The Bad Wolf

The journey to become a better man isn’t easy, especially
when there’s something worth fighting for.

Evan has been alone since Kaine’s death, moving from place
to place, and for the most part, keeping to himself. He never
expected to cross paths with Mason and Niall again. When
he gets caught up in something bigger than himself, he is left
injured, scared, and with nowhere else to turn.

Michael is like no wolf Evan has ever met before. Born a

werewolf, Michael is stronger and faster, but has yet to truly
tap into his abilities. Taken in by Mason and Niall, Michael
struggles to come to terms with the horrific events in his past
and the loss of his family. In Evan, Michael finds an
unexpected focus. And despite warnings of Evan’s own dark
past, Michael finds Evan to be someone worth fighting for,
and someone who can help him understand exactly what he
is capable of.

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This  book  is  a  work  of  fiction.  Names,  characters,  places,
and  incidents  either  are  products  of  the  author’s
imagination  or  are  used  fictitiously.  Any  resemblance  to
actual  events  or  locales  or  persons,  living  or  dead,  is
entirely coincidental.

The Bad Wolf

ISBN: 978-1-77111-828-6

Cover art by Latrisha Waters

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Prologue

Nine years ago.

r Roth? Can you hear me?”
Evan fought against the hands of the people holding

him  down  and  desperately  clawed  at  his  face.  Where  was
he? What the fuck was going on? He felt like he was being
smothered.  Something  covered  his  mouth  and  nose,
confining  and  hot  against  his  skin.  His  vision  blurred.  A
bright light disoriented him, and all he saw were black spots
bursting across a white background.

“We need to get him stabilized…type and cross-

match…get a line in.” Barely hearing the jumble of orders
shouted over him, Evan focused on the key words.

Was this a hospital? Was that where he was?
In a brief moment of clarity, he looked around. A sea of

people frantically moved about him, passing objects over
him. They were dressed in white and green, and it became
clear to him he was in the ER.

What the hell had happened? He’d been at a nightclub

called  Shiver,  all  dark,  close  spaces  full  of  too  many  hot
bodies. He remembered drinking, dancing, some guy feeling
him up. Evan had been out with friends. It was supposed to
have  been  a  night  of  fun  and  catching  up.  It  had  been  too
long since they’d all met up and done something together as
a group.

Am I dying?

“M

Meredith Russell

Pain knifed through him as he struggled to sit up. He

wanted out. He hated hospitals. He hated the smell and the
cloak of death that hung around them. His father had been
in and out of the hospital, helpless and wasting away from
colon cancer that had been caught too late.

“Mr Roth, can you hear me?” Evan stopped struggling

and looked up into the clear blue eyes of the young woman
standing over him. She held his head and he focused his
gaze on her. She must be an angel. Was this it? Was this how
his life was going to end, bleeding out on some ER table?

“You need to let us help you,” she continued. “Don’t fight

us.”

Evan swallowed awkwardly, the taste of his blood

metallic and bitter in the back of his throat. He didn’t want
to die.

“Do you understand?”
Nodding, Evan reached out and grabbed her wrist. He

understood. “Please,” he managed from behind the mask.
His hold weakened as the room darkened around him, a
vast black space sucking him in. Please don’t let me die.

Help me!
The desperate plea caught in Evan’s throat. Opening his

eyes, Evan tried to sit up. His heart beat madly in his chest
and pain shot through him, forcing him to give in. He fell
back against the pillow and steadied his breathing. It took a
moment for him to realize where he was, and he slowly
curled his fingers in the starched white sheet of the hospital
bed. The bed was solid and real and he thanked God he was
alive.

Last night was a blur of blood and pain. If he was honest,

he wasn’t sure he wanted to remember, though little flashes
of memories were slowly knitting together to form a
terrifying picture. From the nightclub, he’d foolishly thought
walking home was a good idea. Yes, shit happened, but shit

The Bad Wolf

happened to other people, not him. He was happy in his
little world of Evan, safe and sound. But last night, he’d been
terribly wrong.

The path through the city park was poorly lit. It had been

for years, despite the handful of petitions to the city council.
Evan had walked through the park what must have been a
hundred times before, and not once had he ever considered
himself in danger or potential fodder for some serial killer.
He was a strong young man. Guess he’d learned his lesson.
The attack had started with the simple sense of being
watched. He recalled strange growling and the rustling of
leaves, the hair on the back of his neck standing up, and then
the blur of motion before he was dragged from the path and
into the bushes.

Teeth, claws, pain—how was he even alive after that? A

wolf.  It  had  been  a  wolf.  He  remembered  now.  A  large,
black-furred  wolf  with  pure  white  eyes.  Uncomfortably,  he
scratched at his bandaged hand and fingered the line in his
arm. His breathing became ragged, and he wondered where
to  find  a  nurse.  He  wanted  the  line  out  and  to  put  on  his
clothes. He wanted to get out of there.

“You shouldn’t play with those,” someone said from the

corner of the room.

Evan looked fearfully to the shadows, surprised to find a

man standing in the dark. Had he always been there?

The man stepped forward. “You should rest. Looks like

you  had  one  hell  of  a  night.”  The  man  wore  his  long  dark
hair  back  from  his  face  and  the  overhead  fluorescent  light
reflected  in  his  eyes,  making  them  seem  almost  silver  in
color.

Eyeing the man curiously, Evan noted the look of

amusement and pleasure on the man’s face. He was dressed
in jeans and a dark jacket, and Evan was sure the man
wasn’t a nurse or a doctor.

Meredith Russell

“Who are you?” he asked. The man stepped forward and

an unwelcome feeling settled in Evan’s gut. The heated
sensation of familiarity spread through him, but he swore he
didn’t know the man. The heat sparked in his gut and mixed
with something more. Was it fear? Attraction?

The man moved closer and came to stand beside the bed.

He looked Evan up and down and grinned. “You mean you
don’t know?” he said as he reached out. Delicately, he ran
his fingers over Evan’s bandaged side.

Evan swallowed uncomfortably as his chest ached at the

man’s touch.

“The name’s Kaine, and I have a small proposition for

you.”

“I don’t understand.” Evan took an unsteady breath. A

proposition? What could this man, Kaine, possibly want
from him?

“You will,” Kaine said and suddenly Evan was seeing red

and  white  in  a  scalding  pain.  Kaine  pressed  his  fingers
ruthlessly  into  Evan’s  side,  bringing  his  other  hand  up  to
cover  Evan’s  mouth  and  smother  the  sound  of  his  scream.
“And  when  you  do,  I  want  you  to  come  see  me.”  Just  as
quickly  as  he’d  ignited  the  pain  in  Evan’s  side,  he  pulled
back his hands and stepped away.

Evan coughed and pressed his hand to the now blood-

soaked  dressing.  Carefully,  he  cradled  his  injured  side,  a
wave  of  nausea  crashing  over  him  as  he  watched  Kaine.
What  was  this,  some  fucked-up  dream?  This  couldn’t  be
real.  This  creep  of  a  guy  was  a  figment  of  his  morphine-
indulged imagination. “Who are you?” he asked again.

Kaine gave a tooth-filled grin, only to quickly step back as

the door to the room opened and a nurse walked in.

The nurse stopped dead and looked between the two of

them. “You shouldn’t be in here,” she said, directing her
words at Kaine. “You know that.”

What the hell?

The Bad Wolf

The nurse moved closer and audibly sighed as she caught

sight  of  Evan’s  side.  “You’re  such  an  asshole,”  she  stated
with a sideward glance at Kaine. She brushed back her long
blonde  hair.  Her  skin  was  fine  and  pale  like  porcelain,
almost translucent as she leaned over him and into the light.

She smiled sweetly at Evan, her six-foot frame made no

less imposing by the curl of her lips and her soothing sounds
as she attended his wound.

“Go now,” she said, though she wasn’t talking to Evan.

Kaine hesitated but eventually left without another word.

The nurse removed the dressing covering Evan’s stomach

and gazed at the jagged wound. “The stitches are fine. It’ll
clean right up.”

Evan stared at the pattern of his wound and gauged the

size of the bite mark. The wolf must have been huge. How
was he not dead? He turned away as the nurse worked. His
memories brought forth another question. Had there been
someone else there? He was alive. Was that because the wolf
had stopped, or was he right and someone else was there?
Did they save him?

“There,” the nurse said, pulling Evan from his thoughts.

“Good as new.” She smiled again as she rolled off her latex
gloves. “You’ll be fine.”

“Who are you?”
“Sian,” she said. “My name’s Sian.” She flattened down

the front of her pale green scrubs.

“And who was he?” Evan asked. It was clear she knew

this Kaine guy.

The nurse chewed thoughtfully on her lip. “A friend. He

can be your friend, too.”

“Why would I want him to be my friend?”
Sian shook her head as she walked around the bed and

toward the door. “It won’t be about want. It’ll be about
need.”

Meredith Russell

More riddles. “Right,” he said, dismissively. “And how

will I find him if I need to?”

Stopping by the door, Sian looked back at him. With a

smile, she simply said, “You just will.”

The Bad Wolf

Chapter One

Present Day

ou want fries with that? Salad? Onion rings?”
Evan eyed the plump waitress from over the top of his

menu. “Just the burger,” he said, lowering the menu and
smiling politely. He could remind her he had told her once
already, but that was likely to result in her spitting in his
meal. “Please.”

“Okay, sugar. Burger and a Coke coming right up.” She

pushed out her chest slightly as she leaned forward to take
the menu. A sliver of each strap of her red push-up bra was
visible from beneath her open-necked uniform as the crease
of her middle-aged cleavage came too close to his face for
comfort.

Evan did his best not to shy away and offend her. He

cleared his throat and glanced at her name badge. Tammy.
He’d known a Tammy once, back home in Pittsburgh when
he was a sophomore in high school. She’d had a thing about
sticking her tits out to impress the guys, too.

With a flirty wink, Tammy swayed toward the counter

with his order, leaving Evan to relax before sliding lower in
the  booth.  With  a  sigh,  he  rested  his  head  against  the
window and looked out at the gloomy world. It was a little
after six  in the evening, and already nighttime was settling
in.  He  looked  at  the  half-filled  lot  and  noted  a  couple
standing beside a dark SUV. Not a couple, he hoped, as he

“Y

Meredith Russell

realized just how large an age gap there was between the
two of them. Father and daughter, maybe?

Shit. He watched as the man pushed the girl roughly

against the side of the vehicle. Regret lurched in his chest as
he turned away. He was just passing through and couldn’t
afford to get caught up in some domestic dispute.

He had gotten into town late last night and had slept

fifteen hours straight. He had been exhausted. The last forty-
eight hours had felt like they’d never end. After running into
trouble  in  Atlanta,  he  had  spent  the  last  two  days  looking
over his shoulder and putting as much distance as he could
manage  between  him  and  the  city.  He’d  headed  north,
figuring  it  was  as  good  a  direction  as  any,  and  out  to  the
mountains  near  the  border.  Plenty  of  space  to  keep  to
himself.  The  forests  would  be  a  good  place  to  let  his  wolf
roam  free,  uninhibited  and  stripped  to  its  basic  instincts.
Being in control was tiring and he just wanted to let go for a
little while.

The full moon was in a little over a week and Evan

guessed  it  would  be  easy  enough  to  lay  low  in  the  small
mountain  town  of  Blackhill  until  then.  He  looked  back  out
the window. The man and girl were gone. He stared at the
handful  of  cars.  Would  it  really  be  as  easy  as  he  thought?
Smaller  population,  everybody  knowing  everybody.  He’d
stand out like a sore thumb.  Shit. He’d been alone for four
years.  Sian,  Kaine,  the  others,  everybody  had  either  left  or
were  dead.  From  having  people—a  pack—he  trusted,  he
now had nothing and no one.

It had been strange at first. He was a free agent, his own

man. No Kaine telling him what  he could and couldn’t do,
who he could and couldn’t see. It was kind of liberating, but
also  incredibly  sad.  He  had  no  clue  how  to  connect  with
anyone  anymore.  So  instead,  he  kept  to  himself,  below  the
radar. Or he had until Atlanta.

The Bad Wolf

A night spent drowning his sorrows and he’d lowered his

guard.  He’d  wanted  a  connection  and  to  spend  time  with
someone who was just like him. She’d approached him first,
all long blonde hair, big tits, and legs that  looked like they
could  crush  a  guy’s  head.  Her  name  was  Jenna,  and  God
how she had reminded him of Sian, her looks, her voice, and
her scent that was distinctly female, distinctly wolf, but also
distinctly  alpha.  And  then  there  was  her  beta,  her  mate,
equally  blond,  and  equally  desirable.  Evan  should  have
known  better,  but  he’d  been  so  damn  lonely,  and  the
temptation  of  the  warmth  and  solid  feel  of  another  man,
another wolf, was too much to ignore.

The alpha’s heady scent had made Evan follow the two of

them to the dance floor. The beat of the music, the dreamlike
intoxicated  blur  of  his  vision,  his  lowered  inhibitions,  and
the feel of two sets of hands on his body brought out feelings
in him he couldn’t ignore. He had felt like he was losing his
mind. The assault on his senses was crazy, and the three of
them  could  have  been  fucking  right  there  and  then  in  the
middle of the club.

Following temptation, he’d returned to the woman’s

home and engaged in a twisted threesome among silk bed
sheets. Evan had been a fool, caught up in the lust and heat
of the encounter. His attention had been firmly on the male,
the beta, Adam. Stupid mistake.

“One Coke and one burger,” the waitress said, returning

to his table. “Anything else I can get ya?”

Evan shook his head. “I’m fine. Thanks.”
With a smile, she then headed toward a table at the other

end of the diner where a young couple had just sat down.

Staring at the large glass of Coke, Evan watched the fizz

of tiny bubbles on the inside of the glass. He stirred the
drinking straw and the bubbles scattered, escaping in a
frantic crackle across the surface of his drink. Worrying his

Meredith Russell

lower  lip,  he  released  the  straw  and  sat  back,  leaning  his
head against the back of the booth, breathing in the scent of
the  cooked  meat  patty  as  his  stomach  growled  to  be  filled.
Bumping his arm on the table edge, he grimaced. Slowly, he
rolled back the sleeve of his jacket and looked down at the
end of the long wound that traveled up the inside of his arm.
It would heal eventually,  but for now it was a reminder of
his stupidity.

For two weeks, he had been caught up with Jenna and her

kinky  games  of  wax  and  wolfsbane.  She  liked  taking  pain
and inflicting it, and in some ways Evan had, too. But then
there was Adam and the fleeting, tender moments between
them,  the  looks,  the  touches.  Adam  was  strong  and
powerful,  and  temptation  and  lust  had  gotten  the  better  of
Evan.  They  should  never  have  dared  to  embark  on
something together. Just the two of them.

Evan rolled down his sleeve and leaned forward, picking

up his burger and resting his elbows on the table. He took a
bite and chewed the overcooked patty. He wondered if
Adam had survived that night, Jenna having caught them in
the act, naked, and Evan buried balls-deep in Adam.

Do you really care?
Sure he cared. Evan closed his eyes and took deep

breaths. Who was he trying to kid? It had just been sex, the
need of a warm body to fuck and hold. It had been a long
time since he’d cared about anyone but himself. He’d been
loyal to Kaine, Sian, and the others, but he wasn’t sure he’d
managed to care, not even when they were gone.

Another deep breath and Evan opened his eyes. A scent

hit the back of his throat and familiarity made his chest ache.
Lifting  his  head,  he  scanned  the  diner’s  patrons.  The  scent
was  like  Kaine’s,  his  alpha,  but  it  wasn’t  him,  couldn’t  be.
Kaine  was  dead.  There  was  something  different,  a  mix  of
Kaine and…

The Bad Wolf

“Mason,” he said in a hushed voice. He dropped his half-

eaten burger on his plate.

Evan hadn’t seen Mason since the night of Kaine’s death.

He  had  watched  through  drugged,  half-lidded  eyes  as
Mason’s wolf had torn out Kaine’s throat and Kaine’s black
wolf  had  breathed  its  last  as  it  bled  out  across  the  dusty
theater  stage.  That  night  felt  like  a  lifetime  ago.  Kaine’s
stupid desire for revenge and control had gotten him killed,
Sian,  too.  Evan  never  imagined  crossing  paths  with  Mason
again, not after saying his goodbyes to Mason’s lover Niall
in a parking lot outside a diner not all that different to this
one.

Evan subtly sniffed the air and finally found the source of

his torment. He shrunk away as Niall, not Mason, exited the
bathroom and stopped at the counter. He watched as Niall
collected a small cardboard box and thanked the man at the
register. The human smelled like his lover, and Evan
imagined the scent of Niall was equally strong on Mason.

There was an easy smile on Niall’s face as he headed to

the door and out into the parking lot. Evan stayed low in his
seat, narrowing his eyes as he peered through the window.
As he had said to Niall four years ago, he had no intention of
seeing either man again. They weren’t a threat to him and he
had no intention of going up against Mason.

The man, his wolf, had taken on Kaine and won. Maybe if

Sian had still been around, he could have been convinced to
seek revenge. But if he was honest, Kaine had deserved it.
He’d been a murderous bastard, cruel, cold, and calculating.
Kaine had known what he wanted—power and a pack to
rival all others.

