AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Maya pushed her panties down and stepped out of them. She seemed completely unfazed by his stare and he soaked in the sight of her from top to bottom. Her raven black hair hung loose around her shoulders. Her breasts were small but perky, with dusky nipples his mouth watered to taste. She was thin but he’d already known that so the flat plane of her stomach and lean muscles weren’t a surprise. The scars on the other hand, well he’d thought he was prepared to see more of those but he hadn’t been, clearly, because rage boiled in his veins when he thought about that bastard cutting her just for the sick pleasure of it.
As if she sensed his change in mood, Maya shifted on her bare feet, “You okay so far?”
“You’re standing naked in front of me and I’m pretty sure you’re going to tell me not to come any closer so no, I’m not okay.” He tried to smile but the worry in her eyes when he met them again said she wasn’t buying it. He tried honesty. “You’re beautiful, sweetheart. So damn beautiful. It’s all I can do not to tackle you to the ground right here and now and make you scream my name.”
Maya licked her lips, “That’s not why we’re out here.”
“No.” He agreed, “It’s not.”
“Remember what I said about running for the car.”
“The only direction I’m running these days is towards you, Maya.” He admitted. “Now, as much as I love seeing you naked. I need you to shift for me.”
Maya took a deep breath and he tried like hell not to watch her breasts rise and fall. Later, he promised himself. Later he would cup them in his hands and suck on her until she was writhing for him.
Right now, he needed to focus on making a good impression on her wolf because it was that animal side of Maya that would ultimately give him a wolf of his own according to what he’d been told. He swallowed hard at the thought of being bitten, of welcoming the presence of a wolf into him. It was still hard for him to wrap his head around how any of it was possible but what he did know was that it was incredible and he was so, so lucky to have the chance to be part of this amazing world.
“Okay.” Maya blew out the big breath, “She’s clawing to get out and meet you so… here she comes.”
Zander watched as she closed her eyes. All the hairs on the back of his neck rose and he swore he felt a rush of heat sweep through the clearing. As he watched, Maya’s head snapped back and then forward again so violently that she felt to her hands and knees on the grass. He gasped, taking a step towards her, but when she glanced up at him again her eyes glowed gold and the sight froze him to his spot.
He winced as he heard the crack of bone and ripping muscles. Maya must have been in pain. Zoey told him that there was always some pain when the wolf climbed to the surface, but unlike his sister Maya didn’t cry out. Her body twisted and curled in on itself. In the span of a few blinks he watched, transfixed, as her arms and legs shortened and her hands and feet turned to paws. His brain rebelled at the sight of Maya, his Maya, mid-shift and he closed his eyes. It was only for a couple of seconds but when he opened them again a large black wolf was curled on the ground where Maya had stood only a minute before.
He sucked in a surprised breath as the wolf slowly stretched, unwinding itself and shaking as if it, as if she, had just woken from a nap. The wolf raised her head skyward and Zander followed her gaze. He couldn’t help but wonder if she was trying to figure out why she was being allowed into their world during the day instead of during the night of a full moon or if she’d been paying attention and knew what Maya had agreed to. When she lowered her head again, swing around to look at him, he recognized the gold, glowing eyes and knew it was the latter.
“Hey there sweetheart.” He smiled as she pawed at the ground, ducking her head as if she were shy. “I’ve been waiting to meet you. I hear you’ve been wanting to meet me too.”
The wolf growled, sending a shiver down Zander’s spine, but he only grinned back and shook his head, “You’re not going to scare me off. Come here, let me see you.”
He marveled when she moved towards him slowly. She understood him, he realized. Sure, both Zoey and Maya had told him that even when their animal sides were in control that they were still inside and could see and hear what was happening. He figured the same must be true of the animal as well, which meant this wolf was Maya and knew everything that Maya knew about him.
The wolf walked right up to him and butted her head against his chest. He chuckled. She was so big. That surprised him. The few minutes he’d spent with Zoey when she was in her wolf form he’d thought she was bigger than a regular wolf but he hadn’t truly realized just how much bigger. Maya’s wolf was tall enough that she easily pushed her muzzle against his stomach, sniffing him and then rubbing her face against him. He smiled and raised a hand, slowly and carefully, to scratch behind her ears.
She was marking him. He felt so damn proud in that moment he could have shouted with delight. Instead he only pet the large wolf and let her put her scent all over him. She wanted the other wolves in the pack to know that he was taken, even if Maya’s human side refused to give in and bite him, her wolf was leaving her mark.
“And she said you were scary.” He teased when the wolf all but hummed with pleasure. “You’re not scary. You’re beautiful, just like your other half. Beautiful and strong and mine, all mine.”
The wolf butted her head against his hand and he pulled it away. He sighed as she turned away. He had a feeling he knew what was coming next and he winced when he heard the first snap of muscle as the shift started again. It hadn’t been long enough. She should have stayed in wolf form longer. Zoey had told him that sudden shifts back and forth between their dual nature could exhaust them but Maya went from animal back to human so fast and so easily that he could only raise his eyebrows when she appeared in front of him again.
“Was it something I said?”
Maya was squatting on the ground, one knee down and her hands holding her steady but she glanced up and glared at him, “You didn’t run.”
“Why do you sound upset about that?” He snorted, watching as she rose back to her feet to see if she winced in pain or sagged in relief, though she did neither.
“Because if you’d run, I could have convinced myself that I was right to keep you at arm’s length.” Maya’s eyes softened and she took a step closer to him.
“And now?”
“Now, I’m not just attracted to you or intrigued by you. I’m proud and so is my wolf.”
“Proud?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Fate picked us a strong mate and you’re mine.” Her lips twisted slightly, “All mine.”
“You heard that huh?” He reached out for her, tugging her into his arms when she was close enough.
“I heard everything. Felt everything.” Maya surprised him for the second time that day when she tiptoed up, wrapping her arms around him, “And I want you, Zander. The connection between us is so strong. I can’t deny it anymore. I don’t want to and even if I did, I don’t think my wolf would let me. Not now that she’s put her scent all over you.”
