Night Critters (Collection) (3 page)

The informant scurried out like a were-rat with the keys to a recycling plant. Duke made a note to himself to fire him on the next available pretext. He didn't trust spies, even when he himself benefited. No one could guarantee another with deeper pockets and a need to know about Duke's business couldn't buy the spy's information.

The fine, aged whiskey failed to warm Duke's aching heart. He stared into the darkness outside the window of his office. He wanted his son to rule the pack, but not yet. Corbin was strong and willful. He needed time to make his mistakes and settle down. All Duke could do was pray the mutt wouldn't hold his son's interest.

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Corbin smiled to himself as he led his amorous date into the roller coaster's first car. He had no defense against the one-two punch of her perfume and the musk of a were-bitch in heat. Not that he intended to try. Was this how all the were-bitches acted around humans? Somehow he doubted it. This was all Roni.

The lady in question eagerly hung onto the restraint bar with a huge grin on her face. She kept him completely off balance. At dinner she'd managed a perfect combination of ladylike politeness combined with discreet seduction, all overlaid with a were-bitch's supreme confidence in the male she'd chosen. That wasn't new. All females, once they'd selected a male, were aggressive in their seductions. The new part was Roni acting like a big kid, full of excitement at the old-fashioned amusement and disdaining the more sophisticated entertainments available. She crooked her finger at Corbin. “Come on, Corbin. They can't start until you're restrained."

Obedience Training 101—Come when the lady calls. Corbin slid into the plastic seat and pulled the iron bar down securely. “Oh, baby. You're making me come with just one finger."

Roni rewarded Corbin's lame joke with a peal of laughter. “This is the best date ever!” She shot him a look under her lashes. “I don't ever want the fun to end."

That was an invitation if ever there was one. “Me either.” The words slipped out before he could censor himself. Man, he was sunk. All he had to do was continue to hide the fact he was really a werewolf, and that would be difficult if she lived up to the promises of her seduction. He'd have to fight for self-control and not shift to lupine while they made love.

The car rumbled forward, and the first drop loomed in front of them. All Corbin could see was starry skies and blackness below. His heart raced, and he clamped down on the urge to howl.

Roni had no such restraints to keep her from pealing out the wildest howl he'd ever heard. “Woo-woo-wooo!” She threw back her head and sang to the moon.

The carriage shot them down into the blackness of a dark cave. At least Corbin assumed it was a cave. He couldn't see the stars or the moon but he could see the luminous red nature of Roni's eyes. She looked like the legendary demon dogs. Wait. Her mother was a Siberian Husky werefolk. Their eyes turned red in low light. His heart raced faster, and adrenaline shot through his system. He'd howl in a few seconds if he didn't do something, and his body reacted before his conscious mind thought up a plan. His arms clamped around Roni's, and he yanked her closer for an adrenaline-laced kiss.

She returned the kiss in kind, smelling of excitement and a trace of fear from the ride. Her lips worked beneath his, nibbling on his bottom lip with tiny nips both painful and arousing.

They were still locked at the mouth like two teens with stuck braces when the ride ended. The attendant chuckled when he lifted the restraint bar and whispered the name of the nearest hotel. “Get a room, you two."

Roni released Corbin's lips and giggled. She tugged on his hand. “C'mon, handsome. Your car is this way.” Then she let go of his hand and ran. The wink over her shoulder invited him for a short chase.

He knew where the damn car was. Barely. Not that it mattered. She couldn't run fast in those heels and presumably she left them on to let “the human” catch her. He laughed and loped easily after Roni.

She let him catch her at the rear bumper of his hydrocar. Her hand reached up to grasp his head and pull him down for a lingering kiss.

Corbin wrapped his arms around her and lifted Roni's butt until it rested on the trunk of his car and equalized their heights.

Roni responded by wrapping her legs around his waist. The heat of her arousal smacked his nose like a fist. “We need a room. And a bed. Now."

Those panted demands acted like the strongest aphrodisiacs known to lupine kind. Corbin stroked her whole body from breast to hip and back. “Yes. Your place is closest.” It was a lie. His home was closer, but the last thing he wanted was for Duke to see or get involved. She was his, and he didn't want to share even her face.

