Shifted Temptations (18 page)

“I love you,”
I stated.

I wanted to start our new honest relationship with my biggest secret.
Jordan and Alex were silent and I hugged them closer, reassuring them that it was okay.

“I love you both. I always have. That’s why I ran, because I was scared it was only one sided, that you could never love me back. Now
I know that is not true. You both have shown me plenty of times how you feel. I was just too dense to see it.”

Sighing, I snuggled closer to the men I lov
ed. Their warmth surrounded me. I felt cocooned in their reassurance and approval. I realized over the few months we were apart that I was a strong woman. It took leaving them to find that in myself.

Jorda
n and Alex had never seen me as a weak person. I didn’t think they would have ever been attracted to me otherwise, but I just had not seen it in myself. I felt more confident and I knew that if things did not work out between the three of us, I would be devastated, but I would survive. You would think that knowledge would lessen my love for them, but on the contrary, it only made it stronger.

“
I needed you to know, because I wanted to be honest with you. I cannot hide anymore, don’t want to hide what I’m feeling, and I promise I never will again.”

They held me in silence an
d I closed my eyes, feeling an overwhelming sense of relief. I found my voice and told them how I felt. Whether they acknowledged my feelings or not were up to them. I would not be pushy. They would talk to me when they were ready.

It
was the new me. The argument between us taught me so many things. The main lesson was that communication was absolutely necessary in any relationship. If I had spoken up about how I was feeling from the start, we would not have had to go through so much heartache.

“There i
s so much we need to talk about,” Alex said and I could hear regret in his voice.

I stayed quiet, nodding for him to continue.

Alex cleared his throat. His caresses were speeding up, sliding up and down my arm nervously.

“There was a reason we didn’t want to become involved with you.
We definitely want this relationship now,” he quickly reassured. “In fact, we always did, but there were circumstances that kept us from making such commitments.”

“And now we need to explain.” Jordan
’s breath was hot against my neck. “Not only because you’re carrying our child, but because I will not lose you again.”

I melted against him and place my cast
ed hand over his, my fingers stroking over his knuckles. “I don’t want to lose you either.”

Ale
x chuckled, yet his nerves continued to show in his wide eyes. “I’m glad that’s cleared up, because I don’t want to lose either of you. I love you, Sam. Jordan, you are my best friend. I could never imagine sharing the woman I loved with anyone else.”

Before I could start crying, Alex
somber gaze met mine. “We haven’t been honest with you and if you are going to be a part of our lives, which better be a yes, then it’s time we shared a few secrets.”

I waited patiently, giving him my full
attention. He licked his lips and his fingers drew circles over my shoulder, yet his brown eyes were steady on mine.

“T
he reason we tried to stay so detached in the past was because we are different. We’re not exactly what you think we are.”

“Okay, so what are you saying? What are you?”

“We’re shifters,” Jordan answered.

Eyebrows raised, I asked, “Shifters? What are trying say
?”

Alex
cleared his throat again. “It’s hard to explain.”

“No it i
s not, Alex. Just tell her what we are.”

Alex ignored Jordan’s interruption.
“You know that book you were reading?”

I nodd
ed slowly, unsure where he was going.

“Well, we’re like that.”

I blinked up at him. My mind wanted to supply the answer, but I just could not fathom that it matched up to what they were trying to tell me.

“Oh, for s
hit’s sake, Alex, you’re no good at this.”

“Watch your mouth, Jordan. There’s a baby listening.” Alex admonished.

Jordan smiled and rubbed my belly. “Sorry, I’ll work on it. Anyway, what Alex here is so badly trying to tell you is that we are shifters. Meaning, we can turn into an animal. In our case, we change into jaguars.”

I stiffened at his words. “Are you trying to tell me
that you are werewolves?” I asked skeptically.

“No, I just told you. We change into jaguars.”

I thought about it a moment and I just could not grasp such a notion. Shifters? Such beings were imaginary. I was confident that I would have noticed supernatural creatures at some point in my life before then. No, they were definitely pulling my leg. My smile was big as I laughed at the joke.

“Good one guys. You had me going there for a minute. Thanks for loosening me up, but
you can go ahead with the truth. I promise I won’t freak out on you.”

I pushed at Alex’s shoulder playfully. He was so stiff, not a muscle in his body budged.
My laughter began to fade as I stared up at him.

When I found no hi
nt of a smile, I closed my eyes in dismay. How could I have fallen in love with not just one, but two insane men? They had to be insane. Shifters? I would be crazy to believe in such things.

“We a
re not joking, Sam.” Jordan whispered into my ear and even knowing he was mentally unstable did not keep the shiver from running down my spine.

I had t
o be careful with my wording. I didn’t want to upset them. You never knew how the mentally unbalanced would react and they clearly believed what they were saying. I opened my eyes to see Alex watching me carefully.

“Um, okay.
..” I began, not knowing exactly what I should say. Should I pretend to believe them? But then what? Run?

“You don’t belie
ve us.” Alex narrowed his eyes.

“Well, I...”

“Show her,” Jordan directed and Alex slid away from me.

I shivered, as cool air danced across my bare
skin. Jordan pulled the sheets over us then drew me firmly back into his arms.

I watched, anxiously as Alex stood beside the bed. I couldn’t help but no
tice how divine he looked naked. His faced away from us, showing me broad shoulders that smoothed into a muscular back and tapered waist. His skin was smooth and tan, his ass was firm. I sighed in appreciation of the view. Even with my nerves tumbling around in my belly, I still wanted to grab hold of him.

