and down his thick shaft. His cock grew even harder. Billie felt wetness dripping down the inside of her thighs as Royce moaned and growled at the same time.
Taking her mouth off him, she moved back up his body. With her hands braced on either side of his head, she pushed her breasts forward, offering them to Royce. Greedily, he cupped one and sucked the nipple deep inside his mouth. It was Billie's turn to moan with pleasure. As he continued to suck at her breast, she rubbed her wet pussy up and down his cock, until he was slick with her juices.
Completely aroused, Billie arched her hips until she could take the very tip of his cock inside her. She slowly rode it, teasing them both. When Royce lifted his hips, trying to force her to take more of him, she pushed down until he was buried to the hilt. Having him inside her so deeply that she could feel the head of his cock touching her womb, Billie started to ride him. Sliding up and down his shaft, she angled her hips so her clit rubbed against it with each stroke.
As her climax started to build, she squeezed her inner walls around his cock. She rode him faster, inching ever closer to her release. At her peak, with her inner walls clutching his shaft, Billie leaned forward and bit Royce where he had wanted her to bite him before. Applying enough pressure to break his skin caused his hips to buck beneath her as his orgasm tore through him. He howled, as she had promised she would make him do, as he emptied himself deep inside her.
Satiated, Billie collapsed onto Royce's broad chest. With their bodies still joined, she could feel he was still hard. She smiled against his skin. Without even asking, she knew that had to be another werewolf trait, and it wasn't one she was going to complain about.
The next morning, Billie decided she was going to take the day off. She wanted to spend the day with Royce. They really hadn't taken much time to really get to know each other. So far they had spent more time in bed together rather than talking, not that Billie didn't expect to spend a great part of the day in bed making love. She didn't think she could ever get enough of Royce. Now that she knew what was behind her obsessive behavior, her very real need to be with him, she didn't feel quite so bad about it.
While Royce was in the shower, Billie called the gym and asked to talk to her father. He didn't keep her waiting on hold for very long. "Hey, Dad, I'm just calling to let you know I won't be coming into the gym today."
"Are you with Royce?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Your brothers told me what happened yesterday. That Royce attacked a prospective member you were showing around the gym."
"He was no prospective member, Dad. Royce knew Gren, the guy I was showing around. Royce wasn't so much attacking as warning Gren off."
"That was a warning? Slamming him into the wall with enough force to shatter the mirror? I'd say that was more of an attack."
"Royce had his reasons for the way he acted. He also said to tell you he would pay for the damages."
"I'm not worried about the damages, Billie. I'm more worried about you. Who is to say Royce won't turn on you one day."
Billie ground her teeth together to stop herself from saying something she would regret later. "Royce isn't like that, Dad. I know for a fact he would never do anything to hurt me." When she was met with silence on the other end, Billie forged on. "Not that it's any of your business, but Gren was showing too much interest in me. Royce told him to back off, and when he didn't that is when he slammed Gren into the wall. Gren is the bad guy here, not Royce."
Her father sighed. "I'm sorry, Billie. I didn't mean to give you the third degree about what happened. I know you have a good judge of character, and if Royce was in any way abusive you wouldn't be seeing him. I just worry about you sometimes."
Billie could hear a touch of sadness in his voice. Every once in a while he would go into a bout of depression. It never lasted long, and he was usually able to pull himself out of it, but this time it seemed to be hitting him harder. "What's going on, Dad? Are you feeling okay?"
"Never mind me. Enjoy your day off and I'll see you tomorrow."
"I will. I have my cell phone with me. If you need anything just call."
"I'll be fine, Billie. I'll tell your brothers you won't be in."
"Thanks, Dad."
Royce walked into the room wearing nothing but a towel as he rubbed his wet hair with a second one just as Billie snapped her cell phone closed. Seeing her thoughtful expression he asked, "Everything okay? Your Dad didn't mind you taking the day off work?"
"No, he didn't mind."
"Was he upset about the broken mirror?"
"Not really. He was more concerned about how you handled Gren. He was afraid you could turn on me like that one day."
"I hope you reassured him that I wouldn't do anything of the kind."
Billie smiled at Royce. "Of course. I can't have my family thinking badly of you, now can I? You are my mate after all." She shifted over on the bed so Royce could sit down beside her. "Speaking of mates, I've been meaning to ask you this. Does this mean we're engaged?"
Royce reached up and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "No, Billie, it's much more than that. It's closer to being married. The only difference is the bond is stronger, more permanent."
"That's sort of what I figured. I guess I'd better have a talk with my father tomorrow and explain everything to him." She looked Royce in the eyes. "And I mean everything."
"Do you want me to come along with you?"
"No. I think it would be best if I did this alone." Billie let out a chuckle when she thought of what her father's reaction would be to her explaining she was married to a werewolf. "I have a feeling Dad won't believe me, but I should be the one to break the news to him first. If I can't convince him that I'm not insane, then you can come see him and go wolf. It worked for me, it'll work for him."
They ended up doing a lot of talking. Billie was still finding it hard to believe Royce was over a thousand years old, but when he talked about his past and how far back it actually went, it really brought it home for her. Listening to him tell the stories of things he had seen and done was like taking a walk through history, only he had first hand knowledge of it.
One of the other things they discussed was their living arrangements. Now that Billie knew what being mated meant, Royce suggested she move into his house. Billie felt a momentary wave of panic. She tried to quickly hide it from Royce, but from his reaction she knew he had seen the look of panic that must have showed on her face no matter how briefly it had been there.
They were both in the kitchen trying to figure out what to make for lunch out of the things they could find in Royce's fridge. Seeing her look of unease, he put the food onto the counter and pulled her into his arms. "Am I moving too fast for you?"
She smiled sheepishly up at him. "Maybe a little. I've never lived with a guy before, with the exception of my father and brothers of course. To be honest, I never wanted to live with any of the guys I dated before you."
"Maybe I am going a little fast, but with Gren on the prowl again, I think it would be wise that you move in with me. The sooner, the better."
"You think he would actually follow me home and try something?"
"I know for a fact if it suited his purposes he would. How do you think he got a hold of Roxie to try the spell on her? Beowulf was working at Wulf's Den that night. Roxie was alone at her place when Gren and two of his men broke in and took her."
"Gren is starting to sound like a real piece of work. Okay, I see your point."
"Grendel isn't known for his sparkling personality. He's been a thorn in Beowulf's side for many years."
Billie shook her head with wonder now that she knew Gren's name was actually Grendel. In high school she had been required to read Beowulf and Grendel, so she knew that old story very well. "Beowulf and Grendel. You do realize I'm not going to be able to look at Beowulf and not think about that story. Gren is obviously no troll."
"No, he's not. He's just a werewolf gone bad."
"All right, let's do this then." Billie stepped out of Royce's arms. She then gathered up the food and started to put it back in the fridge.
"Let's do what?" Royce watched as she put each item away with regret. "I thought we were going to have something to eat."
"You're just as bad as my brothers. All you can think about is filling your stomach. We can pick something up on the way to my apartment. If you want me to move in, I'll move in. Today. Well, just my clothes today. We can move the rest of the stuff later."
"Are you sure you want to do this today? I thought you'd want to at least tell your landlord that you would be moving out first."
Billie waved his concern away with a flick of her hand. "Don't worry about him. My Dad is my landlord. He wanted to make sure when I moved out that I was living in a half decent neighborhood. So he bought the apartment and let me rent it from him."
Royce gave her a double take. "Did I hear you correctly? Did Miss I-can-take-care-of-myself just say she let her father buy an apartment for her to live in?"
"Ha ha. Very funny." Billie threw one of the cheese slices she still had in her hand at Royce's head. She grumbled under her breath when he caught it in midair.
"Werewolf reflexes are quicker and better than a mortal's, my love." To prove it he caught the second slice of cheese with his other hand.
"Is that so? I guess I'd better give up then since I'm so inferior to you." She turned as if she were going to finish putting the food away. When she heard Royce move closer, she quickly spun around and threw the tomato she held. Not expecting it, he didn't even try to catch it. She then cringed as it splattered across his face. The tomato had been a little too ripe. Seeds and juice ran down Royce's cheeks and dripped onto his shirt.
"So much for werewolf reflexes, huh?"
Royce used his hand to wipe the remains of the tomato off his face. "You do have a penchant for throwing food, don't you, Billie?"
She valiantly tried to hold back her laughter, but in the end she couldn't stop herself. The look of shock that had come over Royce's face when the tomato had hit had been priceless. As she started to laugh, he crossed his arms across his chest and stared at her. "I'm sorry. If only you could have seen your face."
"You think it's funny, do you? If I were you, instead of laughing, I'd be wondering right about now what I'm going to do to get you back."
Billie's laughter died. "What are you going to do?" She slowly started to inch around Royce as she headed for the kitchen doorway.
Like the wolf he was, he just as slowly stalked her. "I'm not sure yet. But I'll think of something."
As Royce lunged for her, Billie turned and ran out of the room. She only got as far as the living room before he caught up with her. Much to her dismay, Royce had her thrown over his shoulder before she realized his intention.
"I think I've lost count of the number of times I've seen Beowulf sling Roxie over his shoulder like this," Royce said. "I'm beginning to see the advantages of carrying one's mate around in this position. One, it's a good way to keep you subdued, and two, I have a wonderful view of your gorgeous bottom." Keeping a firm hold of her legs, he turned his head and bit her nearest butt cheek.