Evan took another bite of his burger and fished some

coins out of his pocket, dropping them with a clatter on the
table as he quickly got to his feet. Curiosity had gotten the
better of him. Mason was all over Niall, and the smell of the

Meredith Russell

connection they’d once shared through Kaine was driving
him near crazy. He wanted to know and see what Mason
had. Was it just him and Niall? Did they have a home? Did
they have friends, family?

Stepping outside, Evan glanced around the parking lot.

An engine started and Evan watched the Honda truck pull
away, Niall seated in the driver’s side. Quickly, Evan got in
his own car and made to follow Niall. Reversing out the
space, he suddenly slammed on his brakes as someone
appeared behind him in the mirror. He turned around in his
seat and looked over his shoulder. She looked like the girl he
had seen arguing with who he had assumed to be her father.
She was maybe eighteen—though it was hard to tell in the
dusky light—skinny, dark-haired, with a strange look on her
face as she stared at him through the rear window.

“Get out the way, you freak,” he said through gritted

teeth, too quietly for her to hear.

A smile spread across her face and she lowered her head.

She turned away, walked from behind the car, and up
toward the diner. Evan eyed her suspiciously, though she
never looked back, simply going inside the diner and out of
view.

What the hell was that about?
Dismissing it as no more than small town behavior, Evan

finished his maneuver. Keeping some distance between him
and Niall, he followed the Honda up into the hills. The ride
didn’t  take  long.  Fifteen  miles  in,  the  pickup  took  a  right
down what appeared to be a private road. Evan drove past,
slowed down, and then backed up. He sat at the end of the
road and stared down what looked like nothing more than a
dirt track through a dense wall of trees. Chewing on his lip,
he  considered  what  to  do.  He  didn’t  want  to  make  his
presence known, but he was damn curious to see what had
become of his old pack member.

The Bad Wolf

There was no harm in looking. Evan made his decision

and  turned  into  the  track.  He  drove  a  little  way  before
finding somewhere to pull in. From there, he went on foot,
following  the  track  until  the  trees  thinned  and  he  could
make out a house ahead of him. Detouring among the trees
for cover, he kept to the shadows and circled the property. If
on  the  ball,  Mason  would  easily  catch  his  scent,  as  he  had
Mason’s. Silently, he moved through the brush and around
the back of the house. Finding a spot overlooking large glass
doors, Evan crouched down. An ache formed in his chest as
he caught sight of Mason. The man looked good. There was
an  ease  to  the  way  he  moved,  no  longer  the  guarded  and
wary  man  Evan  remembered.  Above  everything  else,  from
where Evan was standing, Mason looked happy.

Evan shifted his position to rest on one knee and folded

his arms, resting them on his other. Envy twisted in his gut
as  Niall  entered  the  room  and  wrapped  his  arms  around
Mason’s waist, handing over the box from the diner, which
was  revealed  to  contain  two  large  muffins.  Niall  kissed
Mason’s  cheek  and  neck,  and  the  two  shared  a  smile  and
laughter.

Lucky bastard. Evan wondered what it must feel like to be

loved, really loved, and not just some casual fuck. Kaine had
only wanted him as a number, one of the pack. He had been
newly twenty-one when Kaine had turned him, never been
in  love,  and  the  only  love  he’d  had  was  from  his  family.
Regret  lurched  in  his  chest  as  he  remembered  his  mother
and the night he had killed her. Too easily he had forgotten
what  Kaine  had  encouraged  him  and  others  to  do  to  their
loved ones. Not really him, he figured. Together as wolves,
he  and  Kaine  had  ripped  his  mom  apart  in  her  bed  and
brutally slain her new lover who was lying beside her. Evan
truly  hoped  they  had  been  asleep,  that  their  murders  were
over too quickly for them to have woken or suffered.

Meredith Russell

Oh God. Evan pressed the back of his hand to his mouth as

nausea washed through him. He hadn’t thought on them in
almost nine years. Now was not the time to get all
sentimental. They were dead and buried, much like his
heart.

Looking back at the house, he was surprised to see

another  person  inside.  Evan  eyed  the  newcomer  with
interest.  The  man  appeared  younger  than  the  others  and
held himself a lot like how he remembered Mason had done
once upon a time—hesitant, wary, and on edge. Though he
knew  he  would  never  have  an  answer,  he  wondered  what
had  happened  in  the  young  man’s  life  that  had  made  him
look so vulnerable, so in need of love and support.

Slowly, Evan got to his feet and began to back away. This

wasn’t his world, and he had invaded upon it for too long.
He  should  return  to  his  motel  room  before  night  settled  in
and  try  for  a  good  night’s  sleep.  He  shouldn’t  stay  in  the
town now he knew Mason was here. Evan figured he could
keep out of the man’s way. He was too tired for games and
watching every step. A reunion would not be welcomed by
either of them, and Evan doubted a meeting would end well
for  him.  Mason  clearly  had  people  and  a  home  worth
fighting for. No, tomorrow he would move on, head cross-
country and find anonymity in a different town.

He took a last look at the three men. He was better off

alone.

The ride back to the motel had been one filled with

uncomfortable thoughts. Ones of  what if? What if he hadn’t
gone  out  that  night  nine  years  ago?  What  if  Mason  hadn’t
stepped  in  and  stopped  Kaine  from  killing  him  during  the
attack?  What  if  he’d  been  more  like  Mason,  stronger  and
rejected Kaine’s ideals and influence? So many people might
have still been alive now, his mother included.

The Bad Wolf

What if? What if? What if? Evan slammed his fists against

the steering wheel of his parked car and closed his eyes. He
was lost and confused. He didn’t know what to do. Keep to
himself? Join others? Start his own pack? As of yet, none of
those options had appealed to him and each one brought its
own risks and problems. He wondered if there was a way he
could ever lead a normal life. After everything he had done
and the people he had hurt, how could his life ever be
normal again?

Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes and looked

through the window. Evan sat back, narrowed his eyes and
stared at the girl standing in front of him. She was the same
girl he had seen before at the diner. She was dressed in black
jeans, a leather jacket, and heeled boots that lengthened her
slim body. Her dark hair hung limply on either side of her
thin  face  and  her  dark  eyes  locked  with  his.  There  was
something scary but sad about how she looked at him. Evan
leaned  forward,  resting  on  the  steering  wheel  as  he
considered  her  thoughtfully.  What  was  up  with  her?  Was
this how the locals hooked up? Or was this more a case of a
business proposal? Not that it mattered. She was far from his
type and barely looked legal.

Evan pressed his mouth in a line, before pushing open the

car door and getting out. He stood for a moment behind the
sturdy door.

“You okay?” he asked. Maybe she’d had more than a spat

with  her  daddy.  Maybe  she  really  needed  help.  The  girl
didn’t  say  anything.  She  simply  stood  and  stared  back  at
him.

“Great,” he said and pushed shut the car door with a

grating creak. “Are you out here alone?” She looked like she
wanted to say something but remained silent. What should
he do? Keep pushing? Walk away? He wasn’t in the mood
for games. “Remind me never to play the Good Samaritan

Meredith Russell

ever again,” he said to himself and then looked at the girl.
“Okay, well, night.” She was a little too weird, even for him.

He locked up and headed for his room. As soon as he

moved,  he  stopped  again  at  the  sound  of  movement  from
behind  him.  Looking  over  his  shoulder,  he  discovered  the
girl had taken several steps toward him. She held something
in her hand and to her chest. From the look in her eyes, he
swore she was apologizing. He turned around and stared at
her  thoughtfully.  He  went  to  offer  his  help  again  but  was
surprised as a bright  light shone in his face. The girl had a
flashlight and all Evan saw was an explosion of white.

“What the hell?” He stepped back and shielded his eyes.

This girl was nuts. Lowering his hand, he blinked away the
white fuzz. The girl was gone. Evan scanned the area when a
sharp click drew his attention to the shadows. He tilted his
head at the familiar sound. It was a gun. Before Evan had a
chance  to  react,  a  loud  pop  was  accompanied  by
excruciating pain. The smell of grease and gunfire filled the
air  around  him,  and  Evan  stumbled  backward.  A  second
louder  shot  from  a  different  weapon  rang  in  his  ears  and
Evan  cried  out  in  pain.  His  shoulder,  chest,  and  stomach
burned  and  he  clawed  madly  at  his  clothing  as  he  spun
around and fell to his knees behind the car. The ammunition
was made from silver and Evan hurt like hell. Blood covered
his  hands  and  attacked  his  senses  in  a  metallic  burst.  He
could smell his own burned flesh.

Footsteps closed in, two, three—no, four people, maybe

more. Grabbing  the trunk  of the car, Evan dragged himself
to his feet. He didn’t risk looking at who had attacked him.
There  was  no  time,  and  as  far  as  he  was  concerned  it  was
better to run and live than try and fight his attackers. With
that  in  mind,  he  ran  as  fast  and  as  far  as  he  could  in  the
direction  of  what  he  considered  was  his  only  salvation.  He
ran for miles and time passed in a fuzzy haze. He ran until

The Bad Wolf

he could run no more, and exhausted and bleeding he fell to
the  leaf-covered  ground.  His  breathing  was  ragged  as  he
rolled  onto  his  back.  Pressing  his  hand  to  his  stomach,  he
stared  up  at  the  canopy  of  trees  and  then  arched  back  his
head  and  looked  around.  Nothing  looked  familiar.  He  had
run  for  miles  and  had  no  idea  where  he  was.  All  he  knew
was that he was done. Holding his side, he dared to close his
eyes.

I need to rest. Just for a moment. Just for a little while.

Meredith Russell

Chapter Two

ou know I’m going to expect these every time you head
into town now, right?” Mason jumped up to sit on the

kitchen counter. He picked up one of the large triple
chocolate muffins and took a bite. “Seriously,” he said as he
chewed. “These are amazing.” He broke a chunk off the top
of the muffin and held it out to Niall, who cleared away the
last of the dishes.

“I have one of my own,” Niall pointed out.
Mason shook his head and laughed. Taking Niall by the

hand, he pulled him close and pressed the crumbling food to
Niall’s lips. “I was trying to be romantic,” Mason insisted.
He pushed firmly, part of the muffin making it into Niall’s
mouth, the rest crumbling down the front of his lover’s shirt.

Niall laughed and grabbed Mason’s wrist, licking his

mouth  before  moving  forward  and  stealing  a  kiss.  “I  can
think  of  other  ways  to  be  romantic,”  he  said  with  a  low
groan.  He  gently  nudged  Mason’s  legs  apart  and  stepped
into the space, pressing his crotch to Mason’s with a rotation
of his hips.

Grinning, Mason leaned forward and captured Niall’s

mouth  in  another  kiss.  “Maybe  when  my  supper’s  gone
down.”  He  patted  his  stomach  and  then  linked  his  arms
around Niall’s neck. Slowly, he threaded his fingers through
the  soft  curls  of  Niall’s  hair.  “I’ve  been  thinking,”  he
eventually  said.  “We  should  get  away  somewhere  for  the
weekend. Just the two of us.”

“Y

The Bad Wolf

“Really?” Niall didn’t look convinced. “You want to get

away? What about this place and Michael?”

Mason pulled Niall into a hug and rested his chin on

Niall’s  shoulder.  It  wasn’t  for  his  sake  he’d  suggested  the
getaway.  “I  just  thought  you  might  need  a  time  out.”  He
held Niall close and closed his eyes, enjoying the comforting
feel of Niall in his arms. “It’s been a long year.”

There always seemed to be something else and no real

time to enjoy being a couple. Just the two of them. They both
had their own jobs and then what started as a simple favor
for  a  friend—offering  sanctuary  to  him  and  his  wolf  self—
had  led  to  somewhat  of  a  calling  for  Mason.  In  helping
others deal with their curse, it had helped him, too. Helped
him understand who  he was and how he could use that  to
be a better person, and in some small way, make up for the
past. He had come a long way since then, since Kaine. Both
of them had.

“I don’t want you to think I’m ignoring you,” he said.

Slackening his hold, Mason opened his eyes as Niall stepped
back. He looked at his lover. What was Niall thinking? Did
he regret his decision from almost four years ago?

“I don’t think you’re ignoring me,” Niall assured him.

“Sure, sometimes I wish we had the place to ourselves. But
to see you happy and so…” He didn’t seem to have the
words. “It’s been good for you. I wouldn’t dream of
changing anything.”

Niall was right. The last year had been good for him.

They had opened their home and lives to others, people like
Mason—werewolves.  In  doing  so,  it  had  helped  Mason
move  forward,  forgive  himself  for  actions  he  had  had  no
control  over.  He  and  his  wolf  had  been  two  very  different
creatures back then, but by letting the wolf in,  he now had
control  and  influence  over  it.  During  the  transformation,  it
was like they were united and working as one.

Meredith Russell

“Hey,” Niall said, interrupting Mason’s thoughts.

“Everything’s good. You don’t need to worry about me.”

Mason gave a reluctant nod. “I know. But I can’t help it.

What if something happened? I’d never forgive myself.”

Niall reached out and cradled Mason’s face in his hands.

“Nothing is going to happen. I trust you.”

“I didn’t mean me,” Mason said solemnly. Three months

ago,  a  young  couple  had  stayed  with  them.  Mason  had
wanted  to  help them, he  really  had,  but  they  were  careless
and  reckless.  They  didn’t  understand  nor  did  they  want  to
know  exactly  how  dangerous  and  vicious  their  wolf  side
was. They hadn’t seemed to care how little control they truly
had when they turned, and showed no consideration for the
safety  of  themselves  or  others.  They  had  broken  Mason’s
rules and that had put them all at risk. Mason wasn’t willing
to do that ever again. Niall could have been hurt or worse.
He  frowned  as  he  remembered  the  news  report  following
the  final  night  of  the  full  moon.  A  man  had  been  attacked,
mauled by an animal. Mason couldn’t help but feel guilty.

“Stop apologizing.” Niall leaned forward and pressed a

firm kiss to Mason’s mouth. Gently, he tilted back Mason’s
head and moved his hands backward to circle the back of
Mason’s neck and draw him closer.

Mason closed his eyes as Niall’s kisses wandered

downward, his lover’s lips teasing a line to the crease of his
neck. “They got in the house. Our house.” He swore he
could still smell them and had spent several days mopping
away the paw prints that only he seemed to see. Not even he
would risk entering the house in his wolf form. This was a
home for him and Niall, for humans.

Niall rested his hands on Mason’s hips, pulled him close

and to the edge of the counter. He moved forward between
Mason’s legs. He didn’t say anything, instead continued his
trail of kisses across Mason’s shoulder.

The Bad Wolf

The sensation of Niall’s teased kisses sent a wave of desire

through  Mason  that  went  straight  to  the  head  of  his  dick.
Opening  his  eyes,  he  rested  his  hands  on  Niall’s  shoulders
and  looked  out  the  large  glass  doors  on  the  back  of  the
house.  His  desire  suddenly  turned  to  fear  as  he  was
bombarded  with  emotions  that  were  not  his  own.  He
stiffened and tightened his grip on Niall’s shoulders.

“Mason.” Niall’s voice was strained. “What’s wrong?” He

tried to move away, but Mason’s hold was too strong.
“Mason,” he said sharply.

Mason flinched, his focus now on Niall. Slowly, he

loosened his grip and looked at his hands. What was wrong
with him?

“You’re shaking.” Niall wrapped his hands around

Mason’s  and  gently  rubbed  them.  “Hey.”  He  met  Mason’s
eyes,  obviously  concerned.  “Come  here.”  He  wrapped  his
arms  around  Mason  and  Mason  appreciated  the  shared
warmth. A cold chill passed along his spine and he couldn’t
shake the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

“I’m sorry,” he managed and pulled back a little. “Did I

hurt you?” He looked across Niall’s shoulders and chest. He
remembered holding on so very tightly, clinging to the solid
feel of the man—forever his anchor.

Niall shook his head, though winced as he rotated his left

shoulder. “Nothing serious.” He looked worriedly at Mason.
“What was that?”

Mason had no idea. It was like someone had slammed his

chest in an ice-cold vise. He had been scared but there was
no rational reason for him to be. “I can’t explain it.” He
hadn’t had such feelings of fear and loneliness in a long
time. He was here with Niall. He was safe and loved.

Anxiety rose in Mason. His breathing was unsteady and

his chest ached. As calmly as he could, he touched Niall’s

Meredith Russell

chest and then pushed him away. Niall, however, wasn’t
going to let him off that easy.

“Why do you do that?” Niall asked. Mason looked at him.

“Push me away when things get weird?”

Mason smiled and stopped pushing. He slid his hands

upward, held Niall’s face, and looked him firmly in the eyes.
“I’m not pushing you away. Not like that. I just need space
sometimes.”

