“Willona’s mother, Maggie, had three mates and she could shift into numerous animals. Maggie wasn’t technically a true Therian, but she was damn close.”
Feeling foolish just standing there naked, she walked to the couch and sat. But he shook his head when she reached for the throw blanket folded over the back. She sat up straight and kept her thighs pressed together. “I’ve heard you use that term before. What do you consider a ‘true’ Therian?”
“I have reason to believe Therians were once true shapeshifters. I think we changed forms as easily as humans change their clothes.”
“When and why did Therians lose the ability to shift into anything they wanted to?” She was fascinated by the details, but Osric had likely told the backers his theories already. She needed current information, specifics he’d be reluctant to share.
“It happened gradually over countless generations. Cats grew suspicious of dogs and dogs saw weakness in the smaller clans. It became the norm to mate within one’s own clan, so the ability to shift into other forms dwindled away.”
“What made you think Willona would still have this ability?”
“Her mother was defined late in life and she took on three animal natures. I knew Willona would be even more receptive to a multiple definition if she was defined while her spirit was still fresh and strong.” His gaze dipped to her breasts then sank lower. “Open your legs.”
Carly swallowed hard. He was moving closer to the present, closer to the inner workings of the Therians. Besides, the drug should be kicking in soon. She inched closer to the edge of the sofa and parted her thighs.
“Wider.”
Slowly, she complied and heat crept across her skin. She always felt humiliated after they played these games, but her body responded to his demands more readily than any lover she’d ever known. “You said Willona was weak and afraid. What happened to her?”
He rubbed his eyes and then his nose. Good. Facial numbness was a common side effect, but this was taking forever. “No one believed me. They all thought Maggie was a fluke, that her abilities were some random trick of nature.” He left his chair and knelt on the floor in front of her. His hands cupped her knees and pushed her legs up and back until her heels rested on the edge of the sofa. “Sam didn’t believe me either, but he agreed to help me try.”
“Who is Sam?” She was naked and spread before him, her pussy creaming beneath his watchful eyes.
His breaths came faster and he kept blinking his eyes. She thought he’d succumb to the drug and then he pushed two fingers into her pussy and smiled. “You missed me.” He pumped slowly, watching his fingers disappear inside her body and reappear coated in cream. “So wet and hot.”
“Tell me about Sam.” Despite her determination to resist his careless stroking, her body responded. Tension gathered low in her belly and her clit began to twitch.
“Wolf pack alpha.” His voice sounded slightly slurred, but his hand kept up the steady motion, teasing her, arousing her. “Willona refused to name her guide, so I got permission to define her.”
She tensed, easily reading between the lines. “By force?”
“She only struggled in the beginning. We didn’t want to hurt her, but definition brings out the animal in Therian males.”
“You took turns…you and this wolf alpha?” What little desire he’d managed to stir sputtered out. She pushed his hand back and scurried off the couch, but there wasn’t anywhere to hide. The bathroom door didn’t lock and the bedroom was only separated from the main room by a curtain. “Did she survive?”
He turned and sat down, leaning back against the sofa. “I feel…weird.”
Finally. She darted into the bathroom and grabbed her robe off the back of the door. By the time she returned, his eyes had glazed over and his mouth hung open. Roberto had given her the drugs and told her they were amazingly effective. If the combination worked as promised, Osric would provide truthful answers to her questions and wake up with jumbled memories of a sexual encounter.
“Did Willona survive the forced definition?”
His head came up, but his gaze remained clouded. “Yes. She hated us and refused to shift. I’d never heard of anyone strong enough to suppress their animal nature, but Willona was.”
“What happened to her? How did she die?”
“We were looking into ways to force a shift when she realized she was pregnant.”
“That’s right. She gave birth to twins.” The two young women he’d been so determined to find.
“Not technically twins.” His voice became a monotone drone, but he answered without hesitation. “Ava is mine. Sam fathered Carissa.”