Billie shrieked with indignation. "That isn't fair."
"All is far in love and war," Royce said with a chuckle.
"I'll give you fair." She let herself hang further down on his back until she could grab a hold of the waistband of his jeans. She then started to tug on it.
"What exactly do you think you're doing back there?"
"I'm trying to give you a wedgie," Billie replied as she yanked harder on Royce's pants.
"You can pull as hard as you like, but it isn't going to work. I'd have to be wearing underwear to get a wedgie, which I don't have on at the moment."
Sure enough, when Billie shoved her hand down inside the back of his jeans all she encountered was the skin of his hard muscled ass. Taking advantage of the situation, she gave it a good fondle. She felt it flex under her hand as Royce walked toward the stairs. It didn't dawn on Billie until after Royce had thrown her on the bed and was looming over her that he had called her his love downstairs in the kitchen.
It wasn't until much later that they finally made their way over to Billie's apartment. She was now busily stuffing the clothes she couldn't fit into the two large suitcases she owned into black garbage bags when Royce's cell phone started to ring. Quiet she was not, so she didn't blame him for going out to her living room to take the call. She had just closed the top of the last garbage bag when he returned to her bedroom. "What's up?"
"That was Belinda. She has invited us over for supper, along with Beowulf, Roxie, Wade and Taryn. It's supposed to be a welcome to the family meal for you."
Billie stood up and took hold of one of the suitcases. "That was good timing. I'm all finished. It may take a couple of trips to get everything downstairs though." Along with the two suitcases, she had filled three garbage bags.
Royce grabbed the other suitcase as well as one of the garbage bags and followed her to the apartment door. "I must say your taste in luggage leaves much to be desired."
"It isn't like I can damage anything. And if they get a little wrinkled, I'll just throw them in the dryer for a quick spin and they'll be as good as new."
Before she could pull open the door, Royce leaned in and kissed her passionately. He then stood back up and smiled down at her. "Whatever you do, Billie, don't ever change. I love you just the way you are."
Billie forgot to breathe for a few seconds. That was the second time Royce had used the L word in reference to her. When he proceeded to walk out into the hallway as if he hadn't just professed his love for her, she quickly pulled herself back together and followed.
"What did you just say, Royce?"
He casually pushed the down button for the elevator. "I said don't ever change."
"Not that. What did you say after that?"
He turned to look at her. "That I love you the way you are."
"You love me?" Billie asked quietly.
"Of course I do." Royce shook his head and chuckled. "I can see you're surprised by this."
The elevator dinged and the doors slid open. There was a woman already inside. Royce told her they would catch another one as he pulled Billie off to the side. He waited until the elevator door was closed before he spoke again.
"I sometimes forget you don't know all that much about werewolves. I couldn't have truly mated with you if I didn't love you."
"How could you have known you loved me? You only knew me for a few days. I figured being mated was more a physical bond."
"It is when two mates are first drawn to each other, but once they complete the mating, being in love is generally the outcome. How could you not love the person you have forged such a strong bond with? Only on rare instances, and I mean really rare, does a mating end up being one sided where only one of the mates bonds their soul to the other and it isn't returned."
Billie threw herself into Royce's arms with enough force to make him stagger. Unfortunately he was standing with one of the garbage bags behind him. Unable to catch himself, he fell over backwards onto the carpeted hall floor. Billie ended up sprawled on top of him.
She quickly sat up. "I'm so sorry, Royce. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I just wasn't expecting it."
"Good." Billie cupped his face in her hands and gave Royce a hard kiss. "I love you too."
Royce smiled up at her. "Now that we have both told each other how we feel, I think it would be a good idea if we got up off the floor. I'm sure your neighbors wouldn't be exactly thrilled to see us in this position."
"I don't mind at all, young man."
Billie looked up to find her neighbor, Mrs. Taylor, standing in her open doorway, which Royce and she happened to be laying in front of, watching them with a twinkle in her eye. Mrs. Taylor was eighty, if she were a day. Billie felt her face flush at being caught in such a predicament by her elderly neighbor. She hurriedly slid off Royce and stood up.
"Sorry, Mrs. Taylor. I forgot myself there for a moment."
The older lady laughed. "No need to apologize, my girl." She turned to eye Royce as he came to stand next to Billie. "If I were fifty years younger I might have done the same thing. He's quite a looker." She looked back at Billie. "You'd better hold onto this one, Billie. He's definitely a keeper."
"I intend to," Billie assured her.
After Mrs. Taylor closed her apartment door, Billie pushed the elevator button. As she waited for one to arrive, she found herself unable to stop the large grin that started to form on her lips. Royce loved her. That left one thing still up in the air---whether she should try the spell or not. It was a decision she couldn't make lightly. In a way, it had worked out to her advantage that she would be seeing Roxie and Taryn later. She could get the lowdown on exactly what to expect if she went through with it. Talking to them, and then going to have a talk with her father the next day, Billie figured she'd be more than ready to make her decision.
After making room in his closet and emptying out a couple of dresser drawers for Billie to use until they moved hers from her apartment, Royce lay propped up on the bed and watched her put away her clothes. He felt content, something he hadn't felt in a very long time. Billie filled a void inside him, one that had been created when Alicia had died. When he had taken Belinda in to raise as his daughter, she had filled some of it, but not all. Then she had grown up, gotten married and had a family of her own, leaving him to live alone once again. Now he had Billie.
Even though he was happy and felt as if his life was back on track, there was still one niggling question that wouldn't go away. Yes, he had Billie as his mate, but for how long? A mortal's lifespan was so much shorter than a werewolf's. He wanted her with him for the thousand or so more years he was sure to have left. The spell was the only thing that could give them that, if it would actually work on Billie. He knew the decision would have to be hers though. He would never push her into to it if it wasn't something she wanted, but it would make things better for them. It would also give Billie a fighting chance if Gren, or any other werewolf of his ilk, ever decided to go through her to get to him. As a mortal, she wouldn't stand a chance.
Lost in thought, Royce at first didn't notice Billie had finished and was now standing by the bed looking down at him. "What had you off in la-la land?"
"Nothing."
"It must have been important enough that you didn't hear me ask you what time we had to be at Belinda's. You were so deep in thought I bet I could have taken off all my clothes and done a dance and you wouldn't have noticed."
Royce wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her down onto the bed with him. "I think I would have noticed that. You definitely would have gotten my attention."
"I should hope so. I don't dance naked for just anyone you know."
"The only person you'll be dancing naked for from now on will be me." He buried his face into the crook of Billie's neck and growled as he held her closer to his body. "Maybe you'd like to do a little naked dancing right now."
Billie arched her neck to give him better access to it as he dragged his tongue along her skin. "What time do we have to be at Belinda's?"
He moved down her body and pressed wet kisses against the hollow of her throat. "We have to be there by six." She shifted against him as she turned her head to look at the bedside clock.
"If that's the case, we're going to be late if we don't get a move on. It's almost six now. So no, there's no time for hanky-panky."
"Not even for a quickie?" Royce pinched her nipple through her shirt.
She slapped his hand away. "No. You can't be that desperate. We did spend most of the morning making love, and most of the night as well."
"So? I'm sure Belinda won't mind if we show up a little late."
Billie shoved at his chest. "Behave, Royce. You said it was a meal to welcome me into the family, and it would be kind of rude on my part to show up late."
Royce knew there was no point in pushing the issue. Once Billie made up her mind, she stuck to it. "You win." He let go of her and watched her get off the bed with hooded eyes. "But that also means you owe me a naked dance."
"You may come to regret that. I can't dance worth a crap."
"As long as you're naked and moving, I couldn't care less."
Billie rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Whatever. I'm just going to clean up a bit, then I'll be ready to leave."
Once she left the room, Royce tugged at the front of his pants trying to make room for the hard-on he was now sporting. He hoped Belinda hadn't decided to do a large elaborate meal. If she had, it was going to be a very long evening for him.
It was exactly six o'clock on the dot when Royce and Billie arrived at Belinda's house. Her husband, Lucas, greeted them at the door.
Opening the door wide, he ushered them inside. "Nice to see you again, Royce. And this must be Billie. I'm Lucas, Belinda's husband."
Billie shook the hand Lucas offered her. "Yes, I'm Billie. Nice to meet you."
Lucas had to be in his fifties, but like her father, he took good care of himself. His dark brown hair was graying at the sides. His grey eyes looked warm and friendly. Billie took an instant liking to him.
"You two are the first to arrive," Lucas said as he led them to the living room. "Belinda will be pleased to see at least two of our guests showed up on time."
"See," Royce whispered in her ear, "we would have been all right showing up a bit late. We could have had our quickie and probably still would have beaten the others here."
Billie casually took a step back and stomped on Royce's instep. He made a satisfying yelp as he picked up his foot and rubbed the offended area. When Lucas turned to see what the matter was, she smiled. "Never mind Royce, he sometimes doesn't watch where he is stepping."
Lucas gave her a knowing smile. "It wouldn't be the first time Royce has had a woman in the family make sure he stopped stepping where he shouldn't have. Roxie just did it in a more vulnerable spot on his anatomy."