“I know. I didn’t mean—”
“I appreciate you looking out for me. Always have and

always will. Just, you know, sometimes…”

“It’s too much? I’m too much?”
Mason leaned forward and kissed Niall. “I guess you

could  say  that.  And  not  meaning  to  do  the  whole  it’s  not
you, it’s me thing. But it is me. My issues. Not you.” He still
woke in a cold sweat some nights. Nightmares of the things
he did as a wolf, and everything that happened with Kaine
still haunted him. Once upon a time, the nightmares seemed
so real, so vivid—he breathed in the smoke from the burning
theater  and  flames  scorched  his  skin.  He  would  wake  with
tears  stinging  his  eyes  and  the  taste  of  Kaine’s  blood  filled
his  throat.  Things  were  slowly  getting  better.  Too  slow  for
Mason’s  liking,  but  at  least  there  had  been  some  progress.
He wasn’t running away from their bed, scared of what he
might  do.  Scared  of  unconsciously  lashing  out  and  hurting
Niall.

“Well, I love you and your issues,” Niall said. “Every.

Single. One.” He punctuated the words with kisses before
pulling Mason into another hug.

The embrace was short and Mason was surprised when

Niall released him, and flashed an awkward smile over his
shoulder.

Mason twisted to look behind him. Michael.

The Bad Wolf

“Sorry,” Michael Blake said as he hovered behind them.

“I  didn’t…”  He  fidgeted  with  the  packet  of  smokes  in  his
hands.  His  amber  eyes  darkened  and  embarrassment
colored his cheeks. “I just…” He waved his lighter and then
put  his  head  down,  moved  quickly  across  the  room,  slid
through the backdoor, and disappeared outside.

Mason sighed and leaned forward, resting his forehead

against  Niall’s.  “I’ll  go,”  he  said.  Michael  had  been  with
them  for  seven  months.  Seven  difficult  months.  But  things
were getting better, for all of them. If only he and Niall could
stop  feeling  so  Goddamn  guilty  about  sharing  the  smallest
moment  of  affection  and  intimacy  when  Michael  was
around.

Shaking his head, Niall kissed Mason on his temple. “It’s

my turn. Finish your muffin.”

“You sure?” It was a week until the full moon and he

knew Michael was on edge.

Niall nodded. “I’ll be back in a minute.” He backed from

between Mason’s legs. “And don’t even think about
touching mine,” he joked about his muffin before heading
outside.

* * * *

Michael  took  a  drag  of  his  cigarette.  Resting  his  elbows  on
the  edge  of  the  rail  surrounding  the  back  porch,  he  leaned
his  head  back  and  blew  the  smoke  upward.  He  eyed  the
large moon above the tops of the trees. One more week, he
reminded  himself,  and  sighed  as  he  rubbed  a  line  over  his
brow. The headaches were getting stronger the closer it got
to the transformation. He could almost make out their voices
now—other werewolves. Could there really be so many, so
close?

Shut the fuck up.

Meredith Russell

He pressed the ball of his palm against his temple and

tried to push away the sharp pain that sparked from behind
his left eye. Not that it helped. Nothing he’d tried seemed to
touch them. He’d had the headaches since puberty dealt him
a  devilish  hand.  At  fourteen,  he  transformed  for  the  first
time,  and  hell,  it  had  hurt.  Still  did,  even  now,  ten  years
later. Taking another drag of the cigarette, he looked toward
the  trees.  He  narrowed  his  eyes  and  curiously  scanned  the
dark line of the property. Something seemed off. He couldn’t
pin down exactly what it was, but something had the hairs
on the back of his neck standing to attention.

“Michael,” Niall said from behind him.
Michael briefly looked over his shoulder before focusing

back on the forest. “I didn’t mean to disturb you,” he said.
Despite having his own room and space in their home, he
always felt like he was intruding.

“You didn’t,” Niall assured him and came to stand beside

him. “This is your home, too. You know that.”

Michael nodded. The two men had told him so over and

over.  Comfortingly,  he  rubbed  his  hand  over  his  short  cut
hair. “I just feel like I keep getting in the way. Like I manage
to pick the one moment you guys are together, and getting
to  be  a  couple,  to  freak  out  or  disturb  you  by  doing
something as simple as walk through a room.” He licked his
fingers  and  snubbed  out  the  half-smoked  cigarette,  before
slipping it  back inside the crumpled packet  and then away
in  his  jeans  pocket.  Brushing  the  ash  off  his  hands  on  his
pants,  he  turned  around  and  leaned  against  the  rail.  He
shifted  his  feet  and  tried  to  relax.  He  didn’t  know  what  it
was, but he always felt that little bit uncomfortable around
Niall.

Niall smiled as Michael met his eyes. “Though you

probably don’t want to hear it, Mason and I have plenty of
uninterrupted couple moments.” His smile turned to a smirk

The Bad Wolf

as  he  turned,  leaned  his  elbows  against  the  railing,  and
stared  at  the  back  of  the  house.  His  eyes  seemed  to  follow
Mason  around  as  he busied  himself  with  wiping  down  the
kitchen counters and stove.

Laughing, Michael turned back to the forest. “I’m glad,”

he said and let out a heavy sigh. “I wish I could get myself
straightened out and from under your feet.” The words
pathetic and useless sprang to mind.

“Some things take time.”
Michael glanced briefly at the house. “He’s not okay, is

he?” Mason went through phases, it seemed. One minute he
was the happiest guy on the planet, and then the next he was
beyond serious, edgy, and miserable as fuck.

“He will be.” Niall smiled. “What happened with Rafe

and Chloe really bothered him. It reminded him just how
dangerous wolves are. You are. He is.”

“I would never hurt you. I’d leave if I ever thought I

would—”

Niall hushed him. “I wasn’t getting at anything. It’s just

how  things  are.”  He  sighed  and  combed  his  hand  back
through his brown hair, streaks of early  white catching  the
light and Michael’s attention. “I sometimes wonder if things
would  have  been  easier  if  I  had  stayed  a  wolf  instead  of
Mason  always  worrying  about  me.”  The  man  might  not
share  Mason’s  curse  any  longer,  but  he  bore  his  own—
human frailty.

“Would you?” Michael asked.
“What?” Niall’s brown eyes held warmth and

compassion. He was a good man. A loving man. Mason was
lucky.

“Want to be a wolf again?”
Niall seemed to consider the question, but eventually

shook his head. “For one, Mason would kill me,” he said

Meredith Russell

with a snorted laugh. He then sighed and stared at the
ground. “But no, I would never choose to be like that again.”

Michael gave a slow nod. No one would choose to be like

this, no decent, sane human being anyway. Sure there were
the pros—the strength, the speed—but the bad stuff would
always outweigh the good. All that pain and rage, the brutal,
wild  instincts  of  the  wolf,  and  the  constant  fear  of  losing
control.  Of  course  it  was  easier  for  Michael  than  it  was  for
Mason,  or  it  should  have  been.  Michael  was  born  a
werewolf,  though  the  transformations  didn’t  kick  in  until
puberty. Maybe if he’d been with his family, his own kind,
then things would have been a hell of a lot easier. But  shit
happened,  right?  Instead,  he’d  found  himself  dealing  with
these changes alone, no one around who  understood them.
Just those people. His captors.

“How are you feeling?” Niall asked, pulling Michael from

his memories. “The moon’s a week away. Do you feel
okay?”

Instinctively, Michael rubbed at his brow. “I can hear

them,”  he  said.  “And  I  wish  they’d  shut  up.”  He  forced  a
smile.  It  had  taken  him  years  to  figure  out  what  was
happening  to  him.  There  had  been  no  one  to  explain  that
these were the voices of his kin, of other werewolves.

“How many do you think there are?” Niall asked and

looked toward the trees.

Michael shrugged. He felt antsy. He could really do with

finishing his smoke, a habit he’d picked up that calmed him.
“It’s a single, rising chorus of…I don’t know how many.
Tens? Hundreds? I mean, are they in town? The county? The
state?” He’d tried so damn hard to block them out, and
failing that, tried to focus on a single voice. It hadn’t worked.
It never worked.

Help me. A voice louder than all the others penetrated his

skull. What the hell? Michael lurched forward, holding onto

The Bad Wolf

the railing for support. It wasn’t possible. That had never
happened before.

“Are you okay?” Niall asked. Niall touched his shoulder,

squeezing it in support. “Do you want Mason?”

“No,” Michael said and held Niall by his wrist. He didn’t

want to worry Mason with this. “It’s nothing.” Slowly, he
stood up straight and narrowed his eyes. A flash of silver
captured his attention. “Did you see that?” he asked.

“See what?” Niall joined him in examining the line of

trees.

“I thought—” There it was again, this time accompanied

with the sound of uneven footsteps against the hard ground.
The low evening light reflected off something beyond the
brush. Without hesitation, Michael released Niall’s hand and
leapt the railing, landing on all fours on the other side.

“I’ll get Mason. Michael, wait,” Niall called after him.
But Michael didn’t wait—curiosity had gotten the better

of  him,  and  he  sprinted  across  the  space  and  between  the
trees.  Slowing,  he  ducked  beneath  some  branches  and
looked  around.  What  am  I  doing?  Wandering  off  alone  was
rarely a good idea. There was blood in the air and the scent
of  something  distinctly  wolf.  Someone  was  definitely  out
there, and he suspected they were hurt.

“Hello?” he called and ventured farther from the house.
Cautiously, he moved forward, scanning the ground for

evidence of whoever was out there. He stopped, spotting a
trail of blood across the ground. He crouched down and
stared at the fresh droplets.

“Michael,” Mason said in a hushed voice, emerging from

the trees behind Michael. “What’s going on? Niall said you
ran off.”

Getting back to his feet, Michael waited for Mason to join

him. “Someone’s out here and they’re hurt.” He pointed at

Meredith Russell

the blood and looked at Mason who seemed suddenly pale
and wary. “What is it?”

“We should get back to the house.”
“Why?”
“It’s not safe,” Mason insisted. He looked nervously

around them and gently nudged Michael in the small of his
back. “We should wait for morning.”

Michael stood his ground. “They’re hurt, bleeding. They

might not be able to wait for morning.”

“He can wait.” Mason sounded very sure.
“He?” Michael eyed Mason curiously. “You know who it

is,” he stated. Michael breathed in deeply, something within
the stranger’s scent that was familiar. “Who is he?”

Mason moved closer. “Dangerous. And if he’s here, it

isn’t to catch up on the good old times.”

That was it. The underlying familiar part of the scent was

what  also  lay  beneath  Mason’s—the  wolf  that  had  turned
Mason  and  who  had  also  turned  the  man  out  there  in  the
dark.

“You can’t just leave him.”
“I can and I will.” Mason looked back along the path

they’d taken. He was clearly unnerved by the man’s arrival.

“Well, I won’t,” Michael said firmly. “Because I was

taught better than to turn my back on someone needing my
help.” He looked pointedly at Mason who knew exactly
what he was getting at as guilt creased the man’s brow.

“Shit,” Mason hissed and rested his hands on his hips as

he dropped his head and seemingly searched the ground for
a solution. “Fine, but Niall’s not going to like it.”

They continued searching together and it wasn’t long

before  they  came  across  who  they  were  looking  for.  They
found  the  injured  man  sitting  against  the  trunk  of  a  large
White  Pine.  He  was  barely  upright  and  he struggled  to  lift
his  head  to  look  at  them.  The  moonlight  caught  his  eyes

The Bad Wolf

making them glow silver before fading as he leaned back his
head.

“Mason,” he growled and winced in pain. Blood had

soaked through his clothes and his t-shirt was shredded at
his left shoulder and down over his chest.

“Evan,” Mason simply said and stepped forward, placing

himself protectively between the man and Michael. He
checked the area and raised his head to sniff the air. Michael
did the same. There was no one else nearby.

With a pained expression on his face, Evan held out his

hand. “I wasn’t sure you’d come.” He reached toward
Mason, sniffing a laugh when his hand was not welcomed.
Dropping his hand, he stared past Mason at Michael.
“Who’s your little friend?”

“None of your concern.” Mason stepped forward and

then crouched beside Evan. Though his initial words had
been harsh, he seemed to soften and was clearly concerned
by the man’s appearance. “What the hell happened? Who
did this?”

Evan raised his bloodied hand and roughly grabbed

Mason  around  the  back  of  his  neck,  pulling  him  close.  He
didn’t  seem  to  say  anything,  simply  meeting  Mason’s  eyes
with  his  own  intense  blue  stare.  There  was  sadness  there,
vulnerability. He was weak and hurting. If he was going to
say  anything,  he  didn’t  have  the  chance  because  Niall
appeared  from  the  right  and  yanked  Mason  from  his  hold.
Niall  stood  over  Evan,  a  shovel  in  his  hands  as  he  looked
vehemently down at the injured man.

“Niall, wait,” Mason called as he fell on his ass on the

forest floor. He raised his hand and shook his head. “Don’t.
Just look at him. He’s not going to hurt us. He can barely sit
up.”

Niall looked from Mason and then back at Evan, who

wore a crooked smirk as if to taunt the other man. Slowly,

Meredith Russell

Niall backed away, and then in one quick move, he swung
the shovel. There was a metallic clunk as the shovel hit Evan
on the side of the head, and the man slumped sideways to
the ground and fell unconscious.

Turning, Niall looked at Mason. “He’s gone by morning,”

was all he said, before heading back the way he came.

Michael waited until Niall was well on his way back to

the house, before crossing to help Mason to his feet. “Are
you okay?”

Mason wiped his hands on his pants and nodded. “I’m

fine. Help me with him.” He indicated toward Evan. “We’ll
get him patched up and call the doc.” He leaned down to lift
Evan’s shoulders.

Michael tried to figure out where to put his hands. Evan

was a pretty big guy. “What about Niall?” Niall clearly had
issues with Evan.

Mason gave a strained smile as the two of them lifted

Evan off the ground and said, “You leave Niall to me.”

The Bad Wolf

Chapter Three

ou have got to be fucking kidding me?” This was the
last straw. Not only had Mason defended Evan in the

forest, now Niall was expected to accept the man into his
home. “I don’t want him here.” There were only bad things
on the horizon with that man staying under the same roof as
them.

“Where’s he supposed to go?” Mason said in a hushed

voice, linking his arm with Niall’s and guiding him away
from where Michael kept watch as Doctor Oliver Anderson
tended to Evan’s wounds. “You heard Anderson, it was
silver. He’s peppered with shots. It’s going to take time for
him to heal.”

“Like you?” Niall spun around and grabbed Mason’s

waist, applying a little pressure to his side. The moment he
did it, he regretted it. He never intended to hurt Mason. Not
like that.

Mason quickly slapped Niall’s hand away and stepped

back, wide-eyed, hurt etched on his face. “You did not just
do that.” He pressed his hand to his stomach and grimaced.
The stab wound inflicted by Kaine four years ago troubled
Mason even now and focused pressure on the area still
caused him pain.

“I’m sorry,” Niall said and lowered his head. “I just

wanted to make a point. He did that to you.”

“No, Evan didn’t,” Mason said angrily. “You know that.”

“Y

Meredith Russell

“But he was there with Kaine in that alley and he was

there in the theater, too.” He looked firmly at Mason. “He
would have killed me without a second thought. You and
Saskia, too, if that’s what Kaine had wanted.”

Mason seemed to back down a little as memories of that

night were no doubt now at the forefront of his mind. “So,
what  then?  We  throw  him  back  out  there  to  whatever  fate
awaits  him?  You  said  yourself  he  helped  you  find  me  in
Westlake. If he hadn’t, God knows what I might have done.”
He held up his hand and made a gap between his finger and
thumb.  “I  was  this  close  to giving  up,  Niall.  To  just  saying
what the hell and putting a stop to the nightmare.” He took
a steadying breath, clearly getting caught up in the moment
and  needing  to  calm  himself  down.  “But  I  didn’t,  because
you found me. That’s what he did for me.”

If Mason was trying to make him feel guilty, then he was

damn close. Niall remembered how desperate Mason had
looked sitting beside his sister’s grave. No, it wasn’t enough.
He wouldn’t be made to feel sorry for Evan. Niall shook his
head. “You don’t understand.”

“Understand what?”
“I’m worried, okay? About you and Michael. You have no

idea  how  far  you’ve  come.  Both  of  you.  To  have  someone
like  him  around  you  and  now  so  close  to  the  full  moon,  it
can only bring about bad things. He’s not like you. He’s not
sorry for anything he’s done to you, me, or anyone else. He’s
as  bad  as  the  monster  who  created  this  mess  in  the  first
place.”

Mason looked weary and he closed his eyes. “He’s not

Kaine.”

Niall circled his arm around Mason’s waist. Though

Mason seemed reluctant at first, he eventually allowed Niall
to pull him close. With a heavy sigh, Niall leaned back his

The Bad Wolf

head and rested his chin against Mason’s forehead.
“Whether he is or he isn’t might not be the only problem.”

“I know,” Mason said.
“Someone did this to him. Someone who knew what he

was. If they followed him out here, we could all be in
danger.” He gently kneaded the back of Mason’s neck. “Are
you willing to risk that for him?”

“I was wrong about Kaine, about there being anything

but darkness in his heart, but if you’d seen the way Evan
looked at me out there…Maybe this time it’ll be different.
Maybe he’s different.”