The twitching
muscles in his back captured my attention. All thoughts of sexy bodies vanished as Alex began to jerk slightly as if he was having a small seizer. I wanted to go to him, help him, but Jordan pulled me back.

Alex
bent over and turned his head towards me. I gasped in horror. Glowing yellow orbs stared back at me. All traces of the nutty brown I was use to were gone.

“
Hold her.” His voice was deep, growling...inhuman.

I
jerked back, ready to run. Jordan held me tight, whispering soothing words in my ear.

“It
’s alright, Sam. Just watch. He is not going to hurt you. Neither of us could ever hurt you.”

I swallowed hard, my eye
s wide as I watched Alex’s skin stretch and move. His nose flattened and his jaw lengthened until it became more animal like. If I wasn’t so scared, I would have been fascinated by the way a wave of black fur spread across his skin. Whiskers even sprouted from his cheeks.

It felt like hours later, yet was probably on
ly minutes and his new body had stopped twitching. Alex was gone and in his place was a very large black cat.

“
Oh my God,” I whispered.

P
anic surged and I jumped back on the bed as best as I could. Jordan’s arms held me like a vise, but he did help me to sit up. The cat swayed closer, his long tail swishing as he walked. I tried twisting away from my captor, but Jordan just would not let go.

A scream ripped from my throat, when the animal leape
d onto the bed. It dipped with the cat’s massive weight. My arms wrapped around my stomach, instinctively protecting the child within. My feet scramble for leverage to pull away. I couldn’t catch my breath, my heart pounded in my ears and I began to see black spots dance before my eyes.

“S
hh, Sam. Shh, calm down, baby. You have to calm down.”

Jordan was trying to sooth me, but all I could do was stare at the massive cat coming closer.

“Sam,” Jordan said sharply. I jumped and looked up at him with wide eyes. “You have to take a deep breath. This isn’t good for the baby.”

Jordan was right
. The thought of hurting little Ava had me closing my eyes and trying to take a deep breath. I sucked oxygen through my nose, filling my lungs then blowing a stream out of my mouth in a steady pace several times before I began to feel a little calmer.

Jordan rubbed my stomach and murmure
d soft words in my ear. I opened my eyes and looked up into his concerned face.

“It’s alright, baby. He i
s not going to hurt you.”

When I didn’t say anything
he cupped my cheek in his palm.

“Do you trust me?” He asked
.

I thought I had, but that was before I knew
what they were. Jordan had shown me more than once how harsh he could be. Was he worse when he turned into an animal? Did he turn ruthless, ferocious? Was Alex bloodthirsty right now?

I glance
d over to see the big cat laying himself down beside my leg. He looked graceful and content, his tail swinging about. He was looking a little less scary, but my body stiffened as his head lowered to rest on my sheet-covered thigh.

I swallowed back the anxiety attack that was threatening to overcome me again. I had just gotten my breathing under contro
l. I did not want to pass out or harm the baby in any way. I just had to keep telling myself that it was only Alex...who had never been anything, but sweet to me.

I loved him and if I couldn’t except what he was, then...I wasn’t sure what would happen. I would probably lose him and Jordan. When you love
d someone, were you not supposed love all of them, even their faults? Not that this was a fault exactly, but it was definitely...something.

I watched him as he gave a contented sigh and close
d his golden eyes. He yawned, opening his big mouth wide, showing off incredibly large fangs. I started to get a little worried again, but then something amazing happened.

Baby Ava gave a particularly hard kick that had me wincing. The cat, no not the cat, Alex, I reminded myself, turned to look at my belly and began to move a little closer. I started to get uneasy, but Jordan held me ti
ght, whispering encouragements.

Alex rubbed his face and head against me. He was gentle, never pushing too ha
rd against my stomach. A vibration began at my side and ran throughout my body, just as I starting hearing a loud rumbling sound. My breath caught in my throat as I realized he was purring. He continued to stroke his head against me and it finally dawned on me what he was doing. He was showing his love and support.

“Touch him,” Jordan whispered.

I licked my lips, hesitating, unsure if that was a good idea. Jordan picked up my uninjured hand and placed it on the back of Alex’s neck before wrapping his arm around my shoulders. At first, I just kept it there, not moving, waiting to see what he would do. He didn’t do anything, just continued to rub up against me.

Cautiously, I petted him, stroking th
e soft fur. I admired the silky texture, touching him with a little more confidence. I ran my hand down his back then brought it up to his head to run it down again. His muscles jumped with every stroke and I smiled, wondering if I was tickling him.

My
small laugh had his gaze swinging up to meet mine. I stared at the glowing orbs, searching. The pupils dilated as I watched and then there it was...the pull.

What was between
Jordan and I was a sort of dominate/submissive relationship. Well, submissive was the wrong word to describe me, but he was a dominant man who lived to be in control. I loved that about him and let him think, on occasion, that he was in charge.

His directness and
take-charge attitude was what drew me to him. I was infatuated with him from the moment we met. Our connection was instantaneous.

With Alex, it was completely different. He was charmin
g and funny and even though he was more than good looking, I did not think there was much of an attraction between us. Until we locked gazes over a box he was helping me carry. I could not tear my eyes away from his. He mesmerized me and something in my soul recognized him.

I felt that as I looked into the cat
’s stare. The shape and color might have been different, but the drawl was still there. His essence was in those eyes and all my anxiety just melted away.