"Well then I'll have to tell Roxie that she doesn't have to worry about Royce anymore. I'm more than capable of keeping him on the straight and narrow."
"I just love it when people talk about me as if I'm not even in the room," Royce said mildly. "And thanks for sticking up for your fellow male, Lucas."
The other man chuckled. "You're welcome. You two can make yourselves comfortable while I go tell Belinda you're here."
Royce and Billie had only just sat down when the front door opened. They heard Roxie call out to her parents just before she walked into the living room. Beowulf, Wade and Taryn were with her.
Seeing the two of them sitting on the couch, Roxie said, "It looks as if the gang is all here. Mom will be pleased that she won't have to keep the supper waiting."
"Yes, I'm happy to see you all are here." Belinda gave Roxie a kiss on the cheek. "The food is ready, so if everyone would like to come into the dining room, we can eat."
There was enough room at the large dining room table to seat everyone comfortably. As the smell of perfectly cooked roast beef hit her, Billie's stomach started to growl. Sitting down next to Royce, she eyed the large amount of food on the table. There were mashed potatoes, peas, corn and gravy to go along with not one, but two roasts of beef. At first she thought Belinda had cooked two of them because the men were big eaters, but it wasn't until Beowulf started to carve one roast while Lucas carved the other, did she see the one Beowulf was working on was practically raw on the inside. Billie liked her roast beef on the pink side, but she didn't think she would be able to stomach meat quite that undercooked.
Roxie was quick to assure her. "I can see you eyeing the roast Beowulf is carving, Billie. Don't worry it isn't for us. That one is for Beowulf, Wade and Royce to eat. Werewolves like their meat to barely touch a pan before eating it."
"You're a werewolf now. Don't you like your meat that way as well?"
"Good god, no. That's disgusting." Roxie shuddered. "I think you have to be born a werewolf to be able to eat something that raw and enjoy it."
"Same here," Taryn added. "I like my meat cooked the way it's supposed to be."
Billie filed that bit of information away. She was glad she wouldn't have to worry that she would start craving raw meat if she became a werewolf as well. Once everyone had food on their plates, Taryn opened four bottles of wine that came from her winery. Billie thought maybe that was a lot of wine for the number of people there, even though the wine was excellent. But as the meal progressed and the werewolves of the company seemed able to drink it as if it was water, and have the wine not go to their heads, Billie realized the four bottles weren't going to last long.
She turned to look at Royce as he drained his fourth glass of wine. So far she'd only had one. "Am I going to have to drag your drunken ass home like I do Hayes?"
Royce reached for the nearest bottle of wine and refilled both their glasses. "I'm fine, Billie. Alcohol doesn't affect us the same as it does mortals. I would have to drink a vast amount of wine to come anywhere near to being drunk."
From the amount of wine both Roxie and Taryn had consumed, Billie figured that alcohol didn't affect them either now that they were werewolves. "Good to know. I've had more than my share of dragging drunken men home to last me a lifetime."
At the end of the meal, Belinda cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. When all eyes were on her, she started to speak. "I want to say how pleased I am that Billie is part of our family. She has been a long time in coming. Not only has my father found his mate, but I now have a stepmother."
Billie had just taken a big sip of wine when Belinda started speaking. She ended up spraying it across the table when she heard the word stepmother come out of Belinda's mouth. Hastily grabbing her napkin, Billie wiped the wine off her chin. "Stepmother?" Her voice came out in a croak.
"Of course you're my stepmother, dear. Royce, after all, is my father, the only father I've ever known."
"And I guess that makes you my grandmother, Billie," Roxie cheerfully added. At Royce's hard stare, she was quick to say, "Which I will never call you. I'll just save the grandparent name calling for Royce."
Billie took some deep calming breaths. She had known about the family connection between Roxie's family and Royce, but she hadn't put herself in that equation. She should have realized that being Royce's mate meant she was now a stepmother and a grandmother. Taking hold of her wine glass, she drained the rest of it in one big gulp.
Royce looked at her worriedly. "Are you okay, Billie?"
She nodded. "Yes. I hadn't thought this all through."
"Here, have another glass of wine, but this time sip on it."
As Royce filled her glass once more, Billie could only guess what her father was going to say when he learned she was not only "married", but also had a stepdaughter and a step granddaughter.
After the table was cleared, Belinda suggested Roxie take Billie and Taryn outside to sit in the backyard while she did the dishes. The men were already talking amongst themselves. Billie readily agreed, thinking this would be the perfect time to find out more about the spell.
Once they were seated at the patio table, Taryn poured them each another glass of wine from the full bottle she had brought outside with her. Billie was already feeling a bit on the tipsy side, but figured one more glass wouldn't put her under the table. Taking a sip from her glass, she looked up at the night sky. It was a beautiful night. There wasn't a cloud to be seen.
"So, Billie, how are you handling being mated to a werewolf?" Roxie asked her. "I know we've dumped a lot on you the last couple of days. It can be a bit overwhelming."
Billie turned to look at the other two women. "You could say that." Her voice held a trace of humor. "I never expected to be a grandmother at twenty-five."
"I guess not. Though I must say you handled finding out about Royce being a werewolf remarkably well. I wish I could say all I did was get a little light-headed when Beowulf finally told me."
"You didn't take the news well?"
Roxie laughed. "Hardly. I had Beowulf go wolf to prove to me he actually was telling the truth when he finally told me he was a werewolf. At the time, I hadn't known I had inherited Alicia's magic. Having no idea what I was doing, I accidentally used it on Beowulf."
"What did you do to him?"
"I made it so he was stuck in his wolf form for twenty-four hours, which wasn't a pleasant experience for him. Luckily for Beowulf, Royce realized what I had done and reassured him that it was only temporary. I guess Alicia had done the same thing to him at one time."
"What about you, Taryn?" Billie asked the other woman. "Did you take the news well?"
"Not really, I'm afraid. I called Wade a freak of nature and locked myself in my bedroom."
"I can see what you mean about my taking the news rather well." Billie took another sip of wine. "I guess I should direct this next question to Taryn since you, Roxie, didn't have a choice in the matter. When you found out about the spell, did you hesitate or were you able to quickly decide that you wanted to try it?"
Taryn shook her head. "I didn't even need to think about it. As soon as Wade told me about it, I wanted Roxie to try it on me."
"I see. I guess I'm different in that respect. I still haven't made up my mind. I know there's a huge advantage to trying it. I wouldn't have to worry about growing old and dying while Royce stays young, but there is one thing that is holding me back---my family. I have no idea how they'll react."
"That is something you have to consider," Taryn said. "See for me, I didn't have to take that into consideration. My mother died when I was three and my uncle who raised me, died a year before I met Wade. And there is also the fact that my father was a werewolf, who doesn't look any older than I do I might add. It was a no brainer. I wanted to be just like Wade and my father."
"You know Royce would never force you to try the spell if it really wasn't what you wanted, Billie," Roxie quickly added.
"I know he wouldn't. But I can't help feeling that if I don't try it, I would be cheating him out of something. That I would be holding back something he really wants. I know my being mortal has him worried I won't be able to protect myself if anything should happen, which is completely understandable considering what happened to Alicia."
Roxie nodded her head in agreement then said, "Now I'm not trying to sway whatever decision you make, but I can see where Royce is coming from, Billie. To be quite frank, a mortal is no match for a werewolf. Compared to other mortal women, you are strong. As a werewolf, you would be twice as strong. And there are some pretty big advantages besides being stronger. Your hearing will be a lot better, same with your eye sight and your sense of smell. And being able to go wolf, able to run free, is like nothing you've ever experienced before."
Billie smiled at Roxie. "I guess being able to shift into a half human, half wolf form would definitely have its advantages for you as well. Royce mentioned something about you ruling over the packs as well."
Roxie was quick to agree. "Being able to take on that form does give me the upper hand, but there are times when ruling over the packs isn't much fun. For instance, now I have Gren to contend with once again. I wish he could have just stayed in his hole and left everyone alone, but I guess that was asking too much."
"What are you going to do?"
Roxie shrugged her shoulders. "There's not much I can do at the moment. He really hasn't done anything. Right now, all we can do is watch him. If he does move against Royce, then something will have to be done to put him in his place."
Billie didn't ask what exactly would be done to Gren that would "put him in his place". Given the way Royce had reacted to Gren being at the gym with her, she had a feeling werewolf laws were a little less civilized than mortal laws.
A little while later the men and Belinda joined them. Billie didn't miss how both Beowulf and Wade sat next to their mates, holding Roxie and Taryn protectively under their arms. Nor did she miss the fact that Royce was doing the same to her. It felt good. To know that as long as she was next to him he would do everything in his power to make sure no harm came to her. Some women would have taken it as an insult, that in this day and age a woman didn't need to have a man to look after her. But for Billie, it was a nice change. She knew she was perfectly capable of looking out for herself, with the amount of self-defense she had learned she could bring down most men twice her size. But the whole aspect of not having to use it if she didn't want to and that she could rely on Royce if such a situation ever arose made her feel cherished. And it made her love Royce even more because of it.