Roni dove for the passenger side and had her seatbelt on before he could even get in. Her big brown eyes flashed with that demonic light once more in the streetlamps. Her fingertips stroked his zipper, but she couldn't reach any further. “Damn the laws that keep me locked away from you. I'd suck on your cock the entire way home."

The aforementioned body part stood at rigid attention like a soldier called to duty. Corbin's mind blanked as all the blood rushed out of his brain. “Yes, ma'am. I'll drive as fast as I can."

They made it to her place in less than fifteen minutes. They didn't make it to the porch. He tackled Roni on the lawn, and clothes scattered while they rolled on the grass, locked at the lips.

Her shirt and bra didn't survive the initial rip. No doubt her leather pants would be somewhat the worse for a night on a dewy lawn. Roni didn't seem to care. She threw them off with abandon while Corbin kissed anything he could reach.

His clothes fared no better. Roni was so aroused she grew a light coat of brown and gray fur, and her feathery tail wagged happily while her claws shredded his clothes off him. Good thing he kept a spare set in the car in case he had to travel on a moment's notice. Driving home in rags would be sure to attract unwanted attention. Wanted attention came when Roni's lips found his aching dick. Coherent thought flitted away on wings of the night.

Roni hummed happily as soon as he grabbed her hair. Her fingers cupped his balls and gently fondled. Her tongue expertly provided just the right amount of pressure.

Corbin moaned with a heartfelt need to express his enjoyment. The heat of her mouth and the strokes on his balls were too much to take. He had to say something or the evening would end too quickly. Hell, he didn't want being with Roni to ever end. Was it love? Nah. Couldn't be. “Baby, if you don't slow down, I'll...” He couldn't think of a polite human's way to say it.

Another chuckle teased his cock, but she let go with a soft pop. She lay back in the grass, bringing her legs out of what seemed an impossible position, like a yogi from the Far East. “Then let's do something worthwhile in the meantime. My implants are up to date. Come and get me. Or, in this case, vice versa—get me and come."

No further invitation needed. Corbin damn near fell on top of her, catching himself with his arms in a pushup maneuver. “One of these days I'll take my time with you, I swear it."

Roni laughed and pulled his face to her breasts. “Another day. Yeah, later. That sounds good. For now though, fuck me in the moonlight. I need to howl."

His dick homed in and plunged without conscious thought on his part. Good thing. The way she clamped her legs around his hips and pulled him in deeper drove him crazy. Sure, he had to arch his back like a feline because she was so short, but who cared? All Corbin's self-control was centered on not changing—no fur, no tail, no teeth. No matter how badly he wanted to flip her on her stomach and make her his in true Alpha fashion.
Stay human. Stay. Human. Stay. Sit. Stay. Beg. Oh, God, how I want to beg
.

Roni matched him stroke for stroke, and she had no restraints about fur, tails and teeth. She bared her fangs, and her claws ripped what remained of his shirt to mere tatters. Her nose lengthened but her eyes remained big and brown. Odd-looking, but strangely beautiful. Her howl, half lupine half “talk,” rang out. “Woo-wooo!"

Corbin, unable to stop himself, felt his balls contract. His final thread of control snapped in an instant. He came. And came. His sac emptied. He thought he'd turn inside out until his heart seemed to lodge deep inside Roni. Oh, yeah, he was in love.

Dammit. He was in trouble.

Roni sat in the overstuffed chair and chewed on a manicured nail. “I fucked up. I had the best sex of my life last night with a human.” The nail broke. She stared at it stupidly, still grinning about their night rolling around on the grass tangled together. Yes, with a human. “Fuck, Dad is going to shit a brick."

She smiled at the thought, considering the brick would be bigger than her father, but he stood a good chance of throwing it at her. Roni frowned. Her dad might be tiny but he had the arm of a major leaguer and the temper of a Tasmanian Devil.

"What does a girl do with no place to turn?” She picked up the vid keyboard and punched up her mother's URL. “Hello? Mom?"

Her mother's face on the screen winked with amusement. “What have you done, my darling?"

Chagrin mixed with a sigh. “Damn, Mom. Are you psychic or something? What makes you think anything is wrong?"

The bottom of a mug covered the camera's view for an instant before her mother's face reappeared. Katriena didn't function without her ubiquitous coffee. “I'm a mother, and you're calling me at dawn."

