Savage Urges (15 page)

Ally smiled. “It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard about the work you do at the shelter. I think it’s awesome. I came very close to choosing the lone shifter lifestyle myself once. Fortunately, the Mercury Pack gave me sanctuary.”

“And now we won’t let her leave,” said Shaya.

Ally snorted. “If I wanted to go, I totally could.”

Derren came up behind Ally and wrapped his arms around her. “Nah. I’d never let you.” He nodded at Ryan, who grunted.

Tired of sharing Makenna, Ryan handed Kye to Trey and then guided his mate to the collection of blankets. He chose one that was near a thick oak—far away from the blanket that Greta had claimed while no one was looking. He sat with his back against the tree and Makenna snug between his legs. “Comfortable?”

She burrowed deeper into him. “Yep.”

Brushing her hair aside, Ryan licked a mark he’d left on her nape. It had almost completely faded. He’d have to fix that. Later.

As Grace and Lydia passed around snacks, Makenna asked him, “What are the funniest famous last words you’ve ever heard?”

Lost, Ryan just stared at her. Why did her brain constantly spit out nonsensical questions?

“Fine, be boring.” She turned to Jaime, who was sprawled on the neighboring blanket, and repeated the question.

“Lightning never hits the same spot twice,” said Jaime. Everyone laughed. “You know any?” she asked her mate.

“Pull the pin out and count to what?” said Dante.

Dominic plopped himself on the ground next to Zac. “I got one: Hold my beer while I do this.”

Taryn raised her hand. “Hey, what does this button do?”

“This doesn’t taste right,” said Marcus.

Bracken, a Mercury Pack enforcer, spoke. “It’s just a flesh wound.”

Ally offered, “No, dummy, that’s a dolphin fin.”

“What’s that red dot on your forehead?” said Makenna.

Amused in spite of himself—it was, after all, a completely pointless conversation—Ryan kissed her temple. He remained mostly silent while everyone talked about various things, and he noticed that his pack made a point of involving Makenna in conversations. The tension soon left her, satisfying both him and his wolf; they wanted her to be relaxed and happy here.

It pained Ryan that she had been a loner for so long. Pack should be everything to a wolf, and he wanted Makenna to have that. Wanted her to feel as secure and safe with these people as he did.

Grace clapped, getting everyone’s attention. “Right, let’s get this movie started.”

Since Kye and Willow were present, the movie had to be something “age appropriate.” So everyone munched, drank, and laughed as they watched Disney’s
Toy Story.
Dominic seemed to be enjoying it the most. Ryan couldn’t claim to be all that stimulated by talking toys, but then he’d never really been stimulated by normal toys. Still, he wasn’t bored; he was content to be with his mate—holding her, breathing her in, and listening to her laugh. It was a soft, melodic sound that played over his skin.

When the movie was over, the fire was put out and everyone cleaned up, packed things away, and headed back to the caves. Fingers knotted, Makenna and Ryan then walked to his room. “Tonight was a lot of fun,” she said as they reached his door. “I didn’t realize how much I needed to wind down until just now. Tha—”

“Don’t thank me,” he growled, drawing her into the room and closing the door.

“Why does my gratitude offend you?”

“I don’t need it.” He nipped her lower lip. “What I need is you beneath me.”

“I’m totally down with that plan.”

He backed her against the wall, sipping at her mouth. “Then open for me.” The second her lips parted, Ryan thrust his tongue inside, sweeping it against her own. She responded instantly, nails digging into his shoulders. The kiss was hot and hungry.
He
was hot and hungry. Drunk on the taste and scent of her.

Bunching the bottom of her dress in his hands, Ryan peeled it from her, revealing every luscious inch of the perfect little body that was all his. A body he’d soon be possessing. His cock was thick and full and hurting like a motherfucker. Cupping her breast a little too roughly, Ryan took her mouth again. He claimed and consumed it with his tongue and teeth as she clawed off his T-shirt.

Makenna tried to pull back, intending to tell him to take off his shoes and jeans, but he wasn’t having any of that. A growl rumbled into her mouth as one hand spanned her throat. The dominant move didn’t ruffle her wolf in the slightest. Maybe it was that the animal trusted him, or maybe it was just that she was in a good mood. Makenna, however . . . her natural defiance rose up fast.