Gren hauled the unconscious body of the man he had chosen to be his next guinea pig over his shoulder and shoved him into the backseat of his car. Getting into the front seat, he headed for the place he had acquired to perform his little tests. It had been relatively easy to lure the mortal he had picked to try the spell on to him. The man had easily fallen for the female werewolf Gren had sent to entice the man outside. Not that the mortal knew what she was. All he had cared about was that she was beautiful and seemed willing to spend the night with him. Instead of taking him back to her place, the woman had led the mortal to the back alley behind the club where Gren had been waiting. A quick bash to the back of the head and the mortal was his. The woman, who had been a part of his pack before their numbers had dwindled to almost nothing, had accepted the money he had offered her and left him with his prize.
Now all that was left to do was to get some of Royce's blood. Gren knew he wouldn't hand it over of his own free will, but that wasn't going to deter him. There were ways to get the blood other than asking.
Waving at Billie as she pulled away from the house, Royce waited until her car was out of sight before he stepped back inside. She was on her way to her family's gym to meet with her father. Before she had left, he had suggested he go with her in case her father didn't believe what she had to tell him. But Billie had said no. She thought it would be better if she talked to him alone first. At least she wasn't going to say anything about his being a werewolf to her brothers as of yet. Royce could imagine what their reactions would be. He had a feeling just learning that their baby sister was "married" was going to be hard enough for them to handle.
Royce headed for the stairs. Since Billie would be moving her furniture in soon, he decided there was no time like the present to make some room for it. He was going to start upstairs in their bedroom. It would also help keep him distracted while Billie was away from him.
He was about to start up the stairs when he caught the scent of another in the room. Curling his upper lip in a snarl, he turned around to face the intruder. "Get out of my house, Gren."
The other werewolf leapt at him. Royce caught him in midair and grappled him to the floor. Gren went down hard, but he somehow managed to take Royce down with him. Rolling into a crouched position, Royce saw the evil smile on the other man's face a split second before Gren charged him once again. This time Royce felt something enter his side when Gren slammed into him.
Gren pushed Royce away and got to his feet. "You made it too easy for me, lone wolf. You really shouldn't leave your backdoor unlocked. There's no telling who may just walk in and decide to take whatever they want."
Royce felt the room begin to tilt at an alarming angle as he fell to his knees. Looking down, he pulled out the syringe that was still in his side. The plunger had been pushed in all the way. It fell from his fingers as his world started to fade. Fighting to stay conscious, Royce sat down on the floor and shook his head.
"Don't worry, I didn't poison you. You're just going to go to sleep for a while." Gren came to stand over him. "You left me no other choice."
Unable to fight whatever drug Gren had injected into his system, Royce slumped onto his side. His last thought before everything went black was that Billie was safe. That was all that mattered.
The gym was pretty quiet when Billie arrived. There were only a dozen or so members working out on the gym floor. She saw that three of her brothers were already there. Eli met up with her as she headed for her desk.
"How was your day off, Billie? Did you spend all of it with Royce?"
"It was good, and yes, I did. Is Dad in?"
"Yeah, he's in his office. Why?"
"I just need to talk to him."
"About what?"
Billie put her purse in her desk drawer and slammed it shut with more force than was necessary. "Don't start, Eli. Where is Finn, by the way?"
Eli chuckled. "Finn got lucky last night at Wulf's Den. He managed to hook up with this really hot chick. So I don't imagine he'll be in until later. He's probably still recovering from a hot night of sex."
Rolling her eyes, Billie walked around Eli and headed for their father's office. "I really didn't need to know all that. I was just curious where Finn was since you two seem practically joined at the hip."
"We aren't that bad."
"Eli, you two live together. You couldn't even move out of the house and get separate places of your own."
"Hey, we only did that to save money. It's not as if we plan to live together for the rest of our lives," Eli said defensively.
Billie stopped and kissed Eli on the cheek. "See, not much fun to have a sibling put you through the third degree, is it? I know you and Finn have the whole twin thing going on."
Eli scowled at her. "Fine, you made your point. I'll back off. After what happened with Royce the other day, we're all a little worried about you."
"Don't be. Now get out of here and leave me alone so I can talk to Dad."
"You're still not going to tell me what you want to talk to him about, are you?" When she narrowed her gaze on him, Eli held up his hands and slowly started to back away. "I'm going, I'm going."
After a quick knock on the door, Billie walked into her father's office. He had been sitting slumped in his chair staring off into space, but when he saw her, he sat up and gave her a half smile. Billie noticed the dark circles under his eyes and how haggard he looked. Whatever was going on with him obviously kept him up at night.
Billie sat down in the chair in front of his desk. "Have to say, Dad, you look like crap. What's going on?"
"That's my girl, always to the point. I'm just not sleeping well these days." He then quickly changed the subject. "What can I do for you?"
Now that she was here, Billie didn't know where to start. She was beginning to wonder if maybe she should have taken Royce up on his offer to come along, but it was too late for second thoughts. With a deep breath, she jumped in feet first.
"Okay, first of all, I'm moving out of my apartment. So as my landlord, you've just received your notice. I'm moving in with Royce." When her father opened his mouth to interrupt, Billie shook her head. "Please, Dad, let me finish first, then you can say whatever it is you want." Once he sat back in his chair and nodded for her to continue, she pushed on. "I know you think this is all very sudden, but it really was meant to be. Now here is where you're going to think I've lost all my marbles, but I really haven't. Royce is different. I mean really different. He's a werewolf, Dad. Not the scary werewolf from horror movies though. He can only change into a wolf, and his eyes glow, and he can make all the sounds a wolf does. I'm getting off track with all that, but Royce knew I was his mate the first time we met and he smelled my scent. To make a long story short, he claimed me as his mate and our souls have joined together, which means I don't like being away from him and he doesn't like being away from me. That's why I've been so out of sorts for the last couple days when I've been here working. And since I am his mate, that means we're basically married. So you have a new son-in-law."
As she spoke her father's face lost all emotion. When she stopped talking he just continued to stare at her, not reacting to anything she had said. Billie began to worry that maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to just dump it all on him like that. "Dad? Are you going to say anything at all?"
"Royce is a werewolf?" His voice held no emotion either.
"Yes. I know it's hard to believe. I know I didn't believe him at first when he told me, but seeing him go wolf was more than enough to convince me he wasn't crazy. He is willing to show you if you don't think I'm telling the truth."
Her father slowly shook his head. "That won't be necessary. I believe you."
Billie hadn't expected him to be so accepting, nor had she expected him to look so sad about it either. He seemed to withdraw into himself. "Dad, you're scaring me here. This is not at all how I pictured you would react."
He sighed deeply. "I guess it's time you knew. I wanted to keep this from you, but after hearing you tell me Royce is a werewolf, you should know."
"Know about what?" Billie felt a chill run down her spine. She couldn't help but feel that what her father was going to tell her next would have a profound effect on her life as she knew it.
"It has to do with your mother, Billie."
"What about her? She took off when I was a baby and that was the last you heard or saw of her."
"That is only what I told you when you were old enough to start asking about your mother."
"You mean that isn't what happened?"
"No. I'm afraid it's much worse than just your mother abandoning you as a baby. You see, your mother has her own gift as you do, except with her she can see things before they actually happen. Unlike you, she isn't a strong person. She always hated her ability to see into the future. It affected her. It didn't come to her very often, but when it did, sometimes it wasn't something she wanted to see. Once you kids started coming, her gift seemed to go away. She was happy that she no longer had it. But it really hadn't gone away. When you were about a month old, she had a vision. I don't know exactly everything she saw, but it caused something to snap inside her." Her father's voice cracked with the emotion he was now feeling. Once he brought himself back together he continued. "I came home from the gym one day to find all hell had broken loose. Your brothers were screaming, yelling at your mother to stop. I found Keegan desperately trying to pull your mother off of you. She had a pillow over your face, Billie. She was trying to smother you. If I hadn't have come home when I had you would have died that day."
Billie gripped the arms of her chair until her knuckles turned white. "Why did she do it? What did she see?"
"After I pulled her off you, she kept repeating over and over again that she couldn't allow her baby to turn into a wolf."
All the blood drained out of Billie's face. "Where is she now, Dad?"
"She's in a place where she can be looked after properly. She never came back mentally, and there was no way I could leave her alone with you ever again."
"She's in a mental institution?"
"No. It's more like a home for people who have mental conditions. She is well taken care of."
"She's been there all these years and you never said a word to me about it?"
"I wanted to protect you from this, Billie. And if it wasn't for what you just told me, I probably would have taken it to my grave. Even your brothers swore they would never tell you the truth. But your mother took a turn for the worst a couple of days ago. They've had to heavily sedate her almost around the clock. She keeps screaming about her baby being turned into a wolf. That the wolf will kill and she doesn't want her baby to be a killer."
Billie sucked in a sharp breath. "The spell. She must have seen something about the spell."
"What spell?"
"There's an ancient spell that can turn a mortal into a werewolf. It has only worked twice before, but it has been offered to me so I can be like Royce. If Mom saw me change into a wolf, then the spell will work on me."
"Are you saying you would willingly want to become a werewolf?"
"Yes. You have to understand something, Dad. Werewolves live very long lives. Royce is over fifteen hundred years old and he can live to be three thousand. Without the spell, I'll die long before he does. I can't let him mourn me for the next thousand or so years when there is a chance I can be with him until the end."
"You love Royce that much?"
"Yes. I came here to get your blessing, if you want to call it that."