Roni backpedaled and wondered at her sanity. Calling Mommy like a wet-behind-the-ears pup? What had she been thinking? “Can't a daughter call and have phone coffee with her mother?"

"Not at eight in the morning. Spill it, Veronica.” Ouch. The full name would be next. Roni wasn't getting out of talking to her now.

Roni winced and took a deep breath. “I-had-sex-with-a-human-last-night."

Katriena didn't hesitate a second. “Okay. Was it good sex?"

"It was mind-blo... Mother!” The heat rushed to Roni's cheeks. You just didn't discuss the intimate details with your mother. Did you?

"What? Your father hasn't been giving me any lately.” The laughter in Katriena's voice made it clear she was teasing her only daughter. Figured. Katriena had always been the coolest mom in the neighborhood, willing to destroy her tidy home for a tea party with a gaggle of giggling girls.

The image of Katriena and her father rolling around on the lawn of their perfect suburban home right in front of the shocked neighbors swam before her eyes. Not an image any offspring wanted to think about. “Mother! Please!"

"Come on, Roni, let me live vicariously through you. I'm frustrated.” Now Katriena was openly sniggering. She was enjoying embarrassing Roni.

"Mom, please. I don't need to know this. Besides, Dad's a Chihuahua. What kind of pleasure could you possibly get out of that?” Curiosity did kill the cat, didn't it? Well, the titillation distracted her mother from why Roni had called. Sort of.

"Hey, he may be only a few inches tall but I assure you it's not his feet holding him up."

"Oh, God, Mom!” Roni shrank in her chair in disgust. The distraction was worse than the original problem. She gave up. “Can we get back to my problem, please?"

Her mother giggled. “So tell me about your human."

"Well, he is tall, dark, and seriously romantic. He took me to a steak house for dinner. Then we went on a roller coaster ride where the foreplay was so completely... Oh, good God.” Roni shuddered just remembering. “We were so hot for each other we made love on the lawn. Then when we finally made it through the front door, he laid me down on the bed. We—you know —"

"Fucked is the word you're looking for, dear."

"Mother! Anyway it was slow and sensual at first then he pounded me like a two-cent hooker through four orgasms.” Roni squirmed and got wet all over again. “Daddy is not going to like this. What am I going to do?"

"Do you love him?” Typical question and not unexpected. Katriena always got to the heart of the matter.

"Mom, I just had my first date with him last night.” Roni stopped. “Why do I all of a sudden feel like such a slut?” She'd fuck Corbin again in a heartbeat with no shame. A human had brought the daughter of the Alpha of the Engelmann pack low.

"Because you had sex on the first date.” Her mother could barely finish her sentence before Roni heard her father's booming voice in the background.

"She did what?"

"Eduardo, shush, I'm talking to Roni,” her mother called back. “Don't worry, honey, your father will come to accept a human in the family."

Roni cringed when she heard her father shout, “I would never!"

"Baby, I've got to go deal with your father. Call me later.” Katriena's voice remained calm and confident. She'd managed her volatile mate for many years.

Roni could have sworn she heard the brick hit the floor as her mother hung up, cutting off a string of cursing in Spanish, which she thought really odd seeing how her father was born in Indiana.

"Well, fuck, now what do I do?” Roni thought she heard a higher power laughing when Ana barreled through the front door and flew into the chair practically on top of Roni.

"So how did it go? Tell me everything.” Ana straightened out her legs so that both of them could sit comfortably in the oversized black velvet chair.

"It went fine.” Roni hedged automatically with Ana, who violated anyone's privacy with complete disregard. Nothing was sacred to a vampire who'd seen it all in her un-life.

"Oh, don't be cryptic. What happened?” Ana, who used her position as lifelong friend ruthlessly, wasn't above begging, either. She wheedled like a kid denied a treat.

Roni sighed dramatically and refused to look into Ana's bright blue eyes. Vampires had an ability to mesmerize, supposedly to make hunting fresh blood easier. “If I tell you, will you leave me alone?"

Ana knew the old game well and kept dipping her head into Roni's view, pretending to use her “mojo” on Roni. “Of course not, but would you tell me anyway?"

Trapped and amused simultaneously, Roni shrugged her shoulders at Ana's pestering. “I had sex with a human last night.” Once again, Roni spit the words out like she'd committed a crime.