She bit his lip, breaking the kiss. But before she could order him to release her, he snarled and reclaimed her mouth, squeezing her throat just enough to be uncomfortable but not enough to choke her. Then, his mouth still on hers, she was turned and forced to take backward steps to the bed.

“Lay down,” he rumbled.

In general, Ryan’s tone never changed. But in bed? That was a whole other matter. Right now, his tone was authoritative and brooked no argument. But she
liked
to argue. Another male might have engaged in a battle of wills with her. Ryan? He just pushed her down and pinned her there with his hold on her throat. She should
not
like the way he just maneuvered her where he wanted her.

Sliding his hand down to palm her breast, Ryan grazed her throat with his teeth. One day, he’d leave his irrevocable brand on that very spot. “I’m going to lick your pussy until you come on my tongue, Kenna. Then I’m going to fuck you. Come inside you. Mark what’s mine.”

Growling at the proprietary comment that dared her to object, she went to fight him.

“Don’t move.”

That assertive rumble made her freeze. Which pissed her off. Since when was she so submissive? Makenna bared her teeth. “For someone who doesn’t like talking, you’re awful fucking chatty in bed.” The bastard blew over her nipple, making it tighten painfully. Then he flicked it with his tongue before latching on tight. Her eyes fell closed.

Ryan licked his way down to her navel and flicked her belly button ring with his tongue. “I want your eyes, Kenna.” They opened, blazing fire at him.

“You want a lot.”

He slipped off her shoes and then snapped off her panties. “I want everything. I won’t accept anything less than everything you are and everything you have to give.” He took a step back and grabbed her thighs. “Everything, Kenna.” He tilted her hips toward him and then swiped his tongue between her slick folds. Her taste exploded on his tongue. She made that sound. God, that fucking sound. It was throaty and breathless and held a hint of demand.

Makenna fisted the sheets as he licked and ate at her pussy like it was his job. Lapping and nipping and pumping his tongue inside her. The friction built, winding her tighter and tighter. When his fingers dug into her thighs so hard she knew she’d bruise, that bit of pain sent her over. But Ryan didn’t stop. Merciless in his assault, he threw her into a second orgasm. Still, he didn’t stop. Her clit was sensitive enough to make her wince, but the friction still built once more. And when he pulled his wet finger from her pussy and pushed it into her ass, she came again. It was like her body didn’t belong to her anymore. It was giving Ryan what he wanted. She felt powerless, vulnerable. And she didn’t like it.

“Ryan, stop.” His head very slowly lifted, his features savage and predatory. She froze at the danger there. “I want to be on top.” The position would give her some measure of control. He was taking it all from her. Her libido was quite happy to roll over and show its belly.

“No.” Ryan suckled on her clit.

“It’s too sensitive.” He ignored her. So, in one swift, sneaky move, she pulled one thigh free and kicked his chest hard. Not that it appeared to have hurt him, but it did make him stagger backward.

“You kicked me,” Ryan growled. “That wasn’t nice.” She slid off the bed and onto her knees, tackled his fly and pulled down his jeans—which took him off-guard for two reasons. One, she seemed pretty pissed with him. Two, dominant females weren’t quick to deliver oral sex. They took their sweet time about it. When her eyes flicked to his and he caught the calculating glint there, he understood.

Fisting a hand in her hair, Ryan held her head in place before she could put her mouth on him. “No. You don’t want to suck me off, you want to take control.” He slowly shook his head. “Not happening. When you
want
my dick in your mouth, you can have it. Until then, you’ll wait.”

She snarled. “Who says you get to be in control?”

“I do.” He never ceded control. “Get up.” She just stared at him defiantly. “Get up, Kenna.”

The power and dominance in his tone made her pussy quiver. She relented and stood . . . but she licked his cock from base to tip as she did so. Makenna winced as he tightened his hand in her hair hard enough to make her scalp prickle.

“Careful, Kenna. Or don’t you want to be fucked?”

She licked her lower lip. “Do it.”

Releasing her hair, he slid his hand down to close around her breast. “Do what?” Her eyes narrowed, once again glinting with a defiance that made his cock throb. “If you want me in you, you have to tell me.” He punctuated that with a pinch to her nipple.

“You know I want you in me,” she ground out.