Her father got up and came around the desk until he stood in front of her chair. He took her hand and helped her up onto her feet. Once she was standing, he pulled her into a hug. Billie closed her eyes and leaned into him. "You have my blessing. I don't really understand all of it, but I'm sure you'll explain it better after it's all done. Just know I love you and I want you to be happy."
"I promise I will."
"I hope you don't think any less of me because I didn't tell you the truth about your mother."
Billie looked up at her father. "Never. I know you did it to protect me, but I'm a big girl now. It is a shock to hear what she tried to do, but I can handle it. I have a feeling it affected the boys more than it will me."
"It did, sorry to say. After that day, all four of them became fiercely protective of you. They haven't grown out of it I'm afraid."
"I'm used to it, and now I can understand their motives."
Stepping back, her father let her go. "Get out of here and go be with your husband. I can't believe I said that."
"Believe me, Dad, it took a lot of getting used to for me as well."
Giving her father a kiss, Billie left his office. There was no point in trying to work. Now that she had made up her mind about the spell she needed to tell Royce. There was no way she would be able to concentrate on anything until she did.
Billie pushed open the front door and called out to Royce. "Royce, I'm home." When she didn't get an answer, she walked to the bottom of the stairs and called up to him. He still didn't answer her. Thinking maybe he was outside in the backyard, she headed to the kitchen. The door that led out to the backyard stood wide open. Billie walked out onto the deck and looked around. She couldn't see any sign of Royce anywhere. She wondered where he could be. He had to be home. His car was still in the driveway, and the front door had been unlocked. As she walked back into the kitchen, she took her cell phone out of her purse and dialed his. After the first couple of rings, she could hear it ringing somewhere inside the house. Following the sound, she found Royce's cell phone sitting on the dining room table along with his keys.
A feeling of something not being right started to creep over her as she snapped her cell phone closed. It was when she walked back into the front entrance hallway that her foot kicked something that had been lying on the floor. Billie bent down and picked it up. It was an empty syringe, the type diabetics used. She knew it wasn't Royce's. He had told her werewolves rarely, if ever, got sick, and they didn't suffer from the diseases mortals did. So the big question was how had the syringe ended up in the house in the first place.
As her uneasiness grew, Billie did a thorough search of the house. Nothing looked out of place. It almost appeared as if Royce had just walked out of the house, but Billie knew finding the syringe said otherwise. Once again on the lower level, she took a deep breath to stop herself from panicking. It wasn't as if she couldn't find Royce no matter where he was. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on his face, focusing on it. A second later, she gasped. She had seen exactly where Royce was, and he wasn't alone. Gren had not only taken Royce, he had also taken her brother Finn.
Royce tried to lift his head off the floor, but it felt as if it was a lead weight. Groaning, he let it fall back down. Whatever drug Gren had used, it was doing a number on him. His mouth felt dry as sandpaper, and when he cracked open his eyes, he had a hard time focusing on anything. He tried to move his arms and found he couldn't. They were tightly bound behind his back. Royce didn't have to look at the rope Gren had used to know there would be silver threads mixed in with the fiber of the rope. Silver didn't harm werewolves as the horror movies so often portrayed, but it did hamper a werewolf's ability to go wolf and hold that form. Basically he was trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.
Straining against his bonds, Royce tried to sit up. The movement caused his head to spin. He closed his eyes until the wave of dizziness subsided. He opened his eyes again when he heard a shuffling noise behind him. Royce lifted his head and looked in the direction of the noise. He swore under his breath when he was finally able to focus his eyes on the only other occupant in the room. Billie's brother, Finn, was bound hand and foot. There was also a gag over his mouth.
Finn shuffled forward on his backside across the floor until he was able to get over to where Royce lay. He mumbled something through the gag that Royce didn't understand. When he didn't respond, Finn jerked his head in an upward motion a couple of times. That Royce understood. He tried once again to get up into an upright position. This time, Finn inched closer to him and used his shoulder to help prop him up. Royce leaned against him panting as the room spun before his eyes.
After a few minutes the dizziness faded again. Royce turned his head toward Finn. "Now don't think I'm going to try and kiss you, because I'm not. I'm going to see if I can pull the gag off." Taking hold of the gag at the side of Finn's face with his teeth, Royce tugged on the cloth. It didn't take long for him to pull it away from the other man's mouth, leaving the gag to hang around his neck.
Finn swallowed and cleared his throat a couple of times before he tried to speak. "We need to get the hell out of here."
Royce quickly scanned the room. From what he could see, they appeared to be locked in some kind of storage room. There were a few boxes piled in the far corner, and there weren't any windows. The only light came from the florescent light on the ceiling. "How long have I been out?"
"An hour, maybe more. Where's Billie? That asshole better not have taken her as well."
"Billie's safe. She had already left for the gym when Gren arrived. How long have you been here?"
"Since last night. He bashed me over the head out back at Wulf's Den. He had some woman lure me out there. What the hell does he want with me? I can understand Gren taking you since you two don't exactly get along, but I haven't done anything to warrant this."
"I think I have a pretty good guess as to why Gren took you. You are to be his lab rat."
"What?"
Royce didn't get a chance to answer Finn. He heard the sound of the lock being turned on the other side of the door before it was pushed open. Gren walked into the room. He nodded when he saw Royce was awake.
"I'm happy to see I didn't kill you with that tranquilizer, lone wolf. One never knows how much to use."
"I'd have to take your word for it since I've never resorted to using such a cowardly way to subdue an opponent," Royce said blandly.
Gren snarled and snapped his teeth at him. "Watch your mouth. You're not exactly in a position to be taunting me."
"We both know perfectly well you won't do anything to me. At least not until you try the spell again."
"That may be true, but if your blood turns out not to be the key, I see no reason to keep you around. It would be to my advantage to do away with one who has been a thorn in my side more than once. But the spell will have to wait. I can see you are still feeling the effects of the drug. I will wait until it is completely out of your system. I don't want to take the chance that it would in someway affect the outcome of my little experiment." Gren walked forward and grabbed a handful of Finn's hair. He pulled his head back as he looked down at him. "Especially when I have such a fine specimen here to try it on. This one will make an excellent werewolf."
"Werewolf?" Finn asked with a harsh laugh. "Now I really know you're nuts. Werewolves don't exist, and you sure as hell can't change me into one."
"You mortals are all the same." Gren let go of Finn's hair. "If something is beyond what you consider the realm of possibility, you think it doesn't exist. In this case, you are wrong."
Royce growled loudly in warning as Gren went wolf and lunged for Finn's throat. Gren's sharp teeth missed the other man's jugular by mere inches. Finn didn't move a muscle. The widening of his eyes was the only sign that gave away his uncertainty.
"Back off, Gren."
Gren shifted back to his human form. "What do you think you're going to do, lone wolf? As long as you're bound in those ropes you can't go wolf, and you know it." He chuckled when Finn looked at Royce with shock on his face. "It looks as if I've given you both something to talk about after I leave. How about I make it even more interesting?" He waited until he had Finn's full attention. "Royce has claimed your sister as his mate. That means she has bound herself to a werewolf. How do you feel about your sister letting one of my kind between her legs every night?" Gren then left the room, once more locking the door behind him.
Finn roughly shoved Royce away. Royce just barely managed to catch himself before he lost what balance he had. Finn's eyes raked his face. "He's telling the truth, isn't he? You are both werewolves. Christ, your eyes are glowing just as his did before he changed into a wolf. You're an animal like Gren."
Royce shook his head. "Yes, I'm a werewolf, but don't compare me to Gren. He's just a bad example of one. Just as you mortals, we have good werewolves and bad werewolves."
"Does Billie know what you are? Or have you been keeping it a secret from her?"
"Billie knows now what I am. She has accepted me as her mate."
"Bullshit. Billie wouldn't sleep with an animal."
Having reached his limit of how many insults he could take from Billie's brother, Royce growled threateningly at him. "I've had just about enough of you calling me an animal, boy. I love your sister, and she feels the same way about me. Get used to it."
"If what you say is true, then we have an even bigger problem than trying to get ourselves free. I assume you know about my sister's ability to find anyone?"
Royce felt a chill run down his spine. "Yes."
"Well then, you know once Billie finds out that both of us are missing she's going to 'look' for us. And she'll know exactly where we are."
Royce knew Finn was right. Unless they could somehow manage to get away from Gren, Billie was bound to show up looking for them. And when she did, she would come face to face with Gren.
Rolling down her car window, Billie pushed the button that buzzed up to the large house at the end of the gated drive. When the gate swung open to allow her entry, she quickly drove her car through it. Any other time she would have been impressed by the landscaped grounds and large mansion, but she was too focused on what she needed to do.
The front door of the mansion opened before she could knock. Beowulf took one look at her face and ushered her inside. "What's wrong, Billie?"
"I need Roxie. I know she's here."
Beowulf grinned. "Roxie told me about that gift of yours. It must come in handy." He grew serious when she didn't elaborate on her gift. "Billie, where is Royce?"
"I really need to talk to Roxie first, then I'll tell you the rest."
"I'll get her for you."
"That won't be necessary." Roxie stood at the bottom of the large staircase. "I heard Billie's voice and came down to see what was going on. How about we go into the kitchen for our talk? There should be a fresh pot of coffee on."
