"Well? Was that news from our enforcers?"

"That was Dad. The enforcers found him with our mother, having s.e.x. When he would talk to them and got past his anger at them interrupting, he wasn't pleased with what they had to say. He wants us at the house now."

"Drop me off at my place," Anton ordered. "Shannon is my priority." Von hesitated. "It's a direct order. He wants us all there."

"I don't care."

"Anton, don't do this. Dad is upset. You should have heard him. You're his son, probably his favorite since he's been training you since birth to take his place, and he just found out his mate betrayed you both. He needs you. You can bring her with us. I heard Brand about not letting her out of your sight. If she gets bad again, you can take her to your old room at the house. We all understand mating heat."

"Okay. Stop at my place first though. I want her in clothes when we go to our parents' house.

Did he mention if any of the other pack is there?"

"He didn't." Von shoved his phone back into his pocket. "Brand, you heard him. Stop at the bar first."

"Got it." Brand sighed. "Remember when the biggest problem we had used to be remembering to carry enough condoms at this time of year? Things were less complicated when we were younger." Anton gazed at Shannon's face. "I wouldn't go back for anything. I've found what I've been looking for all my life."

"s.h.i.t." Braden groaned. "He's going to mate her. Great. A cat in the family. I can just imagine the p.u.s.s.y jokes the guys are going to torment me with now."

Anton smiled when he heard the sound of a hand slap the back of Braden's head and his responding curse. Rave had nailed him again. Some things never changed.

Chapter Fifteen.

Shannon awoke when Anton forced her into a shower with him. The pain she'd suffered from going into heat faded to a dull ache. Her muscles were sore but the shower helped. Anton tended her by washing her hair and body with his big, gentle hands.

"We have to go to my parents' house. I'm sorry I had to wake you. My family is outside waiting for us." He'd turned off the water after quickly washing his hair. "How are you feeling?" Her cheek remained a little tender from being hit by Mark. She could still feel the heat there, but didn't mention it hurt. Anton had been injured far worse with his gashes and bruises when he'd fought to rescue her. She didn't want to complain about something trivial in comparison.

"Sore but more like myself."

"According to my cousin, who seems to know a lot about your kind, this could last for days. If you start to hurt, tell me immediately. Do you need me?"

"I'm a little turned-on. You're hard. I noticed but I'm okay. There's no pain. I'll wait here while you go to your parents' house."

He shoved a towel at her. "No. I'm not leaving you alone." Fear sprang forth. "You think those jerks will come after me again?" He hesitated. "I don't want your heat to return while I'm not here to take care of you." Memory surfaced of something his cousin had said and she stared at the floor. "Oh. You think I'll hit on someone." Mortification gripped her. "I'll go with you." A hand gripped her chin, forced it up, and she met his intense gaze. "I didn't mean what I said in the woods. I was jealous and worried they'd hurt you. I told you, when I shift I'm more wolf than...me. I know you didn't want them to f.u.c.k you. My wolf was going nuts." Tears filled her eyes. "I've never even had a one-night stand. Is it possible that I'd allow anyone to touch me while I'm in heat?"

"I don't know. We're never going to find out either. No male will ever get near you when you're vulnerable. It's just going to be me."

Her mouth parted but she held back the words.

"What?"

She licked her lips. "What about the next time? You won't be with me then. I mean, if I'm similar to a cat, this will return if those hormones they gave me triggered me to change more or woke dormant genes."

He tensed. "Hormones?"

"They gave me a shot to force me into heat. I'm hoping now that they have probably dissipated in my system that it will never be that bad again. It could have just been from what they did to me when they gave me that shot. I really hope that's the case. I never want to go through that again. It hurt so much, being in full heat. I'm not sure I could take suffering that kind of agony again."

"We'll discuss this later. We need to get dressed and go to my parents' house." She glanced down at his c.o.c.k. "You're aroused."

"You're naked and I'm in mating heat. This is how I'm going to stay. I can control myself for a while. I can make it a few hours without the need growing too strong. We'll be home by then." Shannon dropped the towel and eased to her knees to kneel on it, in front of him. Anton had to release her face when she did it. She saw his eyes widen with surprise as she licked her lips.

