Mating Heat: His Purfect Mate Part 1

His Purrfect Mate.

Laurann Dohner.

The Mating Heat series.

Dedication.

To Mr. Laurann, for always being my hero.

Chapter One.

Fear made Shannon's heart pound, her side burned from the pain of running, and she ducked just a tad too late. The tree branch snagged her long red hair, nearly jerked her off her feet, but she recovered, stumbled, and kept going. The sound of heavy pants and growls mingled with her ragged, harsh breathing.

I'm going to die, she thought, panicked. She forced her legs to keep pumping. Her bare feet stung from the cuts she could feel as she ran. The memory of telling her coworker just a week before that she hated the idea of turning thirty at the end of the month flitted through her thoughts. Now I don't have to worry about it, her mind whispered. I'm not going to survive to celebrate my birthday.

A twig snapped loudly to her left and she knew they were closing in for the kill. They could have taken her down by now but instead, they toyed with her, chased her through the thick woods, probably for the sheer joy of the hunt. How they'd found her or realized what she was remained a mystery.

This shouldn't have happened. Mom swore no one would ever suspect the truth. Of course that didn't put a screeching halt to the nightmare that had become her reality. Two men had walked up to her as she'd been putting groceries in her car, punched her in the face, and she'd awoken into the middle of pure h.e.l.l. They'd taken her shoes, her purse, and had given her a five-minute head start.

Howls filled the woods surrounding her. She saw a dark shape ahead and moved to avoid it, furiously wishing she had their speed and agility. She missed slamming into another tree and the ground started to incline. She stumbled and fell, landing painfully on her knees. Both arms took the impact before her face could smash into the dirt. Dried leaves bit into her palms. She tried to lift up but her limbs shook from exhaustion.

A deep growl made her twist her head around and pure horror gripped her completely when the big, black wolf stepped out of the thick foliage. Drool dripped from his open jaw, razor-sharp teeth revealed, and his paw lifted as he inched closer to her. The five feet separating them wasn't far enough.

Leaves crunched and she turned her head slowly in the direction of the sound, this time expecting the sight of a second wolf that appeared next to a big rock. A third one followed close on his tail. They growled, their intent to attack obvious. She panted, sweat trickled down her body, and her gaze lifted to the closest tree she nearly touched. She hoped the branch hung low enough for her to reach.

It took every ounce of her waning strength to surge to her feet and leap. Her father had given her very few of his traits but the one that might give her more time to live kicked in as her hands gripped the limb and her bare foot flattened on the bark. Something hairy brushed her other leg as she frantically climbed. Instinct and fear became a driving motivation for her not to look down, instead she grabbed at anything her fingers hooked on to. She kept going, even when the branches thinned dangerously and common sense told her to stop.

She finally hesitated when wood groaned. The wind blew and she swayed high in the treetops. A sick feeling knotted inside her stomach while she wondered if her weight would snap the branch she clung to but then the wind died. Everything stilled except her pounding heart rate. She stared down the far distance to the ground, another wave of fear flashing through her. Heights weren't her favorite thing.

Movement drew her attention and she watched as at least six wolves paced below, their heads tilted to glare up at her. She forced her lungs to hold air longer with each breath to slow her breathing and then scanned the area around her. The distance between the trees was too great to hope she could transfer limb to limb to get away. They had her trapped on her perch high above them.

Howls sang out again and she shivered. More of them approached and she realized just how outnumbered she was. A loud groan jerked her attention back to the base of the tree. She gasped as one of the wolves started to transform. Horrified fascination widened her eyes while she witnessed fur recede into skin. The body shape changed more rapidly than she had imagined it could. She'd never seen it done until that moment.

The man had short blond hair and tan skin. He crouched on the ground for long seconds, recovering from the transformation, and then straightened. He looked up and she stared into the human features of a guy in his early twenties.

"Get down here," he demanded. "That's not fair."

Another one changed from wolf into man. She guessed him to be little more than a teenager, judging by his youthful appearance. Their nakedness didn't seem to bother them in the least as they stood shoulder to shoulder, the blond gawking up with a frown.

"Man, did you see how fast she climbed that tree? Why hasn't she changed?" The blond shrugged. "I don't know and I don't care." He reached up for the first branch. "Get down here or I'll come up there after you."