Billie nodded. She followed Roxie into the kitchen and took a seat at the table. Beowulf went to pour the coffee as Roxie sat down in the seat next to her. She didn't wait for the coffee. Instead, Billie got straight to the point. She knew time was ticking away for Royce and her brother. "I want you to try the spell on me. Now."
Roxie met Beowulf's gaze across the room before she turned back to Billie. "Why the rush? Wouldn't you like to wait until Royce can be here?"
Beowulf placed three cups of coffee on the table and sat down next to Roxie. "I think that is why Billie doesn't want to wait. Royce can't be here. Right, Billie?"
With her hands fisted on the tabletop, Billie nodded. "I need the spell to save them. I'm no match for a werewolf as a mortal."
Beowulf grew still. "Them?"
"Gren has Royce and my brother Finn. I have to get them back."
"Are you sure about this?"
"Yes. When I came home from the gym Royce wasn't there, but the front door was unlocked and his car was in the driveway. When I found an empty syringe lying on the floor in the entrance hallway I knew something was wrong. So I used my gift to find him. Gren is holding him and my brother in some abandoned warehouse."
Roxie turned to Beowulf. Billie saw the look of concern that passed between them before Roxie spoke to her. "Billie, you don't have to do this alone. The spell can wait. Beowulf will handle this. It will only take him a few minutes to call some other members of our pack to go with him."
"No. You don't understand. It has to be me. My father told me the truth about my mother. She has the gift of sight. When I was a baby she saw that I would turn into a wolf. And a few days ago she saw it again."
"That doesn't necessarily mean you have to be the one to take on Gren. It may just mean you are meant to try the spell."
"I know it has to be me." Billie kept the part of her mother seeing the wolf as a killer to herself. Beowulf and Roxie didn't need to know about that. To Billie it was all the proof she needed to know she had to be the one to save Royce and Finn. "Please, Roxie. They're safe for now, but I don't know for how much longer." When Roxie didn't quickly agree, she tried one more tactic. "What would you do if you were in my place and it was Beowulf that Gren had? I know you wouldn't stay behind and wait. You're like me. You protect what is yours."
Roxie gave her a small smile. "You're right, Billie. I didn't stay home when Beowulf decided he had to be the man and take care of Gren when we had our problems with him. Even though Beowulf won't admit it, I saved his butt that day. I cleaned Gren's clock, and the two thugs he had with him."
"Then you'll do it?"
"Yes, she will," Beowulf said as he stood up. "But you won't be going alone, Billie. Let me make a couple of phone calls, then Roxie can try the spell on you."
Billie felt her nerves stretch almost to the breaking point as she sat alone in the kitchen waiting for Beowulf and Roxie to return. Roxie had gone to get the supplies she needed to do the spell. Billie could only guess at what they were. Beowulf had left the room as well to make his phone calls.
Needing to do something, Billie closed her eyes and focused her thoughts inward. She concentrated on Royce until a picture of his face filled her head. Last time she had looked he had been unconscious, but now he was awake. Both he and Finn were bound hand and foot, but they appeared to be unharmed. The need to go to him was getting harder for her to ignore. She ground her teeth in frustration.
"Are they still all right?"
Billie opened her eyes and nodded at Roxie. "So far, yes." She eyed the syringe and alcohol wipes Roxie put down on the table in front of her. "Those aren't exactly what I pictured you would need to use for a magic spell."
"They are only part of it. I need to inject you with some of my blood. We might as well do it as hygienically as possible. Once the blood is in your system, I'll recite the spell."
At that moment Beowulf walked back into the room. "They're on their way. I suggest we hurry and get the spell over with. I don't want them to know about it." For Billie's benefit, he added, "We don't want it to become common knowledge that Roxie can change a mortal into a werewolf, more so if it works on you. It could put Roxie in a lot of danger from those who would like to use the spell for their own purposes."
"As Gren thinks he is doing by taking Royce. I still can't figure out why he took Finn."
"He hopes to turn your brother with the spell. Gren will not be thrilled when it doesn't work."
Determined to do what needed to be done, Billie put her arms up on the table. "Then I suggest we get a move on."
Roxie gave her a quick nod. She opened one of the alcohol wipes and ran it across the inside of her elbow. With the same efficiency, she jabbed the needle into her arm and filled the syringe with blood. Roxie then used a wipe on Billie's arm. Before she pierced Billie's skin with the needle Roxie waited, giving Billie the chance to change her mind.
"Do it."
She nodded and pushed the needle home. Once she injected the blood, Roxie pulled the needle out and recited the words of the spell.
The magic of the wolf's blood is now in thee.
A wolf you become to run wild and free.
Where once there were two, now only one we see.
The words of the spell seemed to resonate deep inside her. Billie gasped as the spot on her arm where the blood had been injected began to burn. With lightning speed, the burning sensation spread throughout her entire body until Billie felt as if she were burning from the inside out. Billie panted as she tried to breathe through the pain. She squeezed her hands into tight fists, causing the muscles in her arms to stand out. When she thought she couldn't take anymore, the burning slowly began to ebb. Once it was gone, her body felt as if it had been through a hard workout. She lifted her eyes to look at Beowulf and Roxie. "I don't think I want to do that again anytime soon."
Beowulf shook his head and smiled. "I'll be damned. You are one tough lady, Billie. Both Roxie and Taryn have said how painful it was to go through the change. You barely flinched."
Ignoring Beowulf's comment, Roxie asked, "Do you feel any different, Billie?"
She did feel different. All her senses were stronger. She could smell both Beowulf's and Roxie's scents. She could hear the sound of insects buzzing outside even though the window inside the kitchen was shut. It was a bit overwhelming at first, to be able to hear, see and smell so much better than she had before. Wanting to see if her gift was stronger as well, she focused her thoughts inward. It was stronger, and she noticed something else---power. There was a spark of power that she hadn't had before the spell. She reached for it. At her first tentative touch the power grew until it surrounded her. Even before she looked down at herself, Billie knew she had somehow managed to go wolf. She had felt the magic surge through her as she shifted. She threw back her head and howled.
It was Roxie's turn to be impressed. "Are you sure you've never done this before, Billie?" she said with a laugh. "Try and change back. Call the magic inside you, just as you did when you went wolf, but this time picture yourself in your human form. And don't forget about clothes either. Hold on. Let me cover Beowulf's eyes before you try it. Just in case you can't manage the clothes part. I ended up naked the first time I shifted back to human form." Roxie clapped a hand over Beowulf's eyes and waved a hand in front of his face to make sure he couldn't see anything. "Okay, go for it."
Billie reached for the new power inside her. She did as Roxie said. She concentrated on what she looked like in human form. The magic surrounded her once again. When the change was complete, Billie looked down at her body and smiled. She was wearing the clothes she had arrived in.
Roxie picked up Billie's left arm and flipped it back and forth. "Are you sure you don't have any new markings you'd like to tell me about?"
"No. Why?"
Holding out her own arm, Roxie showed Billie the Celtic designed markings that encircled her wrist. "This appeared shortly after I started seeing Beowulf. It is the mark of the one who would rule over the packs. I just wanted to make sure you weren't sporting any new tattoo-like markings. You seem to have adjusted rather well. Neither Taryn nor I could make the change as easily as you have done. I guess you're a natural."
The doorbell rang. Beowulf went to answer the door while Roxie cleared away the used syringe and wipes. Billie flexed her muscles a few times. Along with the extra sensitive senses, she found she was even stronger than she had been. She smiled to herself. She was pretty sure she would be able to give Gren a run for his money now.
It had taken another hour for the rest of the tranquilizer to leave Royce's system completely. During that time, Finn had done a pretty good job of ignoring him. Royce had been quite happy to leave the other man alone. After managing on his own to get himself sitting with his back up against a wall, Royce dozed off and on until he felt back to normal.
Now that he was fully awake, he decided Finn had had enough time to stew over matters. "You know you can't ignore me indefinitely, Finn. We have to try to get out of these ropes before Gren comes back."
Finn gave him a hard stare. "Can't you turn into a wolf? Your ropes would slip off once you do."
Royce shook his head. "Didn't you hear what Gren said? As long as I'm bound by this rope, I can't get free. The rope he used to bind me has silver threads in it. Silver inhibits my ability to shift into a wolf. I can't make the change fully."
"What do you want me to do?"
"Let's sit back to back and see if either one of us can work the knots free."
Pushing away from the wall, Royce inched his way over to where Finn sat. Once they were in position, he pushed his bound hands against Finn's. "See if you can get my ropes untied first. I'll be able to handle Gren better than you will."
"What makes you think I wouldn't be able to handle him?"
"You're not a werewolf. Plain and simple."
"So werewolves are so much more superior than mortals, is that it? If the bastard hadn't blindsided me, I'm sure I would have wiped the floor with him."
Royce snorted. "That wouldn't have happened. Regardless of how big you are, Gren would still have been able to take you. We aren't so much superior as we are stronger than you mortals are. Now if you're done thumping your chest, could you try to get this rope untied?" Leaning slightly forward, he pushed his hands up until he brushed against Finn's bound hands.
Finn shifted closer. He tried to work the rope with his fingers for a few minutes then cursed. "He has bound my hands too tightly. I can't feel my fingers. There's no way I'll be able to work those knots loose."