"You took care of me. Now it's my turn to take care of you." His c.o.c.k stiffened more, lifted straight up, and desire made him softly growl at her. "They are waiting for us." He paused. "But I'm not saying no." A grin framed his lips. "Learning patience won't hurt them."

She hesitated and then her hand brushed his thigh, caressed his skin, and her fingers brushed his shaft. For someone so hard, the texture of his skin felt velvety soft.

"I don't have much experience at this."

He brushed her hair back over her shoulder. "Open up and take me. You couldn't do it wrong. I'd enjoy anything you do to me."

Her lips parted and he leaned closer. She adjusted him until the crown of his c.o.c.k hovered just over her bottom lip. Her tongue slipped out to swirl around the rim of him. A soft groan came from Anton. It encouraged her to grow bolder when she opened her mouth to make room for his thick size.

She pressed forward, taking him inside and sealed her lips around him.

She remembered the basics though it had been years since she'd given a guy head. She hadn't enjoyed it the few times she'd tried. Her ex-boyfriend had always choked her by grabbing the back of her head to try to make her take more than she could handle. Anton didn't do that. He had her hair but he just held it out of the way. His hips didn't thrust forward. He held very still.

"Go slow," he urged.

She started to move around him, lightly sucking, and licking at him. His c.o.c.k seemed to grow stiffer and his breathing increased but he held still. She took more of him, feeling more secure that she could handle his girth. A taste filled her mouth, a wonderful masculine flavor, and she moaned, moving faster, wanting more. It surprised her and her body responded. Her nipples grew taut and she started to ache for s.e.x. Wetness started to spread down her inner thighs.

"f.u.c.k," Anton moaned. "Slow down, Shannon. I can't come inside your mouth. I'm afraid I'd make you choke. We tend to e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.e harder and longer while in heat." She wanted to taste him enough to take that risk and ignored his warning. She moved faster, took him deeper, and sucked with gusto. Anton suddenly gripped her jaw, his hand tightening on her hair, and jerked back. His c.o.c.k pulled free from her hungry mouth and she cried out. She stared at him with confusion.

He fell to his knees in front of her, grabbed her around her waist, and lifted her easily to turn her around. "Bend and grab the edge of the sink now," he snarled.

Her hands clutched porcelain and she cried out when he entered her fast and hard from behind.

His c.o.c.k stretched her, sent rapture straight to her brain from the nerve endings he pressed against as he surged into her deeply as his hands steadied her hips.

"Hang on tight," he rasped.

He pounded against her a.s.s, f.u.c.king her furiously, and the sound of their panting and skin slapping skin filled the small room. Shannon hung her head, pleasure swamping her, and her v.a.g.i.n.al muscles tightened in antic.i.p.ation of the climax that built. No one had ever made her feel the way Anton could.

Anton's hands moved. One released her hip to grip her shoulder while his other hand delved between her parted thighs. Two fingers pressed against her c.l.i.t. He rubbed her while he f.u.c.ked her.

Shannon screamed when she started to come. The world exploded around her in ecstasy. A heavy body pressed against her back and teeth gripped her shoulder on the side he didn't hold. His teeth pinched her skin, sent more rapture throughout her body, and he snarled.

His teeth pulled away and then he roared loud enough in her ear to deafen her while his body jerked violently. Inside her, she could feel him filling her with his release. Each jerk of his hips spilled more of his c.u.m inside her. The warm jets of his s.e.m.e.n spread inside her and it made her smile at the rightfulness of the sensation.

"f.u.c.k," he groaned. "I nearly did it. We have to talk after we get back from my parents." She turned her head to stare into his beautiful eyes. "You were going to mate me, weren't you?

We didn't use a condom."

He didn't look away. Their faces nearly touched with him bent over her, their bodies still joined, and his fingers eased away from her throbbing c.l.i.t. "Yes. I wanted to mate you and I'm aware that we didn't use one this time when we could have."

She didn't know what to say. Disappointment that he hadn't bitten into her wasn't something she wanted to share. Staying with Anton, despite the fact they didn't know each other well, wouldn't be a bad thing. She was falling in love with him. She kept that bit of news a secret, sure he would do the normal guy thing when he heard a woman say the "L word"run.