Shannon had no words. The shock and horror of her circ.u.mstances still had her reeling. She licked her lips, forcing her brain to work. "Leave me alone. I've done nothing to you."

"You're still breathing." The blond paused. "For a chick, you're hot, but still, you know how it goes. You shouldn't have been walking around alone and unprotected. Maybe I'll f.u.c.k you before I kill you."

Talking wasn't going to get her out of this mess. They obviously didn't care that she'd never harmed them, hadn't sought them out, and they just wanted her dead because of who her father had been. She tried to remember his face but came up blank. No pictures had survived the fire that had taken his life just weeks after her fifth birthday.

More wolves suddenly ran into the small clearing and she counted eleven in all, including the two in skin. Werewolves were dreaded, vicious creatures, and they were sworn enemies of her father's people. Now that she had some time to think instead of run for her life, she guessed they might have gone after her on the misconception of her being a full shifter. It probably wasn't her being a freak after all that had provoked them to attack but that didn't soothe her in the least. They would still tear her out of the tree and she would be slaughtered by the pack.

"That's just wrong to even joke about." The teen laughed. "n.o.body is that hard up to touch one of them. That's just sick, Donny."

"I knew you were gay," the blond Donny taunted. "I'd do her."

"I am not," the teen sputtered. "I guess we could have s.e.x with her first." Someone snorted loudly and a twenty-something male walked into Shannon's line of sight to peer up at her. "You're such a doofus, Milo. Have s.e.x? Try saying you'll nail her." The naked guy grinned.

"And yeah, she's a prime-looking p.u.s.s.y."

Shannon shivered with fear. "Leave me alone."

A howl tore through the woods and the men started noticeably. The blond turned his head in the direction of the sound. "s.h.i.t. Anton is coming. He won't let us play with her first." A really large, black wolf entered the clearing. Shannon could tell even from far above that he had to be the biggest one of the bunch. He growled so loudly that she trembled at the vicious sound.

She watched him change back into his skin. It amazed her how fluid the transformation could be, how quickly it happened, and he did not appear to feel any pain. She'd always a.s.sumed all that shifting bone and skin would hurt immensely.

The man was bigger than the others in human form too. He had shoulder-length black hair and looked huge even from a good sixty feet below her. He straightened to his feet and stretched, displaying dense muscles as he rolled his broad shoulders. He turned to face the males standing under the tree.

"I told you to quit stalking these woods. You've almost killed off everything." The blond hesitated. "We listened. We actually went out and found something outside our territory to hunt."

The big man put his hands on his bare hips. His a.s.s and back teased Shannon's view but with the leaves on the branches she couldn't see him really well. "That's not the point." He had a deep, scary voice. "I said to stop killing s.h.i.t for a while. That doesn't mean go out and buy something to amuse yourselves. Do you have any idea how much it's going to cost my father to bring in enough animals to replenish all the ones you've killed? We're supposed to keep a low profile. Don't you think the locals will notice if they never see any deer or rabbits coming from this area?"

"But"

"Enough," the larger man roared, his deep voice booming. An eerie, disconcerting silence settled through the woods. The birds even grew quiet.

Time seemed to freeze and then the blond spoke. "We need to at least kill it first. We can't let it go."

"Bulls.h.i.t," the man rumbled. "Go home."

"What if she tells someone what we did to her? It could bring our pack some trouble if her family gets p.i.s.sed off."

The big man's head jerked up and Shannon stopped breathing when a handsome face peered at her. He had strong, masculine features and his dark eyes widened when his gaze met hers. His shock was clear and then a roar of outrage tore from his parted lips. Shannon trembled, her terror returning fiercely, and almost lost her tight grip on the branch she clung to.

The man below her moved fast, his arm shot out and he struck the blond, knocking him a good six feet, where he struck the ground and sprawled on his back. "Run," he snarled, "before I kill the lot of you worthless a.s.sholes."

The blond struggled to his feet, a red mark visible on his face from the b.l.o.o.d.y wound the striking fist had left, and then everyone fled, wolves and men in skin. Everyone but the black-haired stranger. He stood unmoving and then slowly tilted his head up again, his dark, angry gaze on Shannon once more.

Anton battled his inner rage. If he didn't get control of it quickly, he'd shift out of his skin and go after the pups who had treed a woman. He really wanted to tear up their hides, make them suffer, but he couldn't do that. He had a situation to handle first.