"All right, let me see if I can get you free instead." Royce sat up and moved his hands until he could feel the rope around Finn's wrists. Gren obviously hadn't tied his hands as tightly. He still had feeling in his fingers. Gren must have been counting on the silver being enough of a safeguard so that he wouldn't have to worry about Royce being able to free himself.
Once Royce set to work on the knots, Finn asked, "Just how many of you are around?"
"You'd be surprised. Our numbers have slowly declined over the years, but there are still quite a few of us werewolves around."
"I find that hard to believe."
"You've been to Wulf's Den I believe?"
"Yeah." Finn sounded leery.
"I'm sure you noticed all the very good looking people that either work there or come there for a few drinks. Let's put it to you this way. My kind is known to be better looking than the average person." Royce bit back a smile as he felt Finn stiffen behind him.
"Are you telling me I've been trying to pick up werewolves every time I've gone to Wulf's Den?"
"It would seem so. Beowulf, the owner of Wulf's Den, is my pack leader."
"Damn. I never would have guessed."
"Of course you wouldn't have. It isn't as if we want all of mortal kind to know of our existence. That could cause innumerable problems for us. Those of you who would fear what we are would take great joy in annihilating our kind." Royce felt the rope around Finn's wrists loosen.
"And Billie is fine with you being different?"
"Yes." Having managed to untie the final knot, Royce dropped the ends of the rope. "I got it. You should be able to get the rope off now."
Finn hissed with pain. No longer bound, the blood would be rushing back into his hands. "Give me a few seconds to get my feet free, then I'll get you untied."
Royce heard the lock being turned on the door a split second before Finn did. He shook his head when the other man got up and went to stand beside the door. Finn ignored him. Once Gren was in the room, Finn stepped out from behind the door and grabbed him by the shoulder. He spun Gren around and slammed his fist into his face. Gren barely moved. As Finn gathered himself for another strike, Gren lunged. With his hand wrapped around Finn's throat, Gren lifted him off his feet until he dangled in the air. His face started to turn red as Gren cut off his windpipe.
"I see I shouldn't have left the two of you alone together. I'll let this one slide, mortal, only because I want you in one piece when I try the spell. But if you try that again, you won't get off so easily."
Gren threw Finn across the room. He landed in a heap against the wall. Finn pushed himself up into a sitting position and coughed as he tried to draw deep breaths of air into his lungs. Royce snarled at Gren.
"Your time of reckoning has come, lone wolf. Let's put your blood to the test."
Gren stalked over to Royce and grabbed a handful of his hair. He painfully wrenched his neck to the side, exposing the large vein in Royce's neck. Holding him in place, Gren pulled an empty syringe out of his pants' pocket and pulled the plastic guard off the needle with his teeth. Spitting it out, Gren jabbed the needle into the side of Royce's neck. Royce gritted his teeth as the needle penetrated his skin. As Gren filled the syringe with blood, Royce vowed he would make Gren pay before the day was over.
"Are you sure this is the place, Billie?" Beowulf asked her as she got out of the car to stand next to him.
"Positive. I'm never wrong."
Using her gift, Billie had Beowulf drive to an older industrial area in the city. In the car that followed behind them were four other men from his pack. Each one of them looked as if they could tear a brick wall apart with their bare hands.
Billie scanned the empty warehouse that was in front of them. She knew Royce was inside there with Finn. If she'd had her way, she would already be inside looking for them, but Beowulf had warned her not to be too hasty. He didn't want to take any chances. It was killing her, but she managed to hold herself back. Being forcibly separated from Royce, she wasn't handling it well. The need to be with Royce was harder to ignore. And now that she was a werewolf, it was hitting her that much harder. It also made the need for Royce to take her, to have his hard cock buried deep inside her core, stronger than she had felt before. It made her edgy and downright bitchy. All she could think about was tearing Gren apart for taking Royce away from her.
Beowulf signaled for his men to take a quick search around the outside of the warehouse. Once they were gone, Billie started to grow impatient. She fisted her hands at her sides and growled low in her throat.
"Easy, Billie," Beowulf warned. "Don't let the wolf rule you. Wait until the others come back. We don't want to walk into a trap."
A minute ticked by, and then another. As she waited, Billie felt the muscles in her legs tighten with the strain of keeping herself reined back. She closed her eyes and looked for Royce. Her eyes quickly snapped open. She growled and bared her teeth.
"Billie." Beowulf reached out to stop her, but she shook him off.
"We have to go now, Beowulf. I can't wait for them to get back. Gren is making his move."
She took hold of the locked doorknob and wrenched it until the lock broke. Pushing the door open, Billie rushed inside with Beowulf close on her heels. Her nose zoned in on Royce's scent. Without missing a step, she crossed the large open space to the back of the building. There, she found the storage room. The door stood wide open.
Reaching for the magic inside her, Billie went wolf as she launched herself through the open door. She didn't stop her forward motion until she rammed into Gren who was standing over Royce. She hit him with enough force to push him away. Landing on her feet, she stood next to Royce and growled.
Gren easily regained his balance. "What do we have here? It would seem someone has been using my spell."
Billie felt Royce's gaze on her, but she knew better than to take her eyes off Gren. She edged closer to Royce until her side was pressed up against his shoulder. She bared her teeth and gathered her muscles under her, ready to strike if Gren so much as moved.
From across the room, Finn asked, "Billie, is that really you?"
Beowulf, who had slipped into the room, moved to stand over Finn. "There will be more than enough time for questions later."
Gren snarled with rage. "Have you come to take me to your bitch, Beowulf? It would seem she has taken something of mine."
"The spell was never yours to take, Gren," Beowulf snarled back. "You have gone too far this time. Roxie will decide what needs to be done about you. And I can guarantee you it won't be as simple as chaining you outside in my backyard for a day either."
That seemed to incite Gren even more. Turning away from Billie, he leaped across the room and grabbed Finn. Before Beowulf could stop him, he jabbed the syringe he held in his hand into Finn's neck with what Billie assumed was Royce's blood.
"Now we'll see if Roxie is the only who can change an ordinary mortal into a werewolf."
Gren let Finn go and stepped back. He recited the words to the spell Roxie had used earlier on her. Billie knew it wasn't going to work. She knew Roxie's blood was the key, not Royce's. Moving lower to the ground, she stalked closer to Gren.
When Finn showed no reaction, Gren threw back his head and howled with rage. Then everything seemed to happen at once. The men Beowulf had brought rushed into the room just as Billie leapt at Gren. This time she didn't have the element of surprise, and Gren proved to be just as quick as any of his kind. Sensing her coming, he spun around and caught her in midair. With a grim smile on his face, Gren squeezed her ribs until she stopped struggling.
"You may be a werewolf now, girl, but you're still no match for me."
Billie quickly shifted back into human form, which caused Gren's hold on her to shift. "We'll see about that."
Using the same strikes she taught in her self-defense classes, Billie stomped on the inside of Gren's foot hard enough to cause him to release her. Next she brought her knee up into his crotch. As he sank to the floor bent over, Billie brought her linked hands down onto the back of his head. He fell to the floor like a stone where he lay stunned and moaning in pain.
Panting from her exertion, Billie looked around the room. She met the stunned expressions of the other men in the room. While she had been battling Gren, someone had freed Royce of his bonds. He took a step toward her. As he grew nearer, his look of surprise left his face to be replaced with a look of pride. Billie smiled back, but it soon fell away when Royce's expression changed into one of shock as his gaze focused onto something behind her.
Not taking the time to even think of what she was doing, Billie went wolf as she spun around. She bunched her back legs under her and jumped as Gren dove for her brother with a knife in his hand. She caught Gren's throat in her powerful jaws and took him to the floor.
A rage like no other she had ever felt before overtook her. Her hackles rose around her neck and she growled as she thought of what this male could do to her family, to Royce if he was ever allowed to go free. The wolf inside her pushed to the fore. The wolf took her over and did what needed to be done. Billie felt her strong jaws snap shut, breaking Gren's neck.
With the taste of Gren's blood in her mouth, Billie let go of his neck. Beowulf pushed her aside as he bent over Gren. Still in wolf form, she looked up at Finn who stood where Gren had dropped him. He eyed her with unease, as if he expected her to attack him next. She took a step toward him only to be brought up short when he backed away from her.
A large hand landed on the back of her neck. Billie looked up to find Royce standing next to her. "It's over, Billie. Let the wolf go."
Back in human form, she started to shake as she realized what she had done. She still tasted Gren's blood on her tongue, and she could smell it on her skin. Royce quickly gathered her up in his arms and held her tight against him. She closed her eyes as she breathed in his scent.
"It's all right, Billie. I'm going to take you out of here." Royce rubbed her back. He then called Beowulf's name. "I have to get her out of here."
Beowulf pulled his car keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Royce. "Take my car. We'll take care of everything."
With Royce's arm held protectively around her, Billie kept her face pressed to his chest as he led her outside to Beowulf's car. She felt numb inside. She'd just taken a life. Her mother's prediction had come true. The wolf was a killer.
Royce worriedly glanced over at Billie in the passenger seat. She had withdrawn into herself. She sat huddled up against the door with her forehead pressed against the glass of the window.
"You did what you had to back there, Billie. By our laws, you acted within your rights. Gren attacked members of your family, of your pack."