Was maybe enough? Was there really anything

redeemable  about  the  man?  Evan  had  hunted  as  part  of
Kaine’s  pack,  killed  people,  eaten  people.  The  thought
turned Niall’s stomach and he slipped his arm from around
Mason. He wished he could believe Evan could change, had
changed,  but  he  was  blinded  with  hate  for  Kaine.  For
anything that reminded him of the link  that wicked animal
had once shared with Mason.

“You really want to do this?” Niall asked. Mason could be

damn stubborn sometimes.

“Yes,” Mason said.
“And this is because of Evan, for him, not Kaine, right?”

He sounded like a jealous asshole and he knew it. It wasn’t
Mason who woke to his lover in the grip of a nightmare
beside him in the middle of the night, fear and pain etched
on his lover’s face as he desperately sought to escape an
invisible horror.

Mason’s expression softened. “It’s for neither of them. It’s

for me.”

It had been four years since Kaine’s death and the move

out here, yet Mason still couldn’t see how different he was
from Kaine and his pack. He couldn’t see what a good
person he was and always had been.

Meredith Russell

“Mason,” Doctor Anderson interrupted. “Can I have a

word?”

Mason met Niall’s gaze and from the look in his eyes, it

was like he was asking permission.

Niall rubbed a line over his brow. He was tired and in

desperate need of some air. “Do what you need to. I’m
heading out.”

Mason caught his arm as he went to leave. “Where are

you going? It’s late.” He was clearly concerned.

“Just out.” He pulled Mason close and kissed the top of

his head. “I just need to get out of here, okay? Before I say or
do something I can’t take back.” His emotions were running
him in circles and bad feelings were riled up inside him. He
needed space and time to get his head straight. “Okay?”

Nodding, Mason released him. “Be safe.”
Niall smiled, kissing Mason for a second time, this time

on  the  cheek.  “I’ll  be  back  soon.”  He  glanced  to  where
Michael  stood  guard.  The  young  man  seemed  to  be
fascinated  with  Evan.  An  uneasy  feeling  lurked  just  out  of
Niall’s reach. Nothing good would come from this.

Grabbing his jacket and keys, Niall headed outside and to

the truck. It felt strange to be the one leaving. Usually,
Mason was the one who sought time to himself. Time to take
stock of what he had, who he was, and where he was going.
Niall looked back at the house. Guilt and fear clenched in his
stomach. Was Mason safe? Was he walking away when his
lover needed him? Mason had Michael, a much better bet if
it came down to a fight for their lives.

Pulling open the door to the truck, Niall slid inside.

Mason would be just fine and so would he, as soon as Evan
and  whatever  mess  the  man  had  gotten  caught  up  in  were
gone  from  his  home.  Starting  the  engine,  he  shifted  into
reverse  and  turned  the  truck  around.  He’d  head  into  town
and to his store. A couple of hours of sawing, chiseling, and

The Bad Wolf

sanding the dresser he’d been working on would vent some
of his anger, and then he could return home and to bed—his
and  Mason’s  bed.  They’d  apologize,  trade  I-love-yous,  and
everything  would  be  right  with  the  world  again.  Smiling,
Niall shifted into first and started out toward the road. After
all, they’d come through a hell of a lot worse than this.

* * * *

Who is he?

Michael leaned against the door jam and watched the

injured  man  sleep.  The  pain  had  gotten  too  much  for  him.
Doc  Anderson  had  spent  the  last  hour  carefully  removing
the silver pellets from Evan’s shoulder, chest, and stomach,
and  then  suturing the  largest  of the  wounds.  The  man  had
regained consciousness for a short while when Michael and
Mason  had  gotten  him  back  up  to  the  house.  He’d  been
evasive,  choosing  to  remain  silent  as  they  cleaned  him  up
and changed his clothes. There had been so much blood. The
silver  kept  the  wounds  fresh  and  meant  they  continued  to
bleed.

“Michael, come away,” Mason suggested. He and

Anderson were sitting at the dining table. Both men wore
serious expressions.

Reluctantly, Michael moved away from the door, closing

it before joining the others.

“He won’t be going anywhere for a while,” Anderson

said. “Plus I’m worried about the coming full moon.”

“What about it?” Mason asked.
Michael slid into the seat opposite Mason and listened as

the doctor shared his concerns.

“The wounds will close in a few days on the surface, but

the muscle damage will take a lot longer.”

Mason nodded. Michael was aware of the wound Mason

carried, as Mason was aware of his.

Meredith Russell

“Also, I found traces of wolfsbane.”
“For what purpose?” Michael questioned. “I thought that

stuff just made us sick?”

“If ingested, yes.” Anderson rested his elbows on the

table. His green eyes darkened as he furrowed his brow.
“It’s a poison. Get it in our bloodstream and it’ll make us
sick, weak. It looks like the plant has been dried and ground
into a powder.”

“So it was in the bullet?”
“Shell, yes. Maybe in the gunpowder or something. I’m a

doctor,  not  a  weapons  expert.”  Anderson  shrugged  and
leaned back. “Whoever shot him knew exactly what he was.
There  wasn’t  enough  wolfsbane  to  do  any  permanent
damage, just cause greater suffering.” He tensed his jaw and
looked serious. “Have you heard of anyone in the area? Any
hunters?”

Anderson rested his head in his hand and gently twisted

the curls of his blond hair. He was older than Mason, in his
late  thirties,  and  was  the  one  who  had  brought  Michael  to
Mason seven months ago. Doc Anderson had been kind, and
had  tried  his  best  to  help  Michael  get  a  handle  on  his  life
again.  But  things  had  been  beyond  the  good  doctor’s
knowledge  and  skills.  He’d  been  dealing  with  a  werewolf
and  that  wasn’t  something  he  could  look  up  in  one  of  his
medical books. Maybe if it had  been, or if  Michael had felt
able  to  explain,  then  things  might  have  gone  differently.
When they’d eventually found Mason and Niall, Mason had
needed to help them both.

Michael lowered his eyes as the open cuff of Anderson’s

shirt slipped down his wrist, revealing the edge of a scar—
an animal bite.

“I’ve heard of no one. But then, as you know, we keep

very much to ourselves out here.”

“I guess.” Anderson gave a heavy sigh. “Just be careful.”

The Bad Wolf

“You should be, too,” Mason advised.
The hairs on Michael’s neck prickled. Their eyes were on

him,  sharing  the  same  sympathetic  look.  He  stared  at  the
tabletop, trying to separate out the thoughts inside his head
and  see  if  he  could  lock  in  on  theirs.  He  could  guess  what
they were thinking but he wished to hear it for himself. He
couldn’t. For him, Mason and Anderson’s thoughts were like
needles  in  a  pile  of  needles,  undistinguishable  from  the
others inside his head.

“Michael?” Mason rested his hand on Michael’s shoulder.

When had he moved closer?

Breathing in deeply, Michael lifted his head and looked

between the two men. “I’m fine,” he said. “It was a long time
ago.” He knew Mason would think  he was referring to the
many  years  he’d  suffered  at  the  hand of  men  he  suspected
were  hunters  of  some  kind,  but  he  also  meant  that  fateful
night  of  the  full  moon  when  the  doctor  had  had  the
misfortune  of  getting  too  close.  His  gaze  settled  on
Anderson, who shifted in his seat and instinctively reached
for his arm, pulling his sleeve to cover the bite mark Michael
had  inflicted  him  with  and  therefore  the  werewolf  curse.
Anderson  knew  what  Michael  had  meant.  Guilt  lurched  in
Michael’s stomach. He hadn’t known any better, had known
no control, and because of him, people had gotten hurt. He
met Anderson’s eyes. People kept getting hurt.

Anderson got to his feet. “I should go. It’s late and I think

we all need some rest. I’m on call in a few hours.” He
worked at a hospital in the city, a little over an hour away.
He specialized in eyes, though Michael couldn’t recall the
professional title.

“Thank you for your help,” Mason said. “I’m sorry we

woke  you.”  He  got  to  his  feet  and  his  hands  never  left
Michael’s  back,  for  which  Michael  was  grateful.  Mason’s
touch was warm and comforting.

Meredith Russell

“I’ll check up on him during the full moon. Until then, he

should rest. I gather there’s history between you and him?”

Mason tightened his grip on Michael’s shoulders, before

relaxing. “It’s complicated,” Mason said.

“Okay.” Anderson seemed like he wanted to know more.

Instead, he said, “It would be best if he stayed here. But if
that’s going to be a problem, I can make arrangements for
him somewhere safe—”

“He can stay,” Mason interrupted.
Anderson glanced at Michael. “You sure?” The doctor

had grown protective of Michael while the young wolf had
been under his care, and at fourteen years his elder, had
become somewhat of a father figure, and the first positive
influence in Michael’s life in a long time.

“We’ll be fine,” Michael said, supporting Mason’s

decision.  As  much  as  he  appreciated  it,  sometimes  the  kid
gloves got old. He was an adult, twenty-four years old, and
it  was  time  he  acted  like  it  instead  of  the  screwed  up
teenager  he’d  been  for  far  too  long.  “He  can  stay.”  He
glanced  toward  the  bedroom  door.  Evan  lay  behind  it,  all
mussed  brown  hair,  tall  and  lean.  There  was  something
about  the  man  that  had  attraction  flaring  in  the  pit  of
Michael’s stomach, which threatened to spread outward and
lower.

Shifting in his seat, Michael looked back at Anderson.

“You don’t need to worry.” But from the expression on the
doctor’s  face,  it  was  clear  he  did.  Could  he  see  just  how
interested  Michael  was  in  Evan?  Michael  had  always  been
good at hiding his feelings, a habit of always being on guard
and too scared to let anyone in. But Evan. Evan had gotten
in. Michael had heard him as clear as day  in his head—his
voice  above  all  the  others.  “I  promise,”  he  added,  and
Anderson’s body language changed. He was going to have
to accept Michael was capable of making his own decisions.

The Bad Wolf

A smile spread across Anderson’s face. “Okay, Michael. If

that’s what you want.” He seemed proud and Michael was
comforted by his mentor’s support. He took his coat from
the back of his chair. “Keep an eye on his wounds,” he said
as he pulled on his dark jacket. “They seem to be healing,
though slowly. Call me if there are any concerns. Otherwise,
I’ll return on the seventeenth.”

“Thank you,” Mason said and went to show the doctor

out.

Michael waited until the two men were outside, then he

turned and stared at the closed door. He focused on the dark
wood, imagined the man lying in the bed behind it. Closing
his eyes, he listened to the disjointed clutter of voices in his
head,  wincing  as  they  seemed  to  rise  into  a  crescendo.  He
couldn’t  do  it.  If  Evan’s  thoughts  were  there,  he  couldn’t
find  them  among  the  others.  Michael  opened  his  eyes  and
gently  ran  his  fingers  over  his  brow.  Maybe  it  had  been  a
coincidence,  just  some  trick  of  his  own  mind.  Maybe  the
voice hadn’t been Evan’s at all.

Great. Now I’m hearing things. With a sigh, he pushed out

his chair and stood up. Rubbing his face, he decided it was
time to call it a night and headed for his room. He was tired
physically and mentally. It took a lot out of him to quiet the
voices  to  a  level  where  he  could  function  like  a  normal
person.  Night  time  was  always  worse.  No  sounds  outside
his head to distract him from those inside. On the nightstand
sat  the  sleeping  tablets  Anderson  had  prescribed  for  him.
For the most part they helped at least in getting him to sleep.
Staying  asleep  was  a  little  harder  and  Michael  couldn’t
remember  the  last  time  he’d  had  a  full  night’s  sleep  and
woke up feeling rested.

Quickly, Michael stripped down to his underwear, took

two of the sleeping tablets, and then climbed beneath the
comforter. He pulled the bedding up and under his chin and

Meredith Russell

stared up at the dark ceiling. Outside, he could hear Mason
and Anderson talking and his head hurt too much to catch
every word, but from what he did hear they were talking
about him, how he was getting on, and what progress he’d
made.

Progress. Yeah, sure.
Closing his eyes, Michael focused his mind. First, he

reached  for  old  memories  and  the  few  happy  ones  he  still
remembered.  It  was  like  they  faded  that  little  bit  more
everyday—his parents, his brothers, his uncles, neighboring
packs, the young girl in the pretty floral dress, his first kiss.
He focused on the girl, teeth too big for her mouth, braided
pigtails, and bright  blue eyes. He recalled her scent, eleven
years  old  and  puberty  bringing  her  wolf  raging  to  the
surface. She’d smelled good. She’d smelled right. They were
a  good  match,  his  father  had  always  said,  but  the  way
Michael’s mother looked at him made  it clear she knew he
was different. He wasn’t going to take any of the pretty girls
his father pointed out for a mate.

He kept his thoughts on the girl, drawn to her eyes as she

seemed to look out from his memories, pulling him in. When
she had him close, her eyes darkened and her features
changed.

Evan.
Michael opened his eyes. Catching his breath, he closed

his hand around his dick. The memory of Evan’s steely gaze
burned on the ceiling above him, tormenting him. Michael
stroked his dick and heat coursed through him. It had been a
while since he had last touched himself or had a reason to do
so. What the hell was it about Evan that had Michael
behaving like a bitch in heat?

Roughly, he tugged his erection more firmly. A low growl

caught in the back of his throat as he bit down on his lip,
stifling the pleasurable sound. Fuck, it felt good to wrap his
fingers around his dick. He lifted his hips, fucking up into

The Bad Wolf

his hand as he quickened his strokes. All the time he thought
of the man in the room next to him. Evan’s defined,
muscular body, his square-jawed, brutal good looks, his
mesmerizing eyes.

Fuck.
Michael tensed his stomach as he leaned up off the bed,

pushing the comforter off him. His orgasm rose in his balls
as  he  spread  his  legs  a  little  and  then  with  another  strong
stroke, he came. In a muted shudder, white heat shot across
his stomach, coating the dip of his belly  button. Breathless,
he  fell  back  against  his  pillow  and  gently  stroked  the  silky
length  of  his  softening  erection.  He  swallowed,  moistening
his lips with his tongue as he turned his head to stare at the
adjoining wall.

“Was it good for you?” he said in a low voice, capturing

his lower lip with a tooth as he danced his fingertips over
the head of his dick. Staring at the wall, he was surprised as
the din inside his head seemed to part, a single voice
breaking to the surface.

Goodnight, the voice simply said. The thoughts of the

other wolves then washed it away in a murky wave and no
matter how hard Michael searched, he couldn’t find it again.

Michael wriggled out of his underwear and wiped down

his  stomach  before  settling  back  under  the  comforter.  He
rested  on  his  back,  turning  his  head  to  briefly  look  at  the
wall.

Had the voice belonged to Evan? It wasn’t possible, was

it?  Shit.  He  rolled  onto  his  side,  so  the  adjoining  wall  with
Evan’s  room  was  to  his  back,  and  pulled  the  comforter
around his chest, resting his arm above the covers. One more
thing for him to deal with tomorrow. He closed his eyes. A
tomorrow  that  never  came.  So  much  crap  in  his  head  he
thought  it  might  explode  one  day  soon.  Doing  his  best  to
dismiss  his  new  concerns,  Michael  hugged  his  pillow  and

The Bad Wolf

Chapter Four

he memory of gunfire jolted Evan awake. Damn. He
hurt like hell. The whole left side of his body screamed

as  he  moved  and  was  forced  to  concede.  He  wasn’t  going
anywhere.  He  raised his  right  hand  to  his head  and  gently
pressed against his temple. He winced as he applied a little
too  much  pressure,  catching  what  must  be  a  bruise.  What
had happened?

Evan looked around the room he had woken in. Where

was  he?  There  was  nothing  he  recognized.  The  room  was
filled  with  wooden  furniture.  A  chair  beneath  the  window
looked  like  a  custom  piece.  The  window  was  concealed
behind a closed, slatted blind, and daylight leaked in around
the edges.

Memories came back in a series of flashes. He’d been at

the motel. There had been a girl and then…He pushed away
the bed sheet and looked across his injured chest and
downward.

“Well, fuck,” he said. His chest looked like crazy paving.

His skin was littered with pink and red marks. Most looked
like  nothing  more  than  scabbed  over  scratches,  but  some
larger wounds had been sealed with stitches. Delicately, he
ran his hand over his chest and felt out the unhealed ridges.
Silver,  he  remembered.  He  touched  his  forehead  again.
Crap. Niall. Niall had hit him. Not that he blamed the man.
He knew very well he’d done things that deserved a shovel
to the face before now.

Meredith Russell

“Lucky shot,” he muttered.
Slowly, he inhaled the air. His stomach rumbled. He

could smell breakfast—bacon, eggs, hash browns, coffee.
What he would give for some coffee right now. Beneath the
smell of food, he could make out two distinct scents. There
was Mason, his scent as powerful as Kaine’s had been. The
stink of Kaine was mixed in with Mason’s wolf and it hit the
back of his throat, ice-cold and bitter. The sensation left him
lightheaded and he grimaced at the intrusive taste on his
tongue.