His mind immediately added up obvious facts. The pups had grabbed a woman, hunted her, and now she'd become his problem. If he'd known of her presence, he never would have shifted. She had a bird's-eye view of the clearing, he felt certain she'd seen him transform into his skin, and he had no idea how to fix this cl.u.s.ter-f.u.c.k of a mess.

He watched her with a sense of dismay. He didn't want to kill her but she had seen too much.

His father would have a fit if he allowed her to leave the woods alive. It really would bring h.e.l.l to the pack if she were able to go to the police. On second thought, they'd probably think she had to be a major nutcase if she babbled about werewolves. He bit his lip, debated, and finally decided he could never kill a woman.

He cleared his throat, not sure what to say, but knew his first problem would be talking her down out of the tree. He feared she'd panic if he tried to climb up to her and she might fall to her death.

She had managed to ascend high enough that the branches had thinned enough to put her in danger of a limb snapping from her weight. Her small-looking body appeared to be wrapped tightly around the branch.

"You can come down. I promise you're safe now."

She licked her lips. "Go away and I'll climb down when you're gone." He hesitated, wishing it could be that simple. "I'll escort you to your car or return you to your campground-wherever they chased you from. I swear I won't hurt you. I realize you're in shock but no harm will befall you as long as I'm around."

She shook her head, her red hair snaking around her body to her waist. "Just go away. Shooo!" Amus.e.m.e.nt surprised him. "Did you just 'shoo' me?"

The woman hesitated. "I've done nothing to you or to them." He watched her turn her head to glance around the area and rage returned instantly upon seeing the dark bruise along her jawline. Someone had clocked her with a fist. She had very pale skin and the fact that she appeared to be smaller than average made it worse. He decided his pups were in for a beating of monumental proportions when he got his hands on them for what they'd done to the woman.

"I know you're in shock and I realize you must be very frightened, but I swear, you're safe now.

I'm Anton." He paused, regretting giving her his name but it had just slipped out. "I'm afraid that branch is going to snap and you'll fall to your death if it does. Please come down."

"I'm not stupid. You're trying to trick me."

He didn't blame her for her fear or suspicion. She had to be traumatized as h.e.l.l. Not only had she been attacked and hunted but learning werewolves really existed after watching them change forms had to be messing up her human mind. He took a slow breath and blew it out. It didn't help his case that he stood there completely naked. She probably feared him because he not only had turned into a wolf but he might also be some major pervert who'd attack her.

"I don't think you're stupid. They were really wrong to attack you. I sent them away but that doesn't mean more of them aren't out running in the woods. If I left and you tried to walk out on your own, to be honest, there's a real possibility that you'd run into more of them. You don't know me but you saw me chase them off. You watched me strike one of them when I realized what they'd done to you. I give you my word, I won't harm you or allow anyone else to."

"You could be a big, fat liar."

"I could be." He hid a smile, amused again. She had a nice voice and while he studied her, that wasn't the only thing he could appreciate. Most of her face remained hidden by a curtain of hair, but from what he could see, she appeared pretty. "You're right. Let me put it this way. How long do you think you could survive up in that tree? It'll grow dark soon and the temperatures will drop drastically.

Do you really want to spend a cold, miserable night up there? I doubt you want to climb down and stumble around in the dark once I leave. You also can't stay up there indefinitely. It would only be a matter of time before you either have to climb down or they climb up after you if more of them are in the woods. At this moment you've got no chance of survival but I'm offering you safety and protection." She seemed to mull over his words. Anton watched her pull her lower lip into her mouth and then the pouty fuller lip returned after she either bit it or sucked on it. He wished he could see more of her features but her messy hair hid parts of it.

"Okay, but I want you to swear on your life that you won't hurt me or allow them to."

"I give you my word of honor and that means everything to me," he stated honestly, relaxing.

The faster he got her back to her world, the quicker he could get on with his day-after he kicked some pup a.s.s. "I'll protect you with my life."

She moved and Anton received another surprise. She'd been balled up, wrapped tightly around the thin branch, in a fetal position. As she lowered her legs and stretched downward toward a branch, he saw a glimpse of her shape. She didn't appear very big but what he could see had definite appeal to him as a man. Werewolf women tended to be tall but on the lean side. The woman had a lush body with soft curves.