"Finn is not part of the pack." Billie spoke in a low emotionless tone.
"By your becoming my mate, your family will be considered part of our pack even if they aren't werewolves."
Billie continued to look out the window. She was silent for so long Royce thought she wasn't going to say anything more. But then she said in a voice so quiet he almost didn't hear her, "I think Finn is afraid of me."
"I don't think he's afraid of you, Billie. You're his sister."
"Then why did he back away from me when I was in wolf form? I only did what I had to do to save his life."
"He's probably a little confused right now, that's all. I know I was surprised when I realized it was you when you first charged Gren." When a streak of black had rushed Gren, Royce had at first thought it was Beowulf, but after getting a good look at the black wolf, he had noticed it was smaller than his pack leader, and that it was a female. By her scent he immediately had known it was Billie.
Billie fell silent again. It wasn't until he was pulling into the driveway of the house did she speak once again. "I feel so cold, Royce. I need you to make me warm. I know I should be a mess emotionally, but all I can think about is having you. I need you inside me to make me feel whole again."
She turned to look at him. Royce sucked in a breath. Her eyes were glowing with desire. He quickly turned off the car's engine and came around to get her. She clung to him as he walked her to the front door. Once he had them inside, Royce took her straight upstairs to the bathroom and turned on the shower. As it warmed up, he stripped Billie of her bloody clothes. Scooping her up in his arms, he stepped into the shower with her, not caring that his clothes were getting wet.
He washed her hair and body as he would have a child. Even though the need to take her was strong, he resisted. He knew Billie needed Gren's blood washed away first. Once he was finished, he turned off the water and lifted her out of the shower. He then toweled her dry. Before leaving the bathroom, he stripped off his soaking wet clothes and left them in a sodden pile on the floor.
Inside the bedroom, he pulled back the covers on the bed and put Billie under them. He climbed in next to her and held her close. Pressed skin to skin, she snuggled against him. Royce resisted the urge to grind his fully erect cock against her. She needed to make the first move.
At the first brush of Billie's lips against his chest, Royce felt his heart begin to pound. But when she reached down and wrapped her hand around his aching cock, he couldn't hold back the growl of need that slipped past his lips. He needed to be inside her as much as she needed him to be there. Seeing his mate able to take down a male werewolf almost twice her size had laid all his fears to rest. Never again would he have to worry that Billie would be taken from him as Alicia had been. Billie was one of the strongest females he had ever known. He wasn't even sure if Roxie would have been able to take out Gren in just her wolf form.
Billie pumped her hand up and down his hard length. He didn't want to rush her, but he felt as if he was ready to explode. When she growled against his skin, Royce rolled her over onto her back. Holding his weight on his elbows, he looked down at her. With a growl, Billie grabbed a handful of his hair and brought his mouth down hard onto hers.
That was all Royce needed. With a moan, he kissed her thoroughly. He swept his tongue along the seam of her mouth then pushed his tongue inside. As he kissed her, he rocked his hips against her. His cock brushed up against her pussy. He groaned deep in his throat at how wet she was for him. He could have taken her fast and hard, he knew she was more than ready for him, but he wanted to give her pleasure first.
Easing down her body, he kissed a trail down the slender column of her throat to her chest. He swirled his tongue around one puckered nipple. Billie moaned as he dragged his teeth against it before he sucked it deep inside his mouth. Her hips bucked beneath him as he drew hard on her nipple. He did the same to her other one until he had her panting with need.
Inching ever downward, he placed kisses across her ribs and stomach. At her belly button, he swirled his tongue inside it. Moving so he lay between her legs, Royce licked her pussy from bottom to top. Billie made a sound that was half growl, half moan. His cock grew even harder at the sound.
With the tip of his tongue, he flicked it against her clit before he sucked on the little nubbin of flesh. Billie shoved her fingers through his hair, holding him to her, as she rocked her hips against his mouth. Continuing to lick and suck on her clit, he pushed one finger inside her core. Her inner walls squeezed down around it as he moved it in and out of her slick opening. Royce growled as the scent of her desire filled his nose, and as he tasted it on his tongue.
He continued to work her clit as he pushed a second finger inside. He knew she was close to her release. Working her faster, he felt her fall over the edge. As she climaxed, she pressed herself closer and moaned. Before the final spasm ended, Royce rose up above her and sheathed his cock inside her core with one stroke.
No longer able to hold back, he rammed into her again and again. Billie clung to his back, matching his strokes. The feel of her inner muscles clamped around his hard shaft was almost too much to bear. He wanted her to come again before he found his release, but he didn't know if he could hold out that long. He was too close. The veins in his neck stood out with the strain it was taking to keep himself from coming.
Billie brought his lips to hers and sucked his bottom lip into her mouth. She nipped it before she let it go. "Come for me, Royce. Don't hold back."
Her words broke through the hold he had over himself. With his hands on her hips, he slammed into her. Each thrust in he felt his cock butt up against her womb. He increased his pace until he felt his orgasm overtake him. His cock pulsed deep inside Billie, filling her with his cum. He moaned as her inner walls clutched at his shaft, milking him dry, as she reached her own orgasm.
Royce collapsed on top of Billie. He rolled them to their sides and pulled her leg high up on his hip, keeping their bodies joined. Once his heart stopped racing, he brushed his lips softly against her mouth. Billie blinked open her eyes. "How do you feel now?"
"Better." She then seemed to get lost in her thoughts.
"Don't go back there, Billie. Stay with me."
There was a sadness in her eyes that hadn't been there a second before. "Did I do the right thing, Royce? I took a man's life."
Royce wrapped his hand around the back of her neck. "You did what you had to do to protect your brother. No one will question your motives."
Billie pressed her lips to his and kissed him until they both were breathless. When she pulled away, she looked into his eyes. "At least Roxie doesn't have to worry about the spell being in the wrong hands now."
"No, she doesn't. And what about you, Billie? Are you sure being a werewolf was what you really wanted?"
She nodded. "After my talk with my father, I knew it was something I had to do."
"No regrets even after what happened today?"
"None. I wanted to be your mate in all ways."
His cock was still hard inside her. Royce thrust his hips against her. "That you are, Billie. Now I get to look forward to making love to you for the next thousand years or more. I couldn't ask for more."
Billie took her bottom lip between her teeth and moaned. "I can say the same thing about you. Now shut up and make love to me."
"With pleasure."
Running his hand along her hip and down to her bottom, Royce slowly pumped his hips between her legs. He would never be able to get enough of her. Billie lifted her leg higher and angled her hips so his shaft rubbed her clit as he moved deep inside her.
Teasing them both, Royce pulled back until only the tip of his cock was inside Billie's hot core, then he slowly pushed his length back inside. He looked down between their bodies and watched as his shaft slid in and out of her. The sight of their two bodies joined together made his blood surge in his veins.
He kept the pace slow, thrusting hard, until they both came once again. Gathering Billie close, he watched her slip into a deep sleep. With a kiss to her brow, Royce let his eyes close as sleep claimed him.
The following day Billie and Royce went to gym. Billie had arranged to meet her father and brothers there before the gym opened for the day.
Once they were all gathered inside the aerobics room on the upper level, she let her gaze touch on each of the men in her family. They all met her gaze, all except for Finn. He didn't appear to be the worst for wear from his run-in with Gren, but he didn't seem to be his usual self either. Since she had arrived at the gym, he had done his best to avoid her.
"I know you are wondering why I asked to talk to you all today. I thought it would be easier to talk to you here instead of going to see each of you and explain. Something has happened. Something I hope you will all be able to accept."
Not leaving anything out, she told her brothers and father everything that had been going on in her life. When she got to the part about Royce being a werewolf and that through a spell she had been turned into one as well, she went wolf so there wouldn't be any question that she was telling the truth.
Amazingly enough there was no freaking out done by any of them. The only one who held back was Finn. When the others welcomed Royce into the family, Billie silently watched Finn slip out of the room. She felt saddened that he couldn't bring himself to be near her or Royce, but she figured he just needed time. Turning back to Royce, she smiled up at him. She had found her mate, and now had more than a lifetime to share with him.
Finn pounded down the stairs to the main floor of the gym. Needing some air, he kept going until he was outside. As the slight breeze hit his face, he drew in great draughts of air. He started walking as a myriad number of scents bombarded him.
He was no longer the same. The spell may not have worked to change him into a werewolf, but Royce's blood had definitely done something to him. Besides being able to smell better than he had before, he somehow had gained a new sense.
He had woken up in the middle of the night with images filling his head. They continued to flash before his eyes even after he was awake. The blood had given him a gift he did not want. His mother had such a gift, and it had basically destroyed her. He did not want to end up the same way.
With no destination in mind, Finn kept walking. If only it could be so easy to escape what he had turned into as it was to get away from Billie and Royce. But he knew it never would be again. He was changed forever, for better or for worse.
Marisa Chenery was always a lover of books, but after reading her first historical romance novel she found herself hooked. Having inherited a love for the written word, she soon started writing her own novels.
After trying her hand at writing historicals, she now also writes paranormals.
Marisa lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and four children. Check out Marisa's website at www.marisachenery.com. She would love to hear from you, so drop her an email while you're there.
Visit www.atlanticbridge.net for information on additional titles by this and other authors.