Seeking a distraction, he thought on the second person in

the  house.  He  recognized  the  young  wolf’s  scent.  Though
they  had  only  briefly  met,  the  smell  of  the  man  did  crazy
things to Evan. A wave of arousal coursed through him and
his dick hardened at the thought of how the man would feel
beneath him. Evan had memories that could not be his of the
young  man  naked  and  looking  up  at  him  through  wide
amber  eyes,  draped  in  lust.  A  vivid  dream,  that  was  all.  A
cloud  of  fog  separated  the  images  from  Evan’s  reality.  It
must be the silver, or whatever that doctor had given him to
ease the pain, playing tricks on him.

“Down boy,” Evan said to himself. Now was not the time

to  be  thinking  with  his  dick.  He  was  in  Mason  and  Niall’s
home  and  it  was  difficult  to  think  of  them as  anything  but
the  enemy.  He  was  pretty  sure  Mason  wouldn’t  kill  him  or
anything so bold, but give Niall an excuse and he was sure it
would  be  a  second  round  with  the  shovel.  Curling  the
fingers  of  his  left  hand,  he  winced.  Niall  would  probably
win that round, too.

He lowered his hand as he heard someone outside his

room and the door was opened cautiously by whoever it
was. Eventually, the young man entered the room, a plastic
tray in his hands containing a plate of the breakfast stuff
Evan had smelled. The man seemed wary at first, resting the

The Bad Wolf

tray on the dresser so he could open the blind. He was tall
and slim, his black hair cut short and close to his head,
revealing his handsome face.

Beautiful. Evan eyed him curiously. There was something

different about him compared to all the other werewolves
Evan had had contact with.

“What’s your name?” Evan asked, causing the man to

flinch. He wasn’t sure he’d ever been told the man’s name,
certainly not in the forest, and he was suffering from a
shovel to the face and some blood loss when they’d made it
back here.

The man looked at him, hesitating beside the dresser.

“Michael,” he said. Composing himself, he brought the tray
to Evan. “We thought you might be hungry.”

Evan eyed the offered tray. “I’m not hungry,” he lied.
It was clear Michael didn’t believe him. “You should eat.

It’ll help with the healing.”

“Get my strength up?” Evan said. He sniffed a laugh as

Michael didn’t seem to appreciate the sarcastic tone he’d
taken. “How long have I been here?”

“Just the night.” His body language screamed victim. His

head was low, he avoided eye contact, and he edgily shifted
his weight to his other foot. “I guess I’ll leave it here,” he
said. He pulled the chair from beneath the window closer to
the foot of the bed and placed the tray on it. “Can you
reach?”

Evan struggled to sit up. His discomfort must have shown

on his face, as Michael quickly came to his side and tried to
help.

“I can do it,” Evan snapped. Michael removed his hands

but only for a moment as Evan continued to struggle. “I said
I can do it.” Pain shot through his chest and he instinctively
lashed out against it, grabbing Michael roughly by the arm.

Meredith Russell

Both men froze, Michael out of fear and Evan from the

overwhelming urge to pull the man closer and tell him how
sorry he was.

Michael looked terrified. And not your oh-shit-it’s-a-

werewolf kind of terrified Evan had seen too many times to
count. This was something deeper, more horrifying, and the
man was almost transparent from shock.

Michael’s fear hit Evan hard. He wasn’t sure he’d seen

anything like it ever before. This was an old fear, something
deeply unsettling and very real behind Michael’s eyes.

“What’s going on?” Niall appeared in the doorway and

Evan released Michael.

Michael stepped back and took a deep breath. Calming

himself, he glanced over his shoulder. “Nothing,” he said.
“I’m fine.”

Evan briefly met Niall’s eyes. The human made no effort

to hide his distrust, possibly hate, of Evan.

“A misunderstanding,” Evan added. He settled his gaze

on Michael, who was visibly shaken and didn’t seem to
know what to do as he started to rearrange the items on the
tray, straightening the cutlery and plate.

“It’s okay, Michael,” Niall said and moved closer. “I’ll

deal with him.”

Relief seemed to flood through Michael as he nodded and

swiftly left the room. Niall waited until Michael was out of
the room before stalking angrily across the room. “You stay
away from him, or God help me—”

“What?” Evan said, sinking back into his pillow. “You’ll

do what?”

Niall seemed to take a step back in his judgment. His

voice less angry. “Just leave him alone. He’s been through
enough.”

Enough? Are those the things that had left their invisible

mark on Michael? The man was clearly troubled, despite his

The Bad Wolf

effort to hide his true emotions. What would cause someone
to appear so haunted?

Evan shook his head. “Like I said. Misunderstanding.” He

was hurting and it was all too easy to lash out at the wrong
people.

“You need to eat,” Niall said. Evan doubted Niall had

suggested it from any concern for his wellbeing. Niall picked
up the tray and pulled the chair close, sitting down beside
Evan. “Eat, feel better, get the fuck out of our lives.”

Evan curled his top lip as he held back a growl. As if he

wanted  to  be  here  anyway.  These  people  were  pathetic.
“Don’t  get  too  close,”  he  warned  and  bared  his  teeth.
“Wouldn’t  want  any  little  accidents.”  Niall  remained
unfazed.  “What  makes  you  think  I  wouldn’t  bite  you?  Or
worse?”

Niall lifted his hips as he balanced the tray and pulled out

what seemed to be a knife. The blade was folded down,
concealed beneath a carved wooden handle. “Because I
would not hesitate in taking you with me. One less monster
in the world.”

Evan eyed the blade. “Silver,” he assumed.
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking I care what happens

to you.”

Snorting a laugh, Evan said, “I’m under no illusions.

Trust me.”

“You promised we’d never see you again. Why are you

here?”

Shaking his head, Evan eyed Niall cautiously. He had

sworn to never seek the men out and he had told Niall that
four years ago. But life had a funny habit of kicking you in
the balls and having a laugh at your expense.

“Coincidence,” Evan said. The look on Niall’s face looked

anything but convinced. “You might not believe me, but it’s
all I got. I didn’t plan this. I’ve moved around a lot since…”

Meredith Russell

His  gaze  settled  on  the  knife  in  Niall’s  hand.  He  knew  the
man was serious about using it. Back then it had been clear
Niall  had  a  thing  for  Mason,  and  the  man’s  feelings  could
only  have  strengthened  over  the  years.  “If  I’d  known  you
were  here  I’d  have  stayed  away.  I  have  no  intention  of
hurting you or Mason. Sometimes shit happens. Believe it or
not, that’s the truth.”

Niall seemed to accept his answer. “You should eat,” he

advised and slid the tray across Evan’s lap. He stared at
Evan and Evan waited. Clearly, the man had more to say.
“Who did this to you?”

“I don’t know,” Evan said in a strained voice as he eased

himself to sit up a little.

“You didn’t see anyone?” Niall pressed.
Evan narrowed his eyes as he thought. There had been

someone there. The girl. How he’d love to rip that little
bitch’s head off.

“Evan?” Niall looked at him suspiciously.
“Nobody,” he said.
It was clear Niall didn’t believe him.
With a smile, Evan said, “I don’t remember anybody.”

* * * *

Biting nervously at his fingernails, Michael stared at the
closed door. Should he have left Niall alone in there?

“You okay?” Mason asked from behind him.
Michael looked over his shoulder and chewed on his lip.

“I’m fine. Niall’s in there.”

Mason raised an eyebrow. “When did he get back?”
“Just now.”
Mason came to stand beside him. Mason was clearly

concerned, but Michael wasn’t sure for whom, exactly.

The Bad Wolf

“Did something happen? I took out the trash. I thought

you’d be okay.”

“It’s fine,” Michael assured him. “I’m fine. It was my

fault.”

“I doubt that,” Mason said and rested his hand on

Michael’s shoulder.

Michael didn’t mean to, but he couldn’t help but roll his

shoulder away from Mason’s touch and fold his arms
protectively across his chest.

“Did he hurt you?” Mason asked, concern etched across

his face.

Michael shook his head. “He grabbed me, that’s all.”
“What?” Mason looked like he was ready to storm into

the room.

“Not like that. I was trying to help him sit up. He was

hurting.” He looked at Mason. “People lash out when
they’re hurting.” He knew that all too well.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let you go in there,” Mason

said.

Michael lowered his head. Flashes of bad memories

invaded  his  mind.  He’d  been  doing  pretty  well,  had
managed  to  overcome  the  worst  of  them.  But  they  were
always  there,  a  touch,  a  word,  something  bringing  them  to
the surface.

“Don’t let this set you back,” Mason said. “You’ve come

so far.” He smiled as he looked at the closed bedroom door.
“We both have.”

“I know Niall says things take time. But I’m sick of

waiting for everything to be okay.” He looked at Mason. “I
hurt the doc, I hurt you. I don’t know how you can stand to
be near me. How you can even think to trust me around
Niall?”

Meredith Russell

Mason looked at him firmly. “Stop it. You’re not that

scared person anymore. If you could see yourself—there’s
no way you would hurt anyone, not now.”

Michael took a deep breath. His first transformation had

been behind bars, a space with barely enough room for his
wolf  to  turn  around.  Born  a  werewolf,  his  adult  wolf  was
everything like Mason’s or Evan’s was, but better. As a wolf
he  was  bigger,  stronger.  He  could  heal  more  quickly  and
take a hell of a beating before ever being killed. The people
that  had  taken  him  from  his  family  were  hunters,  he’d
figured,  interested  in  seeing  exactly  how  a  wolf  ticked.  He
was  just  a  kid,  hadn’t  even  turned  for  the  first  time,  but
when he finally did, all he remembered was the pain, and it
had  been  worse  than  anything  he  had  ever  imagined
growing up.

He glanced sideways at Mason. “Do you think there are

hunters in town?” Fear and anger crawled the length of his
spine. Though time and Mason had helped him gain control
over his wolf again, there was still much hate and vengeance
inside him clawing for release. His wolf had protected him
for  years,  taken  the  worst  of  the  pain  and  abuse,  and  had
almost  completely  taken  Michael  over.  His  transformation
was  controlled  by  the  moon  like  any  other  werewolf,  but
being born this way, he and his wolf were one and the same,
like  two  personalities  within  the  same  body.  His  wolf  was
always there, always listening and whispering in his ear.

“I suspect so,” Mason admitted. He moved closer. “We all

need to be careful. The full moon is a week away. Maybe
they’ll move on by then.”

“Or maybe they’ll be waiting for us.” When Michael’s

captors had grown tired of him, they’d set him free, free so
they could hunt his wolf down—another trophy for their
pelt- and teeth-covered walls. “If they think Evan is alive,

The Bad Wolf

they’ll come for him.” His mouth went dry and he
swallowed uncomfortably. “They won’t stop coming.”

Mason wrapped his arm around Michael’s shoulder and

pulled him into a hug. This time Michael didn’t pull away.
The warmth of Mason holding him made everything seem
okay, if only for a moment. Michael closed his eyes. He felt
like his teenage self again, his mother hugging him close and
telling him there was no such thing as monsters, telling him
he wasn’t a monster. She had been right. Turned out you
didn’t need fangs and claws to be evil.

“Nobody is going to hurt you again. I promise.”
Michael wished he believed Mason. He really did. He

opened his eyes as the bedroom door opened and Niall
stepped out. He carried the tray of empty dishes.

“Are you okay?” Niall asked Michael as he came to join

them in the kitchen.

“I’m fine. Just being a little sensitive, I guess.” He leaned

into Mason for comfort.

Niall nodded. He looked from Michael to Mason and his

face softened, visible regret from how they’d parted last
night. “I need to get back to the store.”

“But you only just got home.” Mason’s grip on Michael

lessened as he looked desperately at Niall. “I waited up.”

“I fell asleep on the couch in the office. I just came back

for a shower and a change of clothes, and then I’m heading
out again.” He turned to Michael. “And you’re coming with
me.”

Michael tensed. “What?”
“We talked about you helping me out, and I think now

might be a good time to start.” Niall wore a determined
expression, but all Michael felt was panic. Sure, he wanted a
job and money of his own, and he’d been excited and scared
when Niall had offered him a place at the store. But was
now really the right time?

Meredith Russell

“It’ll do you some good,” Mason chipped in. “Get you out

the house and your mind off things.”

“But…Evan.” Michael looked at Mason. Did Mason really

want to be left alone in the house with him? He turned to
Niall. “Shouldn’t someone else be here?”

Niall looked past Michael to Mason. “Mason will be just

fine.” He smiled at his lover. “I trust him to know what he’s
getting into.” He looked directly at Mason. Michael glanced
over  his  shoulder  to  see  Mason  smiling  back.  A  small
warmth  leaped  in  Michael’s  chest.  He  hated  seeing  the
couple argue, but it was clear they were okay. It would take
more  than  Evan  showing  up  to  truly  tear  the  two  of  them
apart.

“Will you be okay?” Michael asked. He wasn’t clear on

exactly what the history Mason and Evan shared was, other
than sharing the scent of their maker.

Mason nodded. “Go with Niall. We’ll be okay here.”
Leaving him no way to argue, Michael could do nothing

but agree. “Okay,” he said. “Okay.”

The Bad Wolf

Chapter Five

he ride over to the store had been kind of surreal. Niall
had talked to Michael and acted as if nothing had

happened last night. Niall chatted about Michael’s plans for
the future. Did he want to learn a skill? Did he want to go
back to school? Did he plan to stay in the mountain town of
Blackhill or try and find his family?

Family. Michael wasn’t sure if he had any. Men, hunters,

whoever they were, had attacked his home. Despite having
pushed the memories to one side and tried to ignore them,
he had never forgotten the sound of his mother screaming as
their home went up in flames. Having been dragged away,
beaten and semi-conscious, he remembered passing his
eldest brother’s body—his throat cut, his body sliced from
navel to sternum, and his innards pooling on the floor beside
him. No. Michael doubted he had any family to find.

“What do you want me to do?” Michael hovered at the

front of the store. Hopefully, as Mason had suggested, some
time out the house would help take his mind off things. He
walked  a  circuit  of  the  store  floor,  stopping  beside  a  large
wooden  dresser.  A  sold  sign  hung  off  one  of  the  drawer
handles.  He  ran  his  hand  over  the  smooth  edges,  leaned
close, and gazed at the carved image on the front of the top
drawer. The image was of a wolf, its fur merging with trees
either side. Intrigued, Michael stared into its eyes and swore
it was looking right back.

Meredith Russell

Shaking the feeling away, he looked at the window,

jumping slightly as he stared into the gray eyes of a girl on
the other side of the glass. Her dark eyebrows knitted into a
frown  as  she  eyed  him  curiously.  She  glanced  over  her
shoulder and pursed  her lips, and Michael  craned his  neck
to try and see what she was looking at. She turned back to
him and smiled, pressing her hand to the glass briefly before
turning  on  her  heels  and  heading  away  from  the  store.
Probably  more  interested  in  the  pretty  trinkets  and  jewelry
in the store down the street.

“Some man from the city bought it last week,” Niall said

of the dresser. “He was out here on vacation. I’m waiting on
getting it shipped to him.”

Michael waited as Niall turned the closed sign to open in

the door window. “I thought you used to live in the city.”

Niall grinned. “Maybe, once upon a time. But I never felt

like I fit in there.” He joined Michael and held out an apron
and broom. “We all find where we fit.”

“Sweeping floors?” The familiar jaunts of pathetic,

useless, worthless broke through the noise inside his head.

“Consider it the first step on the path to discovering

yourself,” Niall said. “But no matter what, floor sweeper or
neurosurgeon, we all have our place in the world.”

A place to fit. Michael hoped that were true. “So, how did

you realize you could do this?” He nodded toward the
dresser. He’d seen several pieces in the house Niall had
crafted over the years.

With a shrug, Niall leaned past Michael and ran his hand

over the wooden furniture. “Just something I enjoyed back
in school. I ended up working in a hardware store from
college and never really took the design stuff anywhere until
here.”

“You know what all that stuff’s for?” On the far side of

the building were several shelves and racks of tools,

The Bad Wolf

replacement parts, and other home improvement
accessories.

Niall laughed. “Yeah, I know.” He rested a hand on

Michael’s shoulder. “Consider that step two. This floor isn’t
going to sweep itself.”

Sighing, Michael glanced behind him. Everybody started

somewhere, he figured. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure,” Niall said.
“Are things okay between you and Mason?” Even before

Evan had shown up, things had been a little strained
between the pair.

“We’re fine,” Niall assured him.
Nobody seemed to tell him what was going on, like he

was some delicate flower who would fall apart at the
slightest bump in the road.

Michael dragged the brush across the floor. “You all tell

me it’s good to talk about my feelings. That you’re listening.
But when I’m there to listen, it seems the rule doesn’t apply
to anybody else. Talking’s suddenly a bad thing.” He
chewed on his lip. He could sense a change in temperature
as Niall moved closer. The man radiated heat, but also
awkwardness.

“It’s not like that.”
“Then what? I’m not the kid of the house. I’m twenty-

four. I’m a man.” He wished he had sounded more
convincing.

Niall smiled, briefly closed his eyes, and scratched above

his eye. “It’s not that we think you’re a kid, okay? We just
figured you had your own stuff to deal with.”

“So, what’s wrong? I’m not blind or deaf. You’ve been

snappy and off with each other for a couple of months.”
Where Doc Anderson was a father figure, Mason and Niall
were like big brothers. He loved and admired the pair of
them for being together—a werewolf and a human.

