I saw it.
I wished I hadn't.
Every fiber of my being wanted to reject what it was seeing. But I knew, this was no dream. I was seeing something that was not normal. Alien. But not from outer space.
No, it was just...
Other.
'It' was not human. 'It' was not a bear. 'It' was something in between.
Towering over the campsite, it stood over sixteen feet high. It's legs looked human but it's broad shoulders and arms were pure bear.
If a bear swallowed radioactive growth hormones. Or was mutated with dinosaur DNA. Or a laser beam from an advanced civilization.
It's neck was probably as wide as I was tall. It's face ended in a snout. But the eyes... dear god, the eyes were human.
And they were staring right at me.
It walked forward and tilted it's monstrous head, peering at me. I thought I was hidden by the foliage but no, he saw right through me.
Something about the way he was looking at me made me 10,000% sure he was male.
No.
One million percent.
I whimpered, trying to scoot backwards up the tree as he reached for me. His hand was not that of an animal. The fingers were long, elegant, and tipped with six inch talons.
I felt them scrape against my legs.
Why hadn't I worn my jeans to bed?
Why did I take this job?
Why didn't I spray more coyote piss everywhere?
As if wolf or coyote piss would do anything to deter something this size... hell, I doubted that this thing would be scared of a killer whale.
Or a tank.
I was blubbering as it's hand closed over my ankle and pulled me from the tree. It held me up high in the air, upside down, and stared at me. It's huge gold eyes blinked once.
Twice.
And then it opened it's mouth.
The last thing I remembered was the scrape of it's tongue against my throat.
The monster was licking me.
<3<3<3<3<3
Four ~ Max
It was always disorienting to come back to myself after the change. My body ached, my mind still more animal than human. My senses, hyper sensitive.
That's what made me realize it before I was even fully awake.
I wasn't alone.
Someone was here with me.
Someone who smelled delicious.
My eyelids were heavy as I forced them open. I was in the cave under my house. It was a secret entrance, a lair, for the beast.
This at least, was one thing I could count on.
I would come here unerringly after the change.
But this time, I'd brought someone with me.
I inhaled sharply.
A woman.
My eyes opened with a snap.
There- in the corner. A figure was huddled up, staring at me in fright.
I'd been right. It was a woman.
And what a woman she was.
Bright copper colored hair. I could see it, even in the dim light of the cave. Huge bright blue-green colored eyes stared back at me. Generously proportioned curves. She was all woman, whoever she was.
More importantly, she smelled delicious.
She was alive thank God. But how? Anyone who encountered the beast during the change had next to zero chances of survival. Unless...
Unless she was the one.
My mate.
If she was my mate... even the beast wouldn't hurt her.
I stood, my muscles creaking in protest. There was quite a lot of physical discomfort involved in the change. Not that I ever complained about that.
I didn't have anyone to complain to.
I stepped towards her and she flinched. Her scent was getting stronger with each breath. Lust roared through my veins, sending my cock shooting straight up towards my belly.
Maybe it was her. At last.
I certainly didn't react this way to the women I'd encountered in my lifetime.
Not even close.
I smiled and held out my hand.
"Come. Let's get you cleaned up."
She shook her head vehemently and I frowned. I was an alpha. Nobody could turn down a direct request.
And this was no request.
It was a demand.
"Are you injured?"
Her pretty lips opened but she hesitated.
"I- no, I'm fine."
"Then come. It's cold down here. Upstairs we can have food and a roaring fire."
Her eyes widened. She squawked as I lost patience, scooping her up into my arms.
"Stop!"
I stopped and stared down at her in consternation. I was hungry, tired and because of her, horny beyond all reason. She was needlessly delaying the gratification of all three of those bodily needs.
"What is it?"
"I'd like to go now."
"I'm sorry but I can't allow that."
"You can't- what? Allow me to leave?"
I smiled at her reassuringly. She was scowling at me ferociously. Obviously she didn't like being told what to do.
"Come, be agreeable and we can talk. I'll explain everything in time."
