Desert Wolf (The Wolves of Twin Moon Ranch) (2 page)

He had a way of making her feel like a taller, more clever, more beautiful version of herself. And who knew? Maybe his was a magic touch and she really was different, because her parents, siblings, and old friends had all gaped at her yesterday. Had she changed so much in the two years she’d been away? Or were they amazed that a plain tomboy like Lana could make a mate of a man like Ty?

“Just think,” she whispered, wrapping her hand around his stiff length and inching toward the base. “No packmates here to barge in on us. No urgent phone calls...”

“No business,” he murmured, closing his eyes to the pleasure she was giving him. That power still gave her a thrill.

“No emergencies,” she finished, running her tongue along his ear.

Ty grinned and thrust slowly within her grip. “I love Massachusetts.”

Lana chuckled then took an abrupt inhale as his hand found her breast and tweaked the nipple. Her legs wanted to fall wider apart and draw him in, but she fought back the urge. No need to rush this sweet pleasure. Not when they had all morning.

Ty seemed to have the same idea because he licked thick, uneven circles around her nipples that revved or slowed in time with her hand’s motion up and down his cock. Jesus, but the man was big. Thick, long, and strong. Deliciously strong. Her core grew slick even as her mind estimated how long she might hold out. Not long at the rate she was melting.

“You, my mate,” he rumbled, “are not leaving this house until you are glowing with satisfaction for all of New England to see.” He dragged the stubble of his chin over her breast then her neck, marking her with his scent.

“I’m pretty sure most of the East Coast can tell I’m yours.” She guided his head back into place over her breast and let her whole body writhe as her nipple peaked under his lips. The man knew exactly how to drive her crazy, when to push hard and when to ease back.

When Ty sucked hard on her tight bead, everything flashed white and she went hot all over. She pushed her body into his, aligning the head of his cock with her entrance. His eyes went dark—God, the way his look promised unbridled passion—and he pushed forward, filling her inch by inch.

“Oh, Ty,” she moaned, drawing the syllables out over several counts of her racing heart. “More.”

His dark eyes could have burned a house to the ground, but to her, they were glowing embers, stoking the flames inside her until they threatened to consume her.

“Tell me,” he demanded, pulling back.

She loved that kind of bossy. “In. Ty, come back in,” she groaned, lifting her hips to force his return.

He grinned and slid deeper, making her eyes roll. In another minute, she’d be screaming his name. Good thing the guesthouse stood apart from the rest of the dwellings in the little town.

“Like this?” he growled in her ear.

“Like that,” she breathed, lifting her legs higher around his body until the angle was just right. Higher, higher…there. Ty felt it, too, because he sucked in a breath and tipped his chin up, reveling in the moment. Her soul sang with the power she yielded over her man.

And he ain’t seen nothing yet
, her inner wolf chuckled as she clamped down around his length with her inner muscles.

“Now you tell me,” she said, practically crowing at the way he threw his head back and groaned in pleasure. She smiled and took a deep breath, preparing to do it again.

But a knock sounded at the door and two squeaky voices called out. “Auntie Lana! Uncle Ty!”

Ty groaned in a totally different tone and dropped his body to hers, his cock quivering inside her. “Shit.”

Shit, shit, shit
. Lana cursed and swiveled her head to peer at the clock on the bedside table. Seven a.m. Damn jet lag had fooled her into thinking she had another hour of bliss before meeting her niece and nephew for the walk she’d promised the evening before. But damn, didn’t kids need sleep, too?

“Five minutes,” she sighed loud enough for them to hear. Maybe she and Ty could speed things up and get, if not the drawn-out love-fest she was imagining, then at least a quick shag. Enough to tide her over until later.

“You promised!” came the voices, along with another insistent series of knocks.

Ty buried his face in the pillow next to Lana’s head. “I hate Massachusetts.”

She let out a long, slow breath of defeat and eased her legs down his body. No matter how much it hurt to pull away from Ty, she knew the kids wouldn’t give up until they’d gotten what they’d been promised: a walk in the woods with their most exotic aunt and uncle. Lana sighed and fluttered her lips over Ty’s ear. “Sorry, my love. Your fan club wants you.”

“Your fan club, sweetheart,” he retorted, a note of bemusement creeping into his voice.