Ryan sucked on her earlobe and lightly tapped her ass. “Turn around and bend over. I want your head down.” Ever so slowly, she obeyed him. The graceful arch of her spine made him groan. “Good girl.” He kicked off his shoes and jeans, and shoved them aside. Splaying one hand on her back, Ryan slowly sank into her, groaning. She had the tightest pussy he’d ever fucked. It was hot and wet and rippling around him. Balls deep, he flexed his cock. “See how well I fit? That’s because you were made for me.” He thrust hard. “Only for me.”

Makenna gripped the sheets as he rode her hard, caught up in the sensations. His fingers biting into her hips. The burn of his cock, full and thick and long, stretching her pussy. His balls slapping against her ass.

She hissed at the sharp prick of his claws, but he didn’t sheathe them.
“Claws,”
she reprimanded. He paused and withdrew them, which made her frown. Ryan wasn’t so easily handled.

“You don’t want my claws branding you?”

It was a casual question, but something in his tone made the hairs on her nape rise. “No.”

Ryan covered her body with his, sliding his hand around to possessively cup her breasts. “Such a little liar.” Locking his teeth around the fading bite on her nape, he brutally hammered in and out of her. Because he could. Because she was his. Her pussy squeezed him tight, showing him she loved it. His pace was feral and unrelenting, and she pushed back to meet each ruthless thrust. He growled his approval.

“Ryan, I’m going to come.” The feel of his teeth digging harder into her skin sent her tumbling into an orgasm. She screamed, arching against him as her pussy clamped down on him. He slammed into her one final time and pulsed deep inside her again and again and again.

Ryan laved the fresh bite on her nape. “You’re mine, Kenna. You’re running out of time to accept it.” Panting and shaking beneath him, she raised a hand. And flipped him the finger. He almost smiled.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

A
few days later, Makenna woke to the sound of voices. Lots of them. Shouting. Chanting.

She groaned, wondering if the noise was responsible for her pounding headache. Forcing her eyes open, she saw that Ryan was gone from what had become his spot on her bed. She wasn’t surprised. Sleeping over at her apartment didn’t stop him from rising at the crack of dawn to go begin his enforcer duties. His scent lingered, tickling her senses and pleasing her wolf.

Rolling onto her back, Makenna stretched. And winced. Ryan had been exceptionally rough with her the night before. Not that she was complaining. She didn’t mind those little aches that reminded her he’d been there.

She
did
mind all those damn voices.

God, she needed some Advil or something.

With a huff, Makenna slid out of bed and pulled on her robe. In the bathroom, she opened the cabinet. No painkillers. Fucking grand. Turning on the faucet, she jerked back as the pipes groaned and water spluttered out in three short bursts. Then nothing. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Silently, she grumbled as she brushed her teeth—which was
not
a pleasant experience when she had no water to dilute the toothpaste. And when she dropped the roll of toilet paper into the toilet, she was more than a little pissed. Her wolf found it kind of amusing.

By the time Makenna returned to the bedroom, her headache was worse and she was seething.
And those voices were still yelling.
She marched into the living area. Halfway to her tiny window, she halted. She didn’t need to look outside to know what was happening. Not when she could now clearly hear the words they were chanting.

“We won’t be an animal’s mate. Exile all shifters before it’s too late. In the name of God, we stand and yell, ‘Shifters must return to hell!’”

Her wolf’s good mood fled. Oh, fuck. Anti-shifter extremists. Not just any extremists, but the religious nut jobs—better described as people who’d been deprived of oxygen at birth and turned loco as a result. They were completely unhinged. Religion had nothing to do with why they did what they did; it was simply something they latched on to and used as justification.

Could her morning get any worse?

It couldn’t be a coincidence that they were outside a building wherein a lone shifter lived. Someone must have tipped them off to the whereabouts of a local loner. Prejudiced humans often sold the identities of loners to extremists.

She doubted the extremists knew what apartment was hers or they would have smashed her tiny windows by now—maybe even have tried to get inside. A few months ago, she’d chased off a lone shifter who had been bullying a human female outside the building. That meant that some of the human tenants knew she was a loner. If the extremists offered enough money to them, one might be persuaded to point the extremists in her direction.

One thing was for damn certain: she needed to get out of there.

She could try just walking out. If she were casual enough, they wouldn’t suspect her . . . unless they had a photograph or physical description.
Crap.

The only other option was to use the fire exit. It was a small window, but she’d be able to slide through it. While there could be some extremists covering the rear of the building, it was only a matter of time before they found out which apartment she lived in, and Makenna didn’t see any other option.