I didn't give her a chance to argue further, simply squeezed her tightly and carried her up the stairs.
<3<3<3<3<3
Five ~ Cassie
Bounce bounce bounce.
I was being jostled with each step. I sighed in annoyance and held on for dear life. There didn't seem to be a lot of other options open to me at the moment.
A man was carrying me up a long staircase. It was no ordinary staircase. It was carved into the solid rock of a mountain. It curved elegantly upwards towards god knows what.
Of course this was no ordinary man either.
First of all, he was gorgeous. Not just gorgeous- gorgeous. He was literally perfect. Handsome but not too pretty. He kind of looked like every actor who'd played a private detective rolled into one.
On steroids.
Lots and lots of steroids.
I felt sleepy suddenly, languorous. An hour ago I'd woken in a cave expecting to be dead. The creature from the woods had taken me. But when I woke up I was alone.
Well, almost alone.
Naked sleeping gorgeous man had been there.
I stifled a giggle. I always laughed when I was nervous. And I was pretty damn nervous at the moment!
But not terrified. For some mysterious reason I was no longer in the least bit afraid. Maybe it was his stunning good looks. Or the fact that he was naked.
Or the fact that he was hard.
Yeah, the big, beautiful prick I'd glimpsed in the darkness had my attention. I'm not gonna lie. Like the rest of him, it was oversized. And like the rest of him, it looked pretty damn close to perfect.
It had been a long time since I'd been this close to a boner. Not to mention one that looked so... yummy.
That didn't change the fact that he'd flat out refused to let me leave. That irked me, I wasn't going to lie. Of course it was battling it out with my vast relief at being in one piece. Never mind the intense curiosity I was feeling about this big, beautiful, bossy, buck ass naked man.
And lust.
Let's not forget the lust. Hot, searing lust. I'd never felt anything like it.
At the top of the stairs was a door. Not just any door either. It was thick, metal. It basically looked like something you would see at an army base. Or a submarine.
He reached out and punched in a complex code with one hand. I still felt fully supported with just one arm holding me up. Trapped by the grip in his other, massive hand. Even if I was crazy enough to try and get away from him at the top of a staircase, I doubt I could have budged an inch.
I decided I would just go with it.
For now.
The door swung open and light flooded the stairway. For a moment all I could see was light. And then I saw the place he was taking me too.
Sumptuous didn't start to cover it.
High ceilings with arches made of huge beams of raw timber, now darkened with age. An enormous stone fireplace. Hardwood floors covered with ornate oriental rugs. Leaded stain glass details in the enormous windows. Dark, rich, impossibly comfortable looking chairs and a sofa.
The whole place was oversized.
Like him.
Basically I'd wandered into a Billionaire's Hunting Lodge.
I suppressed a shiver as he stomped through the house. It was even bigger than I'd thought. We passed a massive front door. I made note of that. In case I had a chance to escape.
If I still wanted to that is.
At last he set me down in a kitchen. Of course it was the biggest, coolest, most luxurious looking kitchen I'd even seen. Whoever he was, naked beautiful man didn't anything small.
The room was at least three the size of my apartment in New York. The hardwood cabinets were ornately carved, the countertops some sort of dark granite. Everything looked old. Everything but the state of the art appliances. Those were just made to look old.
There were huge windows overlooking Yellowstone Park. In fact, I realized suddenly that we basically were inside Yellowstone. Though that was impossible, wasn't it?
I'd have to remember to ask him about that. And bear watching. And what the hell his name was.
Once I could start thinking clearly again.
He set me on my feet and I stumbled slightly. He reached out to steady me and I got a good look at his face in the light.
His face was chiseled, manly and yet beautiful. Kind of like a young Clint Eastwood. But thicker. Wider. With lucious looking brown wavy hair.
And his eyes.
His eyes were gold.
I took a step back. I recognized those eyes. They looked an awful lot like the eyes of the beast I'd encountered in the woods last night. The beast that could have eaten me in two bites.
But didn't.
It couldn't be though, right?
"What are you?"