The truth was, the kids seemed a little in awe of them both. As did half the pack. The other half was wary, undecided. What would it take to convince them Ty was all right?

“I’ll make it up to you later,” she whispered, kissing his ear and earning a tiny purr.

“You most definitely will.”

CHAPTER THREE

Lana put on a look of false cheer as they joined the kids and her sister Nala outside.

“Isn’t it great, Auntie Nala? We get to walk with Auntie Lana and Uncle Ty!”

Lana exchanged amused glances with her younger sister. The great part, they both knew, was giving their brother Neal and his mate a break from their excitable cubs.

For all the racket the kids made as they skipped down the forest trail, Lana could still hear Ty grumbling. He flipped up the collar of his flannel shirt and scowled at the crunching of his boots over the morning frost.

And people live here because…?

She shot him a look.
Because if everyone lived in Arizona, it’d be too full.

He grunted then hoisted her niece to his shoulders.
Maybe we should head home a day or two sooner.
He put the thought straight into Lana’s mind instead of saying it aloud. She had to give him brownie points for that—the big, bad alpha had learned a little tact.

We just got here, Ty.

What if there’s a problem at home?

She shrugged.
Cody’s in charge.

Ty gave an exaggerated inner groan.
That’s what I mean.

Come on. He’s got Zack and Kyle to help him. Plus Tina and your dad.

Dad can’t wait for him to fuck up
, Ty muttered.

Neither can you.

He stopped in mid-step to stare at her.

It’s true
, she insisted.
Give your brother a chance. Imagine how much more time we’d get if he were helping run things.

The thin line of his lips—yep, the soft cushions that had been kissing her were already hidden away—grew thinner. Then he turned and ducked under a low-hanging branch, continuing down the forest trail. She’d have to work extra hard to coax them back out later.

Lana hid a grin. That part could be fun.

They were in the thick of the woods now, where pockets of snow still clung to the hollows and the cold seemed thicker, damper. They followed a meandering trail that was full of memories, like the time she and Len built a treehouse in that cluster of oaks. She could still see one of the two-by-fours stuck in the branches. Or the time she buried treasure—chocolate gold coins from the dime store—by the big boulder under the pines, only to find it eaten by insects later. Those memories, she could feel sentimental about. Others weren’t so funny, like the spot among the mossy tree stumps where she used to go to hang her head and tell herself that being alone was perfectly fine. Even back then, she’d dreamed of red rock canyons and mile-wide views, as if she was destined for Arizona the way she was destined for Ty.

“So, you happy to be home?” Nala asked.

I can’t wait to go back
, she wanted to say, but kept her response to a vague hum.

“Your mate’s so good with the kids,” Nala said, throwing Ty an appreciative look.

Lana blinked. Ty—her Ty—good with kids? She nearly cackled out loud. Ty the volcano? Ty the sexy grouch? Ty, her desert wolf?

But looking at him… Well, hell, maybe Nala was right. The kids were shrieking with delight, one swinging from each of his arms as he strode along with exaggerated gestures.

And damned if a little zing didn’t go through her there and then.

The image stuck in her mind: a couple of cubs, using Ty as a jungle gym, completely at ease with his raw power. Trusting in the knowledge that he’d never, ever harm his wards.

The zing became a pulse as she pictured those cubs as her own.

“So…” Nala ventured, letting Ty and the kids bound out of earshot. “You’ve been together two years…”

Lana knew what her sister was implying.
And still no kids?

Pure-blooded shifters had a notoriously hard time conceiving, but destined mates usually didn’t, so the question was legitimate. She tossed out her standard answer without thinking. “I don’t want to be seen as just the alpha’s mate or the mother of his kids. I want my own place in the pack. That takes time.”

Even as she said it, a retort sounded from deep inside. Her inner wolf was sharing her two cents again.

We’ve earned our place in the pack. Time for the next step.

Ty was all for it, Lana knew. He’d been pushing for kids from the day they’d exchanged mating bites. She was the one hitting the brakes.

Nala gave an audible sigh. “I don’t know how you can resist. Look at him.”

Ahead of her, Ty swung one of the kids in a big loop, holding tight to her niece’s tiny hand as she squealed, “Wheee!”

“Now me! Me!” cried her nephew, tugging at Ty’s shirttail.