It's just s.e.x, she told herself. He made a commitment to me during mating heat. When it's over, he's going to want me gone. He's a werewolf and I'm not. He's the future alpha of his pack and I can't forget that.

"We need to shower again and then go." He hesitated and then a look of regret crossed his features. "We'll talk when we return." He lifted up and carefully withdrew from her body.

She hated it when their bodies were no longer connected. She loved feeling a part of Anton. She just loved him. He'd saved her from his pack, from a puma pride, and he always took care of her. In other words-he'd done more for her than any other guy ever had. He made her feel safe and protected. Special. s.e.xy. All the things she'd always longed to feel. He also knew she wasn't fully human, accepted her despite it, and had given her amazing, mind-blowing s.e.x. A lot of it too.

Anton stood and held out his hands. "Come on."

She allowed him to pull her to her feet. He released her, turned the water back on, and stepped inside the shower. She hesitated. When we come back here, will he tell me that we could never work out, long term? Remind me that a cat and a wolf can never be anything more than temporary lovers? It hurt her to even consider those possibilities.

"Come on in. The water is warm." He smiled at her.

Her heart melted even more. She stepped into the shower with him and allowed the water to flow over her body. In minutes they got out, dried off, and Anton lent her a pair of sweatpants and one of his oversized T-shirts.

"It's going to be fine," he a.s.sured her, his dark gaze holding hers. "You know you're safe with me and I'll never allow anyone to hurt you. I don't know how many of our pack may be there but my mother will be there for sure. She won't get near you."

"Okay." She believed him. "I know she hates me after the scene she made when she visited earlier. Is your father okay?"

"We need to go. My father wasn't hurt. My mother lied about that to lure me away from you.

She is the reason those pride males knew where to find you." He grimaced. "She called them to come get you. It's fine now. My father will handle this and make certain it never happens again. She's in deep s.h.i.t right now with everyone. I need to speak to him and he's waiting for us." She nodded, lifted her chin, and gave him a brave face. He led her out of the apartment, down the stairs, and they left the closed bar by the back door. They didn't speak, though she had questions.

The white van waited outside with his brothers and cousin. She refused to meet their gazes. It made her embarra.s.sed that these men knew she and Anton had s.e.x in the same van she climbed into again. She also wondered how Anton had gotten her from the van up to his apartment. She really didn't want to know, for fear the answer would make her more uncomfortable, but she hoped he'd covered up her body somehow instead of carrying her naked in front of his family. Witnessing her tied naked to that log had been bad enough.

Anton sat next to her and took her hand in his. She clung to him as the van started. Meeting his mother had been an unpleasant experience and now she would meet his father. Alphas were the most feared of all werewolves, known for their viciousness and brutality. They used fear and violence to keep their pack in line, according to what her father had told her mother.

Guilt suddenly struck her. She hadn't called her mother in days. She'd wanted to avoid lying.

Stating the truth, that she currently lived with a werewolf, under his protection, would probably send her mother into heart failure.

"What's wrong?" Anton looked concerned. It made her smile that he seemed so in tune to her feelings that he noticed her distress.

"I was just thinking about how my mother would freak out if she knew where I am and where I'm going. She's feared me meeting other shifters all my life."

"It's going to be fine," Rave offered from the seat in front of them. He turned his head, and grinned. "No one is going to hurt you. You have five of the best pack fighters here. Think of us as your personal bodyguards." He winked. "Of course, only Anton gets to really hover over you."

"Rave," Anton warned softly.

He laughed. "What? I'm just trying to let her know she's got nothing to worry about. No way will anyone start any s.h.i.t with us surrounding her."

Annoyance made Anton scowl. He squeezed Shannon's hand. "It will be fine. My father is actually a lot nicer than my mother. My older brother mated a human and he backed Grady's decision.

My mother didn't like it one bit, but then, there's not much she doesn't hate."

"You can say that again," Rave muttered. "I was forbidden to even date human women." He made a face at Von. "Thanks to him."

Von's grin faded. "Drop it."