Meredith Russell

Niall looked to the ceiling as if asking for direction.
“Are you splitting up?”
Shaking his head, Niall said, “Nothing like that. Okay,

these last months have been hard for Mason. First, what
happened before Christmas with Rafe and Chloe.”

Michael remembered the young couple. They’d both been

turned  and  were  directed  to  Mason  to  learn  to  understand
and  control  their  wolves.  They  hadn’t  wanted  to  listen.
“They  came  into  the  house  as  wolves,”  Michael  recalled.
“Strayed from the perimeter of the house.”

“They did, but they also…” Niall’s voice trailed off and he

cleared his throat. “We think they attacked a man in town on
the third night and killed him.”

Michael narrowed his eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“We weren’t sure. Not one hundred percent.”
“They left the property. How could it not be them?”
Niall shrugged. “For Mason’s sake, I just hoped maybe

we were wrong. He took them in. Brought them into our
home.”

“It’s not his fault if they didn’t follow the rules. They were

stupid and dangerous. They didn’t listen or want to learn
control. They killed that man, not Mason,” Michael insisted.

Niall seemed to appreciate Michael’s defense of Mason.

“Thank you.”

“You said, first,” Michael pointed out. “Has something

else happened?”

For a moment, Niall looked uncomfortable, as if maybe he

wasn’t  the  person  to  say.  “Last  month  was  his  sister’s
birthday.”  Niall  paused,  clearly  giving  the  comment  a
moment to sink in with Michael. Mason’s dead sister. She’d
just  been  a  kid,  another  young  innocent  stripped  from  the
world. “And next month is the anniversary of her death. His
parents’ deaths.”

“Shit,” was all Michael could think to say.

The Bad Wolf

“Emotionally, he’s been up and down so much, it’s

making me seasick, and Evan showing up, I guess, was the
last straw and everything finally got to me.” Niall relaxed
his shoulders. The confession was apparently a weight that
needed lifting.

“I’m sorry,” Michael offered. He didn’t know what to say

and knew nothing he uttered would be of any comfort.

“Me, too.” Niall gave a sad smile. “Me, too.”

* * * *

I need to get out of here.

Evan stiffly sat up in bed, pushed the covers away from

him, and eyed his chest dubiously. The smaller wounds had
healed over, leaving pale pink marks. The larger wounds
appeared tender. Evan had made the mistake earlier of
running his fingers over the sutured lines. They’d stung like
hell, his nerves raw as he’d felt out the raised lumps.

Not wanting to pull anything and set back his recovery,

he  carefully  turned  until  he  could  swing  his  legs  over  the
side  of  the  bed  and  lowered  his  feet  to  the  solid  floor.  He
curled his toes against the hardwood boards and winced as
blood seemed to rush to them, causing a sharp numbness.

“Where do you think you’re going?”
Evan looked up to find Mason leaning against the

doorframe. Evan squeezed the edge of the mattress, twisting
his fingers in the bed sheet. “You can’t make me stay here.”

Mason snorted a laugh and shook his head. “I’m not

making you do anything. But even you’re not a big enough
idiot to think you’re better off out there alone. Look at
yourself.”

Lowering his head, Evan stared down at his bare thighs.

“Where are my clothes?” He lifted his head and looked
firmly at Mason. He had never liked being told what he
could or could not do.

Meredith Russell

“You’re really that pigheaded? Can’t you see I’m offering

to help you? Give you somewhere to stay?”

“Why would you help me? Niall’s made it very clear he

doesn’t want me here.” Evan did his best to sit up straight.
As far as Mason was concerned, Evan didn’t give a fuck, and
that was how he wanted it to stay. He was strong enough to
look after himself. Always had been. “Can’t blame him,
though. If not for that stunt you pulled with the silver at the
theater, I’m pretty sure he’d be dead. You, too.”

“Are you trying to scare me?” Mason asked. He seemed

unfazed by anything Evan had said. “Look, if you want to
leave, I’m not going to stop you. Like you said, Niall would
prefer we’d never found you. But we did, and like it or not, I
kind of feel responsible for you.”

Evan wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that. He didn’t like

the thought of owing anybody, and had thought he’d drawn
a line between him and Mason when he’d helped Niall back
in Westlake. “Well, you shouldn’t.”

It was like Mason knew what Evan was thinking. “I don’t

expect anything in return. I just…” He chewed on the inside
of his mouth as he seemed to look for the right words. “I’m
sick of feeling hopeless.” Evan met his eyes. Though Mason
had seemed happy from a distance, it was clear by the look
in his eyes he was anything but. “That I don’t have to stand
idly by while bad shit keeps happening.” He gave a sad
smile. “I don’t want something bad to happen to you.”

Evan took a deep breath. “Nothing bad is going to

happen to me.”

Mason quirked an eyebrow. “Really? Because sorry to say

it, but you look like crap.”

And with that the tension in the room eased. “Yeah,”

Evan said. “Yeah, I do.”

The Bad Wolf

“What happened?” Mason asked. “And I don’t want

some bullshit line like you spun Niall that you can’t
remember.”

Gently, Evan pressed his hand to his chest, feeling the

steady  beat  of  his  heart.  In  all  the  years  in  Kaine’s  pack,
Mason  had  been  the  only  member  he  was  sure  he  could
trust. Hell, if Mason hadn’t stopped Kaine from killing him
the  night  he  was  first  bitten,  he  wouldn’t  have  been  in  the
pack then or here to discuss it now. He pressed his lips in a
line.  Whether  that  had  been  a  blessing  rather  than  a  curse
was  still  up  for  debate.  Evan  had  been  part  of  some
monstrous acts while running with Kaine. He had truly been
seduced by the power he had been given.

“Evan?” Mason pressed.
“Some girl, all limp black hair and gothic makeup. Acted

strange. Smelled funny, too.” He remembered the smell of
gunfire, but also what had lain beneath it.

“She did this?”
Evan shook his head. “No. But she was with whoever

shot me. Maybe three, four others. I didn’t see them, and I
wasn’t going to stick around until I did.”

Folding his arms across his chest, Mason sighed and

stepped farther into the room. He sat on the chair still sitting
beside the bed. “And you did nothing to provoke this?”

“Nothing. I swear.” He wasn’t sure why, but he wanted

Mason to believe him. “I’d gotten back to the motel, stepped
out  my  car,  and  then…”  The  girl  had  been  standing  there
like  some  foreshadowing  omen.  “The  girl  shone  a  light  in
my face and you know the rest. They shot me with silver, I
ran,  and  out  of  some  crazy  survival  instinct,  I  ended  up
here.”

Mason had a puzzled look on his face. “And you’d never

seen her before?”

Evan shook his head. “Not that I remember.”

Meredith Russell

“How did they know you were a wolf?”
Evan shrugged. “The light, I guess.” If light caught his,

Mason’s or any werewolf’s eyes at just the right angle, they
shone silver.

“I mean before that. I doubt she runs around shining

lights in just anybody’s eyes. Could they have followed you
to town?”

Where had he been? What had he done? Evan was sure

Mason was trying to figure out exactly how to blame him for
what happened.

“No. I didn’t bring them here. I’d been in town less than

twenty-four hours. There was no reason for anyone to think
me  anything  but  a  regular  guy  passing  through,”  insisted
Evan.  He  felt  deflated.  In  the  end,  it  probably  made  no
difference  what  he  said.  Mason  would  always  have  his
doubts.

“Okay,” Mason said. He then looked at Evan in a way

that left Evan feeling more hopeful. He was sure Mason
believed him. “If you want to leave, I won’t stop you. Just,
give it a couple more days, please?”

Evan considered Mason’s request. A couple of days

wouldn’t hurt, he figured. It wasn’t as if he had anyone or
anyplace to go. “Sure. But two requests of my own,” he said.

Though clearly wary, Mason agreed, “Okay.”
“One, can someone collect my car from the motel? Or the

very least, gather together my things, my clothes?”

“Yes, we can do that. And the second?”
Why was it so damn hard to ask for help? Evan lowered

his gaze and spoke toward the floor. “Can you help me to
the bathroom?” He glanced up at Mason. “Please?” he
added.

Mason got to his feet and leaned forward, hooking his

arm under Evan’s to support his weight. “See, that wasn’t so
bad,” he said and helped Evan off the bed and to his feet.

The Bad Wolf

They  stood  together  for  a  moment  and  looked  into  each
other’s eyes. Both men screwed up their noses and shared a
low growl. The scent of Kaine was strong in the air and Evan
hoped he could be forgiven for thinking the man was alive
and  in  that  very  room  with  them.  Mason’s  hold  on  him
loosened as he put space between them. There’d never been
anything  but  Kaine  as  a  connection  between  them,  and  in
such  close  proximity,  it  seemed  the  man’s  ghost  was
determined to haunt them.

“Kaine’s dead,” Evan said. “He can’t hurt you anymore.”

He  didn’t  know  everything  that  had  happened  between
Mason  and  Kaine  up  to  Mason  finally  breaking  free  and
running  away  from  the  pack.  But  he  had  seen  enough.  He
had  seen  the  bruised  aftermath  of  whatever  twisted
relationship the two men had been caught up in.

From the look on Mason’s face, he was surprised not only

by Evan’s words, but also the compassion in Evan’s voice.

“I mean it,” Evan continued. “He can’t hurt anyone

anymore.”

Mason looked at Evan. His silence held a question and

Evan was sure he knew what. Yes, Kaine was dead, but his
legacy lived on in others, including Evan.

“I won’t hurt you.” Evan could never dream of excusing

his past behavior, but he could do what was right here and
now. “Any of you.”

Mason moved closer, wrapping his arm around Evan’s

waist as he guided  him out of the room. “Thank  you” was
all  Mason  said  as  he  helped  Evan  to the  bathroom.  But  for
Evan, that was enough.

Meredith Russell

Chapter Six

wo days passed and Evan had itchy feet. He wanted to
get on the road in search of his own space. Problem was,

it  wasn’t  just  his  feet  that  were  itching.  Frustrated,  he
scratched at his chest through his t-shirt. He didn’t want to
scratch  too  hard,  but  damn,  the  itching  was  almost
unbearable  and  he  felt  like  his  skin  was  on  fire.  He  was
stronger, healing, and his body had already begun to absorb
the sutures the doctor had put in. He felt normal again, or as
normal  as  he  ever  had.  He  knew  despite  outward
appearances,  the  wounds  from  the  silver  pellets  were  still
tender and needed several more days to really heal as much
as they would beneath the surface.

Mason looked up from his laptop as Evan passed him.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Evan said and made for the front of the house.

“Just need some air.”

He pulled open the heavy main door and then pushed the

screen, which creaked, swung back, and closed with a bang.
Frustrated, Evan pulled off his t-shirt and with a heavy sigh,
he walked forward, crossing the short front porch to lean
against the low fence that surrounded it. The cool February
air hit his chest, and he welcomed the relief it offered his hot
skin. He was still sore, stiff, but at least he could get himself
to the bathroom now. The wolfsbane was completely out of
his system, and only the injuries to his shoulder and chest
remained.

The Bad Wolf

Folding his arms, he leaned against the rail. He eyed his

car  and  considered  making  a  break  for  freedom.  Where
would he go? It was five days until the first night of the full
moon.  Was  it  really  worth  moving  on  before  then?  He  felt
stronger,  but  who  knew  how  much  of  the  healing  a
transformation  might  undo.  Better  to  stay  here  and  away
from people, right? Safest for him and for them.

The swing chair creaked and he turned, surprised to find

Michael sitting to his left. The young man looked
apologetically up at him and said, “I didn’t want to disturb
you.” Michael lowered his eyes and settled back in his seat,
the chair creaking again as he pulled a dark blanket up and
over his thighs.

“What are you doing out here?” Evan asked. “I thought

you were with Niall.”

Michael shrugged. “It’s Sunday.”
Some answer that is.
“What are you doing out here?” He repeated Evan’s

question. His gaze fell to Evan’s chest and then just as
quickly he was looking elsewhere.

Evan couldn’t help but grin. Michael looked so damn

uncomfortable  and  embarrassed  it  was  almost  cute.  Evan
pursed  his  lips  as  he  considered  the  man.  There  was
something  appealing  about  Michael’s  shyness,  probably
because  he  was  the  complete  opposite  from  anyone  Evan
had  met  before.  Kaine  and  his  friends  had  always  been
showmen,  confident  and  extravagant.  His  mind  went  to
Sian.  She  had  been  the  worst,  luring  men  in  with  her  long
legs, high heels, and the erotic way she moved and draped
herself around any man she wanted.

“Needed some air,” Evan said dismissively. He stared at

his car. To fucking escape.

“You feel trapped?” Michael asked.
Evan glanced sideways. “I guess.” The temperature

seemed to drop, and Evan pulled his t-shirt back on. “Don’t

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you?” He noted how Michael watched him roll the material
down over his stomach to meet his jeans.

Keep dreaming, kid. I’d eat you alive.
“I’m not a kid.” Michael looked annoyed.
“What did you say?” Evan tightened his grip on the

railing as he turned to look at Michael square on.

Michael narrowed his eyes. “I said I’m not a kid.”
“I never said you were.” Or had he? Losing my fucking

mind. He stared at Michael who simply stared back through
wide eyes. He seemed paler than usual. “What?” Evan said.
“You’re not going to faint on me, are you?” He could do
without giving Niall a reason to reintroduce him to his
shovel.

Michael didn’t say anything, but shook his head.
“Okay. Good.” Freak. Evan looked up at the sky. We both

are.

Can you hear me? Michael’s voice sounded strange, distant.
“Yeah,” Evan said. A gray cloud moved slowly overhead.

You can really hear me?
“I said yes,” Evan snapped and turned to Michael. The

man wore a peculiar look—a mixture of excitement but also
disbelief.

How? Michael leaned his head to one side as he studied

Evan.

Evan quirked his head in surprise. What the hell? He had

heard Michael speak but he swore the man had never
moved his lips.

You can. Michael got to his feet and Evan’s automatic

reaction was to step away. “You weren’t born a werewolf,”
Michael said as he moved closer, looking Evan over with
interest. You were bitten like Mason.

What the hell was going on? Evan raised his hands. This

was strange, even for him. “I don’t mean to sound weird,
but why the hell are you in my head?”

The Bad Wolf

Michael continued to move forward, and the hairs on

Evan’s arms rose in a prickling shiver. Images flashed in his
head of the two of them together, Michael in his bed,
keening from his touch, naked and wanton.

Michael stopped and met Evan’s eyes. Had Michael seen

it, too? Evan didn’t know what to say or do. Had they been
Evan’s  own  thoughts,  or  Michael’s?  There  was  no  denying
Michael was handsome. There was a haunting beauty about
the  young  man.  Hell,  he  could  be  mistaken  for  a  model.
Ebony  hair  contrasted  the  flawless  pale  skin  of  his  heart-
shaped face—high cheekbones, full, kissable lips, and bright
amber  eyes  that  Evan  swore  saw  everything  when  Michael
looked him over, right down to the stains on his soul.

“How did you do that?” Evan asked. He’d never

experienced anything like that before, the invasion of
another person’s thoughts inside his head.

Shaking his head, Michael looked into Evan’s eyes and

Evan was left to wonder about Michael. Was Michael in his
head now? Could he hear Evan’s thoughts? If he was, Evan
neither heard nor felt anything.

“I don’t know,” Michael said. “I didn’t know I could. I

mean, the other night, I wondered, but…” His words trailed
off as his mind seemed to work overtime on figuring out
what had just happened.

Evan had heard rumors about those who were born a

werewolf. They ranged from embellishing their superiority
to plain ridiculous. He eyed Michael warily. Was it possible
the man might sprout wings?

“I didn’t mean anything by it,” Michael quickly said. He

looked eager for Evan to believe him. “Just all of a sudden
there you were. I heard you inside my head.”

This was kind of awkward. Evan liked the man, but to

have him running around inside his head, that was a
different thing altogether. Just how deep could Michael go?

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“I’m sorry,” Michael said. His shoulders dropped and he

lowered his head.

Great. Now Evan felt like a dick. He ducked his head a

little  and  smiled  as  Michael  looked  at  him.  He  rubbed  his
jaw  and  glanced  through  the  window.  Through  the
reflection of light off the pane, he could just make out Mason
sitting  on  the  couch  as  he  worked.  Company  and  some
human interaction wouldn’t be a bad thing he figured.

“Do you want to go for a walk? I could do with stretching

my legs.”

Michael’s face brightened. “Sure.”
Evan jumped the four steps from the porch to the ground

and waited for Michael to join him. Falling in side by side,
they walked. “So, how’s this thing work?”

* * * *

Michael  walked  beside  Evan  and  couldn’t  help  but
occasionally  glance  at  the  man.  Had  that  really  happened?
Had they spoken to each other through thoughts alone? This
was incredible and also meant he wasn’t going mad after all.
The voice he’d heard that night had been Evan’s. Evan had
called out for help, not with his voice but with his mind, and
Michael  had  heard  him.  If  only  he  could  figure  out  why—
and how.