She thought about calling Ryan and asking him to collect her, since she had no way of reaching her Mustang. But she couldn’t risk the extremists spotting her with him. They would take his license plate, find out what pack he was from, and then switch their attention to the Phoenix wolves. She couldn’t allow that. For the same reason, she couldn’t call Madisyn. She’d have to slip away alone and then call someone when she was a safe distance from the building.

Plan in place, Makenna pulled on a tank top, jeans, her denim jacket, and her side purse. She opened the fire exit window and slid out into a small space that was covered by a white hatch. For a moment, she didn’t move as she listened for voices or movement outside. Picking up none, she unlocked and lifted the hatch slightly. The small communal garden—if you could call a cluster of weeds a garden—was empty, which, to be honest, she found a little suspicious. Still, she didn’t have the option of sticking around.

Fully opening the hatch, Makenna quickly and quietly climbed out before closing it shut. After merely six steps, she halted. She scented them before she saw them. Several humans came out of the shadows, wearing long hooded robes. Some were holding small wooden crucifixes. Makenna sighed at the ridiculous spectacle. If her wolf could have snickered, she would have.

“Move no further, demon!” ordered one of the robed figures.

Yes, they insisted that shifters were a form of demon. Makenna didn’t see the point in correcting them. It wasn’t possible to have a rational conversation with these people. Whatever you said was hit with a quote from the bible and branded “words of the devil.” They were right, you were wrong, they were good, you were bad, they were on the righteous path, and you were on a descending elevator heading to the fires of hell.

“Child of the Devil, you shall be—!”

“Look, guys, I’ve had a really rough morning.” And now
this
. The basic message Makenna was getting from the universe today was: just go back to bed. She would have done just that if it weren’t for the noise these bastards were making.

“Renounce the Devil!” he shouted as they spread out and began to loosely circle her. “Confess your sins! Repent!”

“I swear I’m not jealous that God only talks to you, okay. In fact, I think it’s unfair that when a person talks to God it’s called ‘praying’ but when he talks to them it’s called ‘schizophrenia.’”

“We refuse to stand aside and allow your practices of bestiality, infanticide, violence—”

“Can I just point out the bible says something about turning the other cheek and loving thy enemies?”

“Silence, demon!” He held his hands up toward the sky. “In the name of Jesus Christ, we condemn you!”

Oh for the love of . . . well, God. Could this get more ridiculous?

Muttering prayers, they each produced little bottles and slung the contents at her.

Apparently, yes, it could.

Holy water. Fan-fucking-tastic. She wiped some of the water from her eyes with her fingers. “Okay. This has gone far enough. You need to—” She tensed as one of the humans produced a black rope net from behind his back. Worse still, the leader took a large knife from inside his robe. A chill came over her, and her heart slammed against her ribs. She’d underestimated them when she’d caught sight of the little crucifixes. It hadn’t occurred to her that they would be armed. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

“Ever seen one of these knives?” asked the leader, eyes swirling with calculation, as he moved a little to her left. He was trying to take her attention off the net, she realized. She shifted slightly, angling her body in a way that allowed her to keep both threats in her peripheral vision.

“It’s pretty, don’t you think?” he continued. “It’s called a wasp knife. Have you ever heard of them?”

No, but it sure didn’t sound good. Her wolf coiled, raring to strike.

“Many sea divers and hunters use them to defend themselves against predators. They have a cylinder of compressed gas in the hilt. Do you know what that means?” He was so confident and at ease, so sure of his power, that she suspected they had done this many times before. “That means that when a person stabs the animal and presses this little trigger, the gas is injected deep into the wound, freezing their organs.”

How fucking charming. Makenna licked her lips, giving the net holders a sidelong glance. They hadn’t moved. But they would; she knew that. She didn’t doubt that she could claw her way out of the net, but being pinned down for just a few moments would leave her helpless against them.

She had no combat training. She was more of a scrapper than a fighter. And she was outnumbered and facing fanatical nut jobs complete with a net and a knife. Not exactly a positive situation. That didn’t mean she’d roll over and take this shit.

“I used it on a bear shifter once. It took him a few minutes to die. But smaller shifters like cougars and foxes tend to die in under a minute.”

She clenched her hands into fists as her stomach sank.
Bastard
.