Shannon glanced at Anton. He hesitated. "Von fell for a human but it didn't work out."

"I said drop it," Von demanded. "We don't discuss it, ever." Curiosity piqued Shannon but obviously no one would discuss the subject. It had to be a sore topic for Von. She got the impression the human woman had hurt him. No one spoke the rest of the drive to a secluded house surrounded by woods.

The house looked nice and very normal. Shannon wasn't sure what she'd expected to see but a middle-cla.s.s ranch house wasn't it. The van stopped and they all got out. Anton kept a tight hold on her hand.

"If you get scared," he dipped his head to peer into her eyes, "don't bolt away from me. Grab me. I'd rather hold you than have to get you down from a ceiling beam." A grin softened his words.

"There are some pack members here. Not too many but I smell at least ten. There's nothing to fear, kitten. You're perfectly safe with me."

She winced. "Don't let me go, just in case. I swear, I'll die of embarra.s.sment if my instincts make me do something humiliating in front of your father."

"You're getting better at controlling it. You've done great in a van full of us."

"You're right!" That cheered her up and made her feel more confident that she wouldn't do something she'd regret.

He chuckled. "Maybe your puma is starting to think it's part werewolf from adjusting to my scent."

"I don't think so. When those pride guys came into your apartment after me, I was scared but my instincts didn't respond the way they do around your kind. It really p.i.s.sed me off. I wanted to flee and tried but I didn't go all ninja climbing skills."

Anger darkened his handsome features. "It had to be the heat you're in. It recognized them as other pumas." He snarled that last word, really getting worked up.

Shannon gaped at him, unsure what had set him off but he totally had gone off the deep end, furious.

He took a few deep breaths. "I'm jealous." He calmed, getting control of his temper. "I feel my wolf, what it wants and how it reacts to things, even when I'm in skin. It makes me wonder if the cat inside you prefers it if you were with one of those a.s.sholes who kidnapped you. You are too human to control those puma genes of yours but only react to whatever instincts come with them." Understanding dawned and she stepped into him, gazing into his eyes. "As you pointed out, I'm too human. I can't feel a cat inside me. It's just me in here with some crazy fears that I react to. You're the only man I want, Anton."

His arm slid around her waist to pull her against him and he lifted her hand to brush a kiss over her knuckles. He smiled.

"I hate to break this up," Von interrupted softly. "We need to go inside. They are waiting."

"I know." Anton lowered her hand. "Let's go."

He released her waist, stepped back, but gripped her hand tight enough that she knew even if she panicked, she wouldn't be able to jerk free. She followed close behind him as they entered a nice living room and then walked to the back of the house to a doorway that had stairs leading downward.

Rave and Von kept in front of them with Braden and Brand behind.

The couches and chairs were taken by a group of men who all turned their heads to watch them carefully. Fear shot through Shannon as she glanced at the werewolves in skin, sure all of them were exactly that, and her nose itched. She wanted to hide behind Anton when he stopped at the bottom of the stairs but she forced the urge back and stayed at his side instead. She kept her chin up as a man suddenly walked from a hallway at the back of the room. One look at his familiar features a.s.sured her this had to be Anton's father but he didn't look as old as he should. He didn't even look forty.

"Dad." Rave spoke first. "I'm so sorry Mom has done this." The man didn't look well. The black, s.h.a.ggy hair that fell to his shoulders had an unkempt appearance, and dark circles made his gaze appear haunted. He focused on Shannon and while she didn't sense any hostility, he sure didn't seem happy to see her either.

"This is her?" he rasped gruffly.

Anton tensed. "Yes. This is Shannon Alvers. She's only a quarter puma. She can't shift, Dad. She's no threat to anyone here."

"I'm Elroy Harris." He paused. "I lead the Harris Pack. First, I want to apologize for the way our pups attacked you and dragged you into our world. It shouldn't have happened. I don't condone attacking other shifters without reason and certainly not female ones. I'm sure you were raised hearing terrible stories about our kind but we aren't brutal killers."

"Thank you. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Harris." She spoke softly around the lump that had formed in her throat. She'd never expected him to apologize to her.