Ty’s words, spoken from once upon a time, echoed in her mind.
Three cubs…if it’s okay with you.
He’d said that the first morning they woke up together knowing they’d never part. At the time, the idea of even one child had seemed a million miles away. But now… Heat spread through her chest and tugged at the corners of her heart. Three cubs would be great. Cubs that were half her, half Ty. Watching her nephew take his turn cavorting with Ty, she substituted dark-haired kids and a desert background…and promptly stumbled over her own feet.

She tried shaking the unsteady feeling away. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t pictured that before. But back on Twin Moon Ranch, she’d fallen into a pleasant routine, balancing work with the precious time she and Ty had alone. She’d been telling herself she’d wait a little longer. A little longer…

How long was long enough?

Ty turned and socked her with a look so unguardedly happy, so sparkling, it took her breath away.

Nala chuckled. “You can continue family tradition and combine the letters of your names for the kids.” She tried out a few. “Ty-la. Ta-na. Ty-ler.”

Lana hadn’t given it much thought. Tyla? Hmm. Tana? That one had a nice ring. She found herself striding faster, reluctant to let her mate’s perfect ass disappear around the next corner without her.

“One thing at a ti—”

She was cut off by a child’s scream and a bone-jarring bellow, followed by a thunderous roar.

CHAPTER FOUR

“Jesus,” Lana muttered, sprinting around the curve.

Her niece was racing back, screaming, and then launched herself into Lana’s arms. With her free hand, Lana snatched for her nephew and whipped around, sheltering both children from the mayhem ahead. Ty—wolf Ty—had ripped right out of his clothes in what had to be a record-fast shift and was wrestling something huge and furry. It was humanoid and outlandishly tall—at least eight feet—with long, sharp teeth that flashed and snapped. Wolf and beast bashed to the ground in a blur of limbs and ear-piercing snarls. Lana watched in horror as Ty’s black-brown pelt twisted and leaped around the whitish-beige form of the beast.

She’d only ever seen Ty that furious once—the night she’d almost fallen victim to a band of rogue coyotes. This fight looked every bit as lethal as that one had been. Lana pushed the children toward Nala and prepared to jump into her own shift to help Ty. Whatever the beast was he was fighting, it would take more than one wolf to beat.

Nala screamed across the clearing. “Stop! Harrison, stop! Lana, stop Ty!”

Lana lurched at the words. Why should she stop Ty at a moment like this? It was life or death.

“Harrison, stop!” Nala yelled.

Lana peered at the flailing, snarling figure, and realization dawned. Harrison?

“Ty! Stop!” She jumped forward, joining in Nala’s refrain. “Don’t kill him!”

But Ty already had the beast pinned on its back and his jaws poised over the exposed neck, a line of saliva dripping from his muzzle. The tall creature was prone and frozen in surrender.

“Ty! Stop!” Lana inched closer. A wolf in full battle mode was no laughing matter, even if it was her own mate.

Ty growled right into her mind.
I don’t know who this is. I don’t know what this is, but it dies. Now.

“No! Don’t! Ty! We know him!” Lana stepped forward, but Ty shifted his haunches to block her, keeping his body between her and what he assumed was an enemy. “Ty, stop!” How to explain that Harrison was a fellow shifter, an ally?

He snarled so deeply, it vibrated in her bones.
You know this thing?

“Ty! Please!” Lana cried. “Jesus, Harrison, what the hell were you thinking?”

Ty froze at the beast’s throat.
Who the hell is Harrison?

“Him! The sasquatch! Ty, he’s a friend of my brother’s. Tell him, Harrison.”

The furry humanoid under Ty’s paws gave a meek wave, prompting Ty to lean deeper and snarl louder as a second thread of saliva dripped from his jaws.

“Please call off your dog, Lana,” the sasquatch groaned under his breath.

Lana stiffened and put her hands on her hips. “He’s my mate, you idiot.”

You know this ass?
Ty muttered, jaws still poised to deliver the death blow.

“Uncle Ty! Uncle Ty!” the kids chimed in, recovered from their shock. “It’s Harrison.”

I don’t care who it is. He threatened the cubs. He dies.

Lana eased in closer and stretched a hand to Ty’s haunches, trying to settle him. Harrison had been known to pull stupid stunts in his time, but rushing out of the woods to play-scare a couple of kids—with Ty around? That was suicide, even for a sasquatch.