“I’m wondering just how long
you’ll
take to die.” But he didn’t move to find out. Just stared at her with a cruel twist to his mouth. If he was trying to taunt her with anticipation, he was doing a good job.

Her peripheral vision alerted her to movement. The net holders were edging behind her and—

The leader charged at her. The others all lunged forward . . . catching the net as it flew over her head and pulling it down. It was heavier and thicker than she’d expected; the weight of it combined with the strength of the humans took her down to her hands and knees, trapping her. It happened so fucking fast. And here was the damn knife.

Chanting a fucking prayer,
the leader tried stabbing her through one of the square holes. Makenna moved with the enhanced speed of her kind, rolling onto her back and dodging the knife. The leader stumbled and almost lost his footing. Taking advantage, Makenna clawed at the net. It took a few slashes to slice through the rope to create a big enough gap and—

And now the knife was coming at her again.

Faster than the human could ever hope to be, Makenna lunged upright and grabbed the wrist holding the blade. “Looks like God didn’t hear you.” She yanked his wrist hard, twisting it until something snapped. Merciless, yes, but who gave a shit?

With a loud cry, he dropped the knife. It grazed her thigh as it fell through the hole in the net and hit the ground with a clang. Hyped on adrenalin, she barely felt the sting.

In one swift movement, Makenna leapt to her feet, came up behind him—twisting his broken wrist behind his back in the process—and curved her free arm around his front, pressing her claws to his throat.

Everyone froze.

“Now we’re all going to calm the fuck down,” snapped Makenna. Her wolf flexed her claws, not
at all
interested in calming down. “Boys, back away from the net—I don’t think I have to explain what will happen to your leader if you don’t.” The humans slowly edged back. “Wise decision.” The next thing on her agenda was getting away from this net. “Church Boy, we’re going to take a few slow steps forward.” She half expected him to try something. He didn’t.

As soon as they stepped off the net, she kicked it aside. “Now—”

The fire exit hatch flipped open, and a head popped out. Eyes wide, the male yelled, “She’s out back! She’s got Jeff!” The human toppled clumsily out of the hatch.

“Jeff,” drawled Makenna. “Is that your name? Not the kind that strikes fear into the heart of a person, is it?”

The leader sneered, “I do not converse with demons.”

The sounds of running footsteps made her tense. It was more like a stampede. “Looks like your other friends are joining us.” Sure enough, they all hurried out of the side alley . . . holding stakes? She snorted at Jeff. “Stakes? Seriously?” He actually flushed.

They slowed as they took in the situation, seeming confused as to what to do. That told her that Jeff was their leader too. He’d probably stationed them outside the front of the building as a decoy, forcing her to leave through the back—exactly where he’d be waiting.

“You might want to tell them to stay the fuck away.”

Instead, Jeff’s mouth curved into an ugly smirk as he spread his free arm out wide. “Do your worst,” he dared Makenna. “Charge!” he hollered at the humans, shocking the shit out of her. The crazy bastards did. With a roar, they came at her with their stakes.

“Fuck.”
She could run, she could stand and try to—

They halted. Just stopped dead, casting wary glances at something over her shoulder. She inhaled deeply.
Ryan
. Relief surged heavily through her and her wolf. Makenna didn’t think she’d ever been so glad to see anyone in her life.

He came to her side without making a single sound, radiating fury and danger. And for once, his emotions were evident in his expression and body language. It was only then that she heard other noises . . . footsteps, light and agile enough to go undetected by most. She inhaled deeply again, picking up other scents—Jaime, Dante, Tao, Trick, Dominic, Marcus, and Roni.

With one glance, Ryan took in the scene—took in the open hatch, the gathering of humans, the clawed net, the knife glinting beneath it, and Makenna’s hostage. It was easy enough to read what had happened. “They used a net on you?” rumbled Ryan as the other wolves fanned out around them.

“I could be wrong,” said Makenna. “But I don’t think these humans like me very much. Not that I’m complaining, but what brought you here?”

“The extremists attracted a news crew. I saw them on TV outside your building.” And Ryan had almost lost his fucking shit. “You didn’t answer my calls.” That was when he
had
lost his fucking shit. Panic had seized his body, taken over his mind, and sent his wolf insane. His pack had managed to calm him just enough to instill some rationality into him. But now, as it became obvious just how much danger Makenna had been in, the rationality began to slip away.