"What's your name?"

She paused on her downward climb to twist her head and peer at him. "Shannon." He didn't comment or blame her for not sharing her last name. Neither had he. If she reported the attack to the police he didn't want them to have too much information. The last thing he needed would be bulls.h.i.t questions from some overworked cop who wouldn't see the humor in checking out a woman's crazy tale of a werewolf attack. He pulled away from his musings to watch her climb lower.

Anger returned when he saw blood smeared on her bare feet and he stopped breathing through his nose. The scent of her bleeding so soon after he'd shifted could affect him. The last thing the woman needed would be to see his eyes darken or hear his voice thicken into growls. He pulled air in through his mouth and hoped the scent wouldn't be strong enough to taste. The cologne he always splashed on before pack meetings would help mask it. He'd made a habit of wearing the stuff to keep some details of his personal life private. Wolves could smell way too much but artificial fragrances could confuse their noses. He moved under her, ready to a.s.sist as she climbed down the tree.

"That's it," he encouraged. "Don't fall, Shannon. I'm going to reach up and help you down, okay?

Don't be alarmed because I'm not wearing clothes. I swear I won't hurt you." She paused again to shoot him a frightened look. He could make out more of her features and his gut tightened. She had big, beautiful blue eyes framed with dark eyelashes, and they were shaped in a way that stole his breath away. Not even the purplish bruise could distract from her attractiveness. He hesitated and then lifted his arms to a.s.sist her to the ground.

"It's okay, Shannon." He kept his tone soft, attempting to lure her closer to safety. "I keep my word. No one is going to hurt you."

Anton could tell she wasn't certain if he could be trusted but she still lowered down the last eight feet that separated them until he gently gripped her waist. His hands wrapped around soft hips and he tried not to notice her full, rounded a.s.s displayed in the pair of thin cotton capri pants too close to his face. He really didn't want to become aroused. She'd scream if he allowed his body to show his s.e.xual interest.

He lifted her easily, placing her carefully on the ground. She turned, faced him, and kept her gaze fused with his. She didn't glance down at his body but instead gave him a fearful look that made him wonder if she'd attempt to climb the tree again. Her back pressed tightly against the bark. He could see her terror as clearly as the cute, tiny freckles sprinkled across the bridge of her nose. Her much shorter height-a few inches above five feet-made him question her age. She looked mature, late twenties maybe, but then again, teens seemed to appear much older than their years, in his opinion.

"See? I'm not going to hurt you." He tried to sound harmless, the irony of that not lost on him since he had to be the most dangerous thing within miles of the small female. "I'm the good guy," he lied. No one would ever call Anton Harris that t.i.tle without it being the punch line of a sarcastic joke. He had become one of the most feared members of his pack. "Where did you come from? I'll take you back there."

Fear gripped Shannon in such a tight fist that it made breathing difficult. She knew she couldn't hide it from him. A big, vicious werewolf in his human shape of solid muscle and strength stood just feet from her. He had to be at least six-foot-four. She regretted climbing out of the tree. Her instincts screamed at her to flee but her legs refused to move. They suddenly were rooted to the ground-heavy and paralyzed.

"Hey," he whispered, his deep voice turning husky. "Calm down, Shannon. It's going to be fine." Her mouth opened but nothing came out. She wondered if this gripping terror came from the part of her she'd thought she'd gotten a handle on years before. Memories of her childhood surfaced-of those gut reactions she sometimes experienced and of that other part of her that she chalked up to her father's diluted but rare bloodline.

In the third grade a bully had pushed her. She'd hissed at him and clawed his arm, never meaning to, but it just happened. In fifth grade, she'd found herself up a tree when a dog had run at her.

She couldn't remember how she'd gotten up there or even making a decision to do it, but somehow she'd discovered her ability to climb pretty much anything if fear motivated her. Her teen years had been a nightmare when the urge to eat raw meat had struck with p.u.b.erty. She'd feared, along with her mother, that it meant more than it had. She'd never changed, never done any of the things her father could, and it had eventually pa.s.sed.

"Where do you live? Let's start there."

His voice drew her from her childhood confusion and she stared into the darkest eyes she'd ever seen. They were framed with thick, long eyelashes that matched his jet-black hair. He didn't look at her in a way that justified her fear but it still remained in full force. She knew she had to find her voice to answer him.