Excitement made Michael’s chest ache. Fuck, he needed to

calm down. Fishing his packet of smokes and lighter from
his pants, he fumbled to pull out a single cigarette and light
it. His first drag helped to calm him down. “Do you want
one?”

Evan cast him a sideways glance before stopping. “I don’t

smoke.”

Michael shrugged and slid the packet back in his pocket.

The Bad Wolf

“And neither should you.” Evan took the cigarette from

between Michael’s lips and dropped it on the ground,
crushing the smoke beneath his boot.

“What? They’ll kill me?” Michael rested his hands on his

hips and looked at Evan. He hadn’t been sick a day in his
life.

“You don’t know they won’t.” Evan met his eyes. With a

smirk on his lips, he moved closer. Heat radiated off Evan
and Michael could feel the man’s breath on his cheek as he
leaned forward.

“What are you doing?” Michael took a sharp breath,

surprised as Evan rested his hand on the small of his back.

Jesus. Michael had never met anyone like Evan before, a

man  that  had  his  stomach  tied  in  knots,  his  dick  tenting  in
the  confines  of  his  jeans,  and  his  mind  so  thoroughly
intrigued.  For  some  reason,  they  had  formed  a  connection
before they had even met. Evan had called and Michael had
listened.

Oh God. Evan was so damn close. He stood a couple of

inches  taller  than  Michael,  his  body  muscular  and  solid
beneath the material of his t-shirt. Evan met Michael’s gaze
with his perfect blue eyes, and Michael struggled to breathe.
Michael  wondered  how  he  had  not  noticed  before  how
amazingly  flawless  they  were,  like  the  bluest  of  seas.  He
took  a  moment  to  appreciate  Evan’s  good  looks.  His
gorgeous  eyes  were  set  beneath  thick,  yet  neat  eyebrows.
They were a shade darker than his brown hair. There was a
slight wave to the bangs he wore swept back from his face.
Evan had a strong beauty about him, a square jaw, straight
nose,  and  dimples  when  he  smiled.  And  damn,  he  was
smiling right now.

Michael closed his eyes and listened to the rhythm of his

heartbeat rising in his ears. Evan slid his hand downward,
his fingers tracing a line over the curve of Michael’s ass.

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Evan’s breath was warm against the skin of Michael’s throat
and was released in calm and controlled puffs.

How the hell was he so calm? Michael’s dick was

painfully  hard,  but damn it felt good. Fuck, if Evan was to
touch him just once, Michael was damn sure he’d come right
then  and  there.  Evan  moved  his  hand  down,  cupping
Michael’s  ass  briefly,  before  he  slipped  his  fingers  into  the
back  pocket  of  his  jeans  and  then  pulled  away.  Michael
opened his eyes and Evan smirked.

“You don’t need these,” Evan said of Michael’s smokes

and lighter.

Michael went to snatch them back, only for Evan to grab

his wrist, pull him close, and hold him tight to his body. Yes,
Evan was as firm as he looked. Michael squirmed in Evan’s
hold, gasping as his erection brushed Evan’s thigh. From the
look on Evan’s face, the man knew exactly what was going
on in Michael’s pants.

“You want a hand with that?” Evan teased. Evan curled

his hand against the top of Michael’s ass, the sharp corner of
the cigarette packet poking Michael in the back.

Michael arched backward and looked into Evan’s eyes.

What was Evan waiting for? He couldn’t figure out what
Evan wanted from him. Kiss me. Michael directed his
thoughts toward Evan, but there was no indication the man
had heard him this time.

Kiss me. Michael looked directly into Evan’s eyes, and this

time he knew Evan had heard him.

Evan dropped the smokes and brought his free hand up

to cup Michael’s face. He blinked, seeming uncertain as he
drew his hand downward and pressed it to Michael’s chest,
just above his heart. You’re crazy to want anything from me.

Michael’s whole body ached, and Evan’s touch was like

fire across his skin. God, he never knew the touch of another
man could ever feel so good. Evan was so damn close, his

The Bad Wolf

mouth a mere breath away from Michael’s. What was he
waiting for? This was like torture. Lust suddenly made way
for apprehension as Michael searched Evan’s eyes. Did Evan
know? Had Evan realized just how inexperienced Michael
was?

Michael’s life was one long, screwed-up story, one that

had  never  had  room  for  love.  He  had  never  been  with
anyone  before.  He’d  never  loved  anyone.  He’d  never  even
been kissed, not properly, not by a man. He started to pull
away.  Evan  could  never  want  him.  Evan  would  want
someone  who  knew  what  they  were  doing,  knew  how  to
make love to a man.

Shut up. Evan’s voice was in his head.
Fuck, had Evan heard all that? Heat rose in Michael’s

cheeks as Evan’s gaze traveled south, focusing on his mouth.
Michael moistened his lips. Nerves made his throat dry and
his limbs weak. Thank God Evan was holding him.
Thoughts ran through his mind, but none of it mattered as
Evan kissed him.

Michael arched into the kiss, positioning himself to make

the most of the moment. Evan was gentle at first. Slow kisses
were interspersed with pauses as he seemed to test the
connection between them. A low ache coursed through
Michael’s body. Damn, Evan knew how to tease, and his lips
were so soft and warm. The ache turned to something more
primal as Michael suppressed the urge to growl. It had been
some time since his wolf personality had vied for control in
such a way.

Briefly, Evan pulled back. He seemed to ask for

permission with his eyes. Permission to claim Michael.

“Kiss me,” Michael said out loud. He reached out and

wrapped his free hand around the back of Evan’s neck,
pulling him roughly forward.

Meredith Russell

Their mouths collided in a torrent of kisses, and Evan

released Michael’s other hand. Evan rested his hands on the
back of Michael’s thighs and Michael held onto Evan as he
was  suddenly  lifted  from  the  ground.  The  two  of  them
moved  across  the  forest  floor  until  Michael’s  back  hit  the
solid trunk of a tree. The bark scratched the back of his arms
as Evan smothered his mouth.

Hungrily, they kissed one another, all teeth and tongues

and  desperate  breaths.  This  was  better  than  anything
Michael  could  ever  have  fantasized  about.  Evan  was  solid
and  real,  and  with  his  hard  body  pressed  firmly  between
Michael’s  legs,  Michael  was  eager  to  move,  to  ease  his
erection.  His  dick  was  hard  and though  he desired  release,
he feared making a fool of himself.

Shit. Michael groaned as Evan rotated his hips, creating

friction  against  Michael’s  erection.  Had  Evan  heard  him
again? Michael’s senses spun. He had no idea what emotions
or  thoughts  he  sent  toward  Evan,  or  what  the  man  could
actually  hear.  Closing  his  eyes,  Michael  took  deep  breaths.
Evan had switched to pressing kisses over Michael’s jaw and
throat.  Michael  leaned  back  against  the  tree.  He  could  feel
the  graze  of  Evan’s  teeth  across  his  jaw  as  Evan  kissed  his
way back to focus on Michael’s mouth.

Evan stopped and Michael opened his eyes. There was a

crooked smile on Evan’s face. Michael was curious, but only
for a moment. Evan started to move his body in a way that
left Michael panting. The pressure on Michael’s dick felt
amazing. They should stop, right?

Michael didn’t want Evan to stop, and Evan didn’t seem

like he wanted to either. He captured Michael’s mouth in
another string of kisses, invading Michael’s mouth with his
tongue as he continued to grind their bodies together.

Oh, fuck. Michael’s wolf rose inside him in a wave of

hunger and desire, and hell, Michael liked how it felt. He

The Bad Wolf

held  Evan’s  face,  held  him  steady  as  he  started  to  move  in
time with Evan. No more waiting. No more fear. Excitement
flooded through Michael as he kissed Evan. The movement
of  their  bodies  brought  Michael  to  the  edge  and  with  loud
growl, he tumbled over. His body shuddered in a delicious
orgasm,  and  he  bared  his  teeth  as  he  roughly  kissed  Evan.
Evan  smiled  into  the  kiss  and  Michael  growled  again,
nipping at Evan’s mouth and tasting blood.

Evan gasped and pulled back from him. Breathless, they

looked  at  one  another.  Evan  held  Michael,  and  Michael
rested  his  hands  on  Evan’s  shoulders  and  leaned  back
against  the  tree.  He  had  never  had  such  a  reaction  to
someone before. Evan was like an addiction, and he wanted
more. He leaned forward, licked the small cut on Evan’s lip,
and placed a gentle kiss on the swollen area. Evan leaned in
for  more  kisses—slow  and  openmouthed.  Evan  moved  his
hands  over  the  tight  material  of  Michael’s  jeans,  his  touch
electric as he soothed lines over Michael’s thighs and settled
on  Michael’s  waist.  Eventually,  he  lowered  Michael  to  the
ground and ended the kiss. He looked at Michael with such
a  sad  expression  that  Michael  feared  he’d  done  something
wrong.

“What?” Michael said. He reached out, but Evan raised

his hand to stop him. “Did I do something wrong?”

Evan simply shook his head.
“Then—” He shut up as Evan kissed him to allay his

fears.

“Don’t,” Evan said and ran the back of his hand gently

over Michael’s cheek.

Michael leaned into the touch and closed his eyes. If he’d

been a cat, he was sure he would have purred.

I’m not a good person.
Michael opened his eyes as he heard Evan’s voice in his

head. He made no indication he’d heard Evan, because he
was sure Evan hadn’t meant for him to hear.

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I’d be so bad for you. Evan’s gaze lifted from Michael’s lips

and settled on his eyes.

Michael tried not to give anything away, but Evan must

have seen something as he lowered his hand and chewed on
his lip. He looked away from Michael and back toward
where the house was just visible through a clearing in the
trees.

“I should go.” Evan shrugged as he took a step away from

Michael. He glanced at Michael. “Are you okay?”

Michael looked at the ground. What did Evan think? He’d

break?

“Okay, good.” Evan sounded tense. “I’ll see you up at the

house.”

Michael lifted his head as Evan crammed his hands in his

pockets and edged away. He met Michael’s eyes once more
before turning and stalking through the trees.

Closing his eyes, Michael leaned his head back. He shifted

his footing and grimaced at the discomfort of the wet patch
in  his  underwear.  He  looked  up  at  the  canopy  of  branches
above  him  and  the  patches  of  sky  visible  among  the  dark
clouds.

It looks like rain.
Gently, he ran his hand over his stomach. He could feel

his wolf curled up beneath the surface. He sensed its desire
for  Evan  matched  his  own  and  wondered  what  would
happen  when  the  two  wolves  met  on  the  full  moon.  From
experience, he knew his emotions grew stronger the closer to
the transformation he got—his sexual desires, his anger and
fear, his animalistic urge to tear into flesh. Mason had taught
him  how  to  control  them  for  the  most  part,  but  they  were
always there. His wolf had suffered greatly at the hands of
the hunters. It had saved his life, so who was he to deny its
needs?

His wolf stirred and a wave of anger washed through him

as he thought of Evan and whoever had shot him the other

Meredith Russell

Chapter Seven

i,” Mason said as he answered his cell phone.
“You working?” Niall asked.

“Just need to attach the file and…” He clicked the send

button. “Edits sent back.” He settled back on the couch and
smiled. “You busy?”

“Not really. The guy that bought the dresser got in touch

to arrange delivery. Says he’s a firefighter.”

Mason grinned and imagined all the places Niall’s mind

had raced to—uniforms, hoses, helmets. “Did he now?”

“He was very nice, and he has a dog named Darcy.”
Mason snorted a laugh. “I won’t ask how you got that

tidbit.”

Niall laughed. “I’m a very likeable person. People feel at

ease around me.”

“Not sure Evan would agree,” he teased. There was still a

clear tension between the two men that left any room they
entered together ice cold.

“I stay out of his way and he stays out of mine. It works,”

Niall pointed out.

“I guess,” Mason said with a sigh. He lifted his feet and

rested  them  on  the  edge  of  the  coffee  table.  “He’ll  be  gone
soon  and  everything  can  go  back  to  normal.”  He  knew
things  had  been  strained,  even  before  Evan  showed  up.
“We’re okay, right?”

There was a smile in Niall’s voice. “Of course.”

“H

The Bad Wolf

Niall’s words lifted the oppressive feeling Mason carried

with him all too often. He just hadn’t had the guts to ask
Niall. He needed the comfort and support Niall offered in
his words. “I love you,” he said. “You know that, right?”

“Sure I do. Are you okay?”
Mason worried his lip. It was the moon, he figured,

playing with his emotions. “I’m fine. Hurry home.”

“I have an order to go through with a restaurant in

Vermont, but I’ll close early and be with you soon. Love
you,” Niall said.

“You, too,” Mason said and hung up. Taking a deep

breath, he shook away his moroseness and leaned back. The
house was silent, and for that he was grateful. The last few
days had been stressful, to say the least. Cocking his head,
he listened. The silence made way for heavy footsteps on the
steps and across the porch, the screen door creaked, and the
front door opened. The scent of Evan filled the air and the
door slammed shut.

Great. “Problem?” he said. Evan walked across the room.

Christ, Evan’s footsteps sounded like those of an elephant.

Evan stopped and turned around. He looked at Mason,

meeting his eyes with a desperate gaze. “I’m sorry,” he said
and spun around, quickly retreating to his room.

What’s up with him? Mason sat forward and stared at

Evan’s shut door. Should he check on him? The screen door
opened again and Mason looked over the back of the couch.
He waited as Michael slipped quietly into the house and
stood beside the door. Mason eyed him curiously. The
young man’s cheeks were flushed, there were red marks on
his neck, and he smelled like…Oh shit no.

“What’s going on?” Mason asked. His mind had raced

three steps ahead, and he didn’t like where it headed. Was
that bark on Michael’s shoulders?

Meredith Russell

“Nothing,” Michael insisted. He ran a hand over his head

and smoothed the material of his t-shirt at his shoulders.

Turning around, Mason kneeled on the cushion and

rested  his  arms  on  the  back  of  the  couch.  What  was  he
supposed  to  say?  He  wasn’t  Michael’s  father,  brother,
keeper,  but  whatever was  going  on  with  Evan,  he  couldn’t
stand by and say nothing. Could he?

“Michael. Evan, he’s—”
“Stop,” Michael said. “You don’t need to tell me he’s no

good for me. He did that all by himself.”

Mason shook his head. “It’s not that. It’s just…” Okay, so

maybe  it  was.  Evan  was  an  okay  guy,  probably.  “He’s
unpredictable,” Mason said. He had no right to label Evan as
bad  or  good.  He  knew  that.  Being  a  werewolf  was  neither
black  nor  white  but  infinite  shades  of  gray.  “Maybe  he
thought things were going too fast.” He didn’t want to deny
Michael  the  first  connection  he’d  made  beyond  simple
friendship. But he also didn’t want Michael to get hurt. Evan
wasn’t going to stick around forever.

“What is it with everyone?” Michael sounded agitated.
“What?”
“Do I have fragile, handle with care stamped on my

forehead?  I’m  not  going  to  break.”  He  looked  firmly  at
Mason. “Bad stuff happened. I know, okay? I was there. But
bad  stuff  happens  to  lots  of  people.  You  keep  telling  me  I
need to get past all that and move on with my life. You tell
me I’m not the same person I was. Not some feral creature
who  didn’t  understand  when  someone  was  trying  to  help
me. But then you all act like this. Doc Anderson doesn’t say
anything, but I know he hates me for what I did.”

“No, Michael. He doesn’t hate you.” Anderson had had

no idea who Michael was when he had found him on the last
day of the full moon cycle. Maybe if he had, things would
have gone differently. The doctor had found the near-feral

The Bad Wolf

young  man on a hiking trip not far  from town. Scared and
cornered,  Michael’s  wolf  had  lashed  out  even  before  the
transformation  had  taken  place,  protecting  his  human  host
from a threat that was never really there. Doc Anderson was
a good man. “It was an accident.”

Michael shook his head. “And what about you? I hurt

you, too, broke your arm in three places.” Was he really that
wild and out of control in the beginning?

“Stop.” Mason narrowed his eyes. Michael had never yet

ventured into self-pity territory. “That isn’t you. Not
anymore.”

“Then why don’t you trust me? You pretend like

nothing’s going on with you and Niall, playing happy
families for my sake.” He stopped and took a breath. “I just
want…I want you to know I can be here for you as well.” He
gave a small smile. “You tell me I’ve changed, but I need to
believe it, and to do that, I need you to let me.”

Michael looked awkward as he hovered in front of the

door. His speech had left him nowhere to go. Getting off the
couch, Mason walked over to Michael, and smiling, he
pulled the man into a hug.

“Kind of ruining the we’re all grown men thing I was going

for,” Michael said, his voice strained and breathy as Mason
hugged him tightly.

Mason didn’t care. He wanted the best for Michael,

always had, but he figured Michael was right. Time to take
the  kid  gloves  off.  He  breathed  in  deeply,  the  scent  of
Michael’s wolf stronger than he remembered, but strangely
comforting.  He  smiled  as  Michael  rested  his  hands  on  his
back  and  Mason  could  feel  the  young  man’s  warmth
through the back of his shirt.