"Anderson," she got out. "I live there."

His full lips curved downward. "That's a distance from here. What were you doing taking a stroll in the woods?"

"I wasn't." Talking became easier. "I was taken from the grocery store parking lot two blocks from my apartment. That blond you hit and another guy walked up to me. The blond's friend punched me in the face and I woke here."

He closed his eyes and the anger that tensed his features made Shannon push tighter against the ma.s.sive tree at her back, wishing she could climb back up it, even inside it, to hide from the large wolf in skin. He softly growled before his eyes snapped open again.

"I'll make them pay for this, okay? The important part is, I found you in time." He paused. "If you tell anyone about this they won't believe it. Are you aware of that? I don't want them locking you up in some loony bin. You've been through enough without that s.h.i.t. I'll get you home and you need to forget this ever happened, okay?"

She nodded, acknowledging the intelligence of his advice. The cops would put her into a straitjacket if she told them the truth. Worse, it would draw attention to her, a really bad thing and something she'd always feared.

He visibly relaxed. "Good. If it makes you feel any better, I'm going to beat the h.e.l.l out of those boys for kidnapping you. They won't move for weeks without regretting ever putting a finger on you." Shannon saw sincerity as he spoke and some of her fear eased. His anger wasn't directed at her but at the ones who'd attacked her. She could happily deal with that. All she wanted now was to get away from him and go home. She silently promised to move out of her apartment as soon as possible. If they'd found her, someone else could too. She loved her home but she preferred remaining alive a lot more.

They both tensed when a twig snapped nearby and their heads jerked in unison toward the direction of the sharp sound. Shannon tried to spin around and lunge up the tree when a wolf came into view. Terror overtook everything else but a big, strong hand grabbed her arm to keep her tethered. She started to shake as the wolf growled viciously and his body lowered into a crouching position, preparing to pounce on her.

Shannon clawed at the hand holding her still, a scream trapped inside her throat, but Anton wouldn't let go. She heard him snarl at the wolf, maybe even at her, but she wasn't sure where he directed his anger. She was too panic-stricken to do anything but try to flee.

"Enough," Anton roared. "Jerry, back off. You're terrifying her!" She couldn't break free of the hold on her arm and she couldn't get up the tree. She needed to climb, needed to get higher, out of the wolf's reach, and her instincts screamed in a painful blast of strong awareness. She spun, faced Anton, and before she could stop herself, grabbed him. Her hand gripped his shoulder and she jumped, her body hit his much larger one. To her horror she wrapped around him, clinging to his body with every ounce of strength she had. Her legs squeezed around his waist and her face buried into his neck.

Shock held Anton immobile as the woman trembled against his chest. Her arm wound tighter around his neck, nearly strangling him, her legs locked around his waist, her knees under his arms, and her heels dug into the muscles of his a.s.s. Her breathing tickled as she panted against his neck. He had to move his head to see Jerry since her long, tangled red hair partially covered his face and then he glared at his pack mate.

He released her upper arm after a slight hesitation to wrap both of his around her waist, hugging her. She trembled more when her other arm wrapped around his neck and a protective feeling spurred his anger to burn brighter at the wolf sitting in the clearing staring at him with a dazed, confused look.

"It's okay." He tried to comfort Shannon. "I ordered you to take off, Jerry. You're scaring her." The wolf lowered his head and changed form. It irritated Anton but he couldn't stop the other man from what he'd already started to do. When Jerry pushed up to his feet as a man, he gawked at Anton and the woman in astonishment.

"What the h.e.l.l are you doing with a cat wrapped around you?" A cat? Anton inhaled deeply, through his nose, trying to filter the scent of her blood from the scent of the cloying cologne that hindered his usually acute sense of smell. The scents coming off her nearly overwhelmed him. Vanilla mixed with pure terror, woman, strawberries, and...

"f.u.c.k," he groaned, tensing. "You're a shifter. No wonder they hunted you." She quaked harder, clung more frantically, and he realized something important. She wasn't hurting him. No teeth tore into his exposed jugular where her lips pressed against his neck. Her fingernails dug into his shoulders but they weren't claws. Even her strength wasn't nearly what it should be as a shifter. He had no doubt she held on to him as tightly as she could while her adrenaline pumped but he could throw her off him with minimal effort.