“You’re never too old for a hug,” Mason stated and

leaned his chin on Michael’s shoulder.

“A man-hug,” Michael said with a laugh.

Meredith Russell

Mason nodded. He patted Michael on the back before

pulling away. “Okay, well, I guess I’ll fix us some lunch.” He
glanced over his shoulder at Evan’s room. “Do you want to
get him, or shall I?” He turned to Michael, who looked
hesitant. “I don’t mind.”

“I’ll go,” Michael decided. “Can you give us ten? I guess

we need to talk.”

“Sure. Just…” Michael was old enough to make his own

mistakes,  Mason  guessed,  and  by  Evan’s  reaction,  the  man
was  already  trying  to  do  what  he  thought  was  best  by
Michael. Maybe there was hope for Evan after all. He smiled
and  looked  firmly  at  Michael.  He’d  learned  the  hard  way
with  Niall,  but  the  best  way  was  always  to  be  true  to
yourself and your heart. “Be honest and ask him to be.”

Michael smiled and headed toward Evan’s room. Mason

watched  as  Michael  knocked,  waited  a  moment,  and  then
entered  Evan’s  room,  closing  the  door  behind  him.  Mason
worried  his  bottom  lip.  Would  Evan  let  Michael  down
gently?  Or  would  there  be  no  letting  down,  just  more  of
whatever  the  hell  they’d  been  doing  outside?  Awkward
images  flashed  in  his  mind.  “None  of  my  business,”  he
muttered to himself and headed for the kitchen in search of a
distraction.

* * * *

“I didn’t say come in,” Evan pointed out as Michael closed
the door. He looked up at Michael from where he was sitting
cross-legged on the bed. He eyed Michael with interest. The
man smelled as amazing as he had in the woods, and Evan
fought the rise of his own arousal. Resting his hands in his
lap, he kept his gaze on Michael as the man moved toward
the bed.

“I wasn’t sure you would,” Michael said and sat down.

The Bad Wolf

Evan smirked as Michael readjusted himself and

grimaced. “Maybe you should head for the shower,” he
suggested.

Michael sighed and shook his head. “I want to talk to

you.”

“About what?”
“About what happened.”
“What do you think happened?”
The games were clearly not appreciated as Michael

looked angrily at him. “We kissed.”

“And I made you come in your pants,” Evan added. He

watched  Michael  closely.  The  man  seemed  disappointed  at
how  easily  Evan  had  made  the  statement.  What  had  he
expected  Evan  to  do?  Dress  it  up  in  posies  and  rainbows?
“And you thought what? You’d come in here and we’d hold
hands  and  be  boyfriends?”  Disgust  stabbed  at  his  chest.
Disgust at himself and his words. Michael was a sweet guy,
but  Evan  knew  this  was  for  the  best.  He’d  end  up  hurting
Michael—maybe not today, tomorrow, or next week, but he
would. Evan knew he was a dick and he was okay with that.

There was a strange expression on Michael’s face. Was he

trying to get inside Evan’s head?

“Hey,” Evan snapped. “Don’t even think about it.”
Something sparked in Michael’s eyes. “You’re lying.”
“What makes you think that?” Evan asked.
“You won’t let me in. You’re blocking me.”
Evan scoffed a laugh. “Sure I am. We don’t even know

how you got in my head or me in yours. Maybe it was a one-
off. A fluke.”

It’s not a fluke. Michael’s eyes shone as he set his gaze

firmly on Evan.

Evan broke eye contact in the hope of pushing Michael

out of his head.

I know you can hear me. And I know you want to. It’s two-way.

I have to want in and you have to let me.

Meredith Russell

“I don’t want you messing around in my head,” Evan

said.  He  looked  back  at  Michael  and  shook  his  head.
“There’s  things  you  wouldn’t  want  to  see.  Things  I  don’t
want  you  to  see.”  He  had  carried  out  some  horrible  acts
since  becoming  a  werewolf,  and  he  wasn’t  sure  he  could
make up for it, not in his lifetime.

“I’m not stupid,” Michael said. “I know what our wolves

are capable of.” He looked so incredibly sad. “Besides, I
don’t think that’s what this is.” Gently, he touched his
forehead with his fingers.

Evan pursed his lips. “Then what?”
“I don’t know, exactly.” Michael smiled. “But I’d like to

find out.” He pursed his lips and looked at Evan through his
dark lashes. “If you’d let me.” He chewed on his lip before
lifting his hips and pulling out his lighter and smokes.
“Look, I’ll even quit.” He threw them past Evan and into the
wastebasket.

Evan pursed his lips. Who was he kidding? Michael

fascinated him. The man was lust and innocence rolled up
into one, and Evan wanted to explore every inch of him—
body and mind.

“No bad stuff, right? The past stays where it is?” It hurt to

remember, and this was no wound Evan wanted to scratch.
He had all but forgotten his old life and the transition to his
new one. Too much pain and too much blood.

Michael shook his head. It was clear the past was too dark

a place for him as well. “No. The past is the past. Just us and
just now.”

“Okay,” Evan said guardedly. Michael had moved closer

and  Evan  couldn’t  stop  himself  from  staring  at  the  man’s
mouth, which he swore dared him to kiss Michael again. The
moment  in  the  woods  had  left  a  lasting  impression,  and
Evan  wanted  to  know  what  the  rest  of  Michael  tasted  like.
His  lips  had  been  sweet,  mixed  with  the  inhaled  smoke  of

The Bad Wolf

the cigarette before Evan had taken it away. Evan smiled
inwardly. He’d always had a sweet tooth.

What was the worst that could happen? Niall and his

shovel sprang to mind. But Michael was his own man. If this
was what Michael wanted, no one had the right to say what
was and wasn’t right, even Evan himself. Something about
Michael had Evan and his wolf wanting to curl around him
and protect him from the world. Michael deserved to be
loved and safe and maybe that meant Evan should push him
away.

You deserve love, too. Michael’s voice was like a bright

beacon in the darkness of Evan’s mind.

Did he really deserve to be loved, and by someone as

sweet as Michael? Evan hated how he could doubt himself.
He used to be strong and confident and pretty much wore a
big  fuck  you  around  his  neck.  He  didn’t  do  feelings  or  get
attached, but then, this was the first time in a long time he’d
actually  experienced  such  emotions.  When  he  became  a
werewolf,  it  was  clear  he  had  not  been  there  to  be  loved.
He’d had a thing with Sian. Kaine, too, after Mason had left.
But that wasn’t what Kaine had been about. Evan had been a
weapon.  Nothing  more.  Kaine  had  taught  him  that.  He’d
taught him to let go and accept the curse, and taught him to
kill, to murder. Though the thought brought with it a twinge
of regret, at the time, damn, Evan had enjoyed the freedom
his wolf gave him. Just to share the animal’s primal instinct
and desire for the hunt had been exhilarating. Evan breathed
in  deeply  as  Michael  touched  his  face,  shifting  his  focus  to
him.

Gently, Michael guided Evan forward. He brushed a

delicate line over Evan’s jaw with his thumb and, smiling,
leaned over and placed a kiss on Evan’s mouth. The kiss was
slow and teasing and gave each man the opportunity to taste
and test each other. Michael lingered over the swollen bite

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mark, gently licking at Evan’s broken skin. The small mark
would be gone by the afternoon as if it never happened.

Evan arched his neck, catching Michael’s mouth in a hot,

openmouthed kiss. He wrapped his hand around the back of
Michael’s neck and pulled him close. The kiss became
rougher and deeper, their tongues meeting in a struggle for
dominance that excited Evan.

In one quick move, Evan got to his knees and nudged

Michael,  encouraging  him  onto  the  bed.  Leaning  over  him,
Evan  guided  Michael  until  he  was  lying  beneath  him.  He
covered  Michael  with  his  larger  body,  one  leg  sliding
between  Michael’s  as  he  straddled  the  man’s  thigh.  With  a
pleasurable  groan,  he  pressed  against  Michael’s  leg,
applying pressure to his hardened dick.

What you do to me, he thought and knew Michael had

heard him.

Michael pulled at the front of Evan’s pants, freeing the

button and zipper to reveal a path for his hand to take inside
Evan’s clothing.  Evan let out a groan as Michael closed his
hand  around  his  dick  and  started  slow  strokes  along  his
length.

The smell of sex still clung to Michael and his scent was

dizzying.  Evan  lifted  himself  higher,  creating  space  for
Michael  to  move  his  hand.  He  held  Michael’s  face,  pulling
him into a firm kiss as his orgasm rose. The man was like a
welcoming  fire  wrapping  around  his  body.  Heat  prickled
across  his  skin,  and  all  he  could  think  was,  what  would  it
feel like to be inside him? To have Michael. To fuck him. To
really love him.

Images flashed in Evan’s head of Michael, naked and

spread open beneath him. The image shot straight to his dick
and Evan unleashed his desires. He kissed Michael hard and
thrust his dick into Michael’s curled hand over and over
until he could take no more. With a low growl, he reached

The Bad Wolf

his climax. His body shuddered like crazy as he continued to
fuck  into  Michael’s  hand.  Eventually,  he  stilled,  gasping  as
Michael pulled his hand free and held it away. Evan rested
his  forehead  on  Michael’s  chest  and  eyed  the  sticky,  white
mess  across  Michael’s  fingers.  Laughing,  he  lifted  his  head
and  held  himself  on  his  arms.  He  looked  down  at  Michael
and smiled, kissing him before he pushed himself away and
sat back on his heels.

Evan tossed Michael the box of tissues from his bedside.

“Mason’s going to kill me,” he joked.

“Only if you break my heart,” Michael said. He took two

tissues and threw the box back at Evan.

Evan met Michael’s eyes. He didn’t want to hurt Michael.
Michael sat up and shook his head. “Don’t look so

serious. It was a joke.”

“I know,” Evan said. He lowered his head and stared at

the  box  in  his  hands.  He  had  no  idea  where  this  was
heading. Getting each other off was one thing—a bit of fun,
something  to  pass  the  time.  Evan  hadn’t  developed  a
relationship  with  someone  in  a  long  time.  There’d  been  a
guy  after  high  school,  sweet  and  all  about  holding  hands
and kissing in the backseat of his car. Was this going to lead
to  handholding?  Was  this  something  sweet  and  innocent?
Or, like every other man since, just sex and heat then done
and on to the next?

“Evan?” said Michael. “You okay?”
Evan nodded. “I’m fine. We take it a day at a time, right?”

He looked at Michael and smiled. He wouldn’t mind
holding Michael’s hand, if that was what Michael wanted.

Michael returned his smile. “Right.” He got to his knees

and rested his hands on Evan’s shoulders, looking into his
eyes before leaning forward and kissing him. He kissed a
path along Evan’s jaw and pressed his lips just below Evan’s
ears. He whispered, “One day at a time.”

Meredith Russell

Chapter Eight

van rested his head in his hand and stared across the
large room to where Mason was sitting at the dining

table.  There  was  a  clear  edginess  to  the  way  Mason  sat.
Every now and again he shifted as if stung by some unseen
foe,  and  Evan  knew  exactly  how  he  felt.  Tension  was
mounting  as  the  closeness  of  the  full  moon  brought  about
heightened emotions.

There were two days left before the first night of the full

moon,  and  Evan  had  doubts  about  his  decision  to  remain
with  the  others.  Within  him  there  was  a  battle.  For  three
days he had fought against the ingrained desire that pulled
him toward what  he knew was wrong.  It was like his wolf
was  wound  tightly  around  his  heart,  whispering  to  him,
encouraging him in a direction he knew would only lead to
pain  and  heartache.  Not  that  he  would  ever  go  there,  not
willingly. Mason shifted again and gave a visible shudder. It
was clear Mason felt it, too—the pull. Evan figured it was to
do with Kaine having turned them both. Some primal need
of their wolves that had them calling out to each other—the
desire to be a pack again.

“What do you want to do today?” Michael said as he

dropped down on the couch beside Evan. He wore a bright
smile as he curled toward Evan and planted a kiss on his
cheek.

“Aren’t you helping Niall?” Mason asked.

The Bad Wolf

Michael shook his head. “Not today,” he said. He looked

at Evan with bright amber eyes.

For the last three days they had spent a lot of time

together, learning as much as they could about one another
without  straying  into  the  past.  It  was  all  about  the  present
and  about  who  they  were  now.  In  that  time,  Michael  had
continued  to  explore  his  new-found  skills.  Evan  was
apparently  a  welcome  distraction  from  the  other  voices
inside his head. Being able to focus on just  him had meant
the rest had melted into the background, where usually this
close to the moon he would be wiped out and barely able to
function.

“How’s the head?” Evan asked and gently soothed a line

over Michael’s forehead. He seemed a little warm. “You
feeling okay?”

Michael winced and pulled away. “I’m fine,” he said.

Evan wasn’t convinced. There was an edge of hostility to
Michael’s voice. “Really, I’m fine.”

“Did you sleep?” Mason asked, turning around in his

seat.

Michael didn’t say anything, and it was clear from his

silence he hadn’t.

“Go back to bed,” Evan suggested. He doubted a cranky

and sleepy Michael was as cute as he imagined.

Michael shook his head. “It hurts less when I’m up and

busy.”

“Have you been taking your meds?” Mason checked. He

glanced toward Evan. He was clearly concerned about the
young man.

“I did already,” Michael snapped. He looked at Mason

and Mason flinched.

Evan was curious. Had Michael just directed his thoughts

onto Mason? The man certainly looked freaked out.

“Mason?” Evan said.

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Mason blinked as if freeing himself from a trance. He

turned to Evan and swallowed uncomfortably. “It’s fine. I
need to get on with this.” He turned around and focused on
his laptop.

Wrapping a hand around Michael’s wrist, Evan pulled

him close and looked into his eyes. What did you do?

Michael struggled to free his hand, but eventually gave in.

A sense of sadness and guilt washed through Evan and he
could only assume those emotions belonged to Michael.

“I’m sorry,” Michael said out loud. Evan assumed it had

been for Mason’s benefit, not his, though Mason gave
nothing away as to whether he thought the same.

Outside, he ordered. Evan got to his feet and pulled

Michael with him. He wasn’t sure whether he was more hurt
that Michael had shared his thoughts with someone else or
the fact that Michael had clearly done something to upset
Mason. His wolf was sending him vibes on both counts, torn
between the feelings he had for both men.

Evan glanced at where Mason was sitting, busying

himself  with  whatever  piece  he  was  editing.  He  made  no
show  that  he  was  interested  or  cared  about  them  leaving.
What had Michael said to him? He guided Michael out onto
the  large  back  porch  and  down  the  few  steps.  He  glanced
back at the house and kept his voice low. “What did you say
to him?”

“I didn’t say anything,” Michael said. “I…” Frustrated, he

rubbed a hand over the top of his head, curled his hand
against his hair, and closed his eyes. “I didn’t realize he’d
see it.”

“See what?”
Regret filled Michael’s eyes as he lifted his head and

looked at Evan. I’m sorry.

Show me.

The Bad Wolf

Michael nodded. He held Evan’s gaze, his eyes seeming to

glow as he directed his thoughts toward Evan.

Images flashed across Evan’s mind. His vision blurred

and  all  he  could  see  were  two  men  entwined  in  what  was
clearly  sex.  The  images  flickered  and  he  was  suddenly
barraged  with  the  sensual  sounds  of  intercourse  and  he
realized exactly who the two men were—him and Mason.

The images receded and Evan blinked to clear his vision.

“What the hell, Michael?” he said harshly.

Michael recoiled at the loud words. “I didn’t mean to. I

promise. I guess I got jealous.”

“Jealous? What the hell of?”
“I’m not stupid. You wanted me out of the way so you

two could—” Michael tensed his jaw. “I see how you two are
around each other. My wolf sees. It knows and it wants to
tear away the bond you share.” A wicked smile broke across
Michael’s face, and Evan grabbed him by the tops of his
arms and shook him.

Michael snapped out of whatever had taken hold of him,

and he covered his ears with his hands as he closed his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” he said again. He grimaced as he pressed his
palms firmly to his ears.

Were the voices in his head making Michael act this way

or was it his wolf side? Evan didn’t know a lot about being
born a werewolf, but he figured the wolf had always been a
part of Michael. Hell, it was Michael.

“Hey,” Evan said and cupped Michael’s face with his

hands. “It’s okay.” He guided Michael’s head until he faced
him. “It’s okay.” He leaned forward and kissed Michael,
holding the man steady until he relaxed.

I didn’t mean it. Michael’s voice sounded so small.
I know. Evan strengthened the kiss and moved his hands

downward until he came to rest on Michael’s waist. He

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gently squeezed Michael’s hips before wrapping his arms
around Michael and holding him tight.

We’ll figure this out, he promised, though he wasn’t sure

what he could do. He’d devoted the last few days to Michael
and wasn’t sure what more he could offer the young man
and his wolf.

Michael slowly pulled away. “Thank you,” he said. “I

don’t deserve you.”

Evan leaned his forehead against Michael’s and gently

shook his head. “No you don’t,” he said. You deserve better.

This was going to be a long couple of days.
“Everything okay?” Mason asked as Evan pulled the door

to Michael’s bedroom shut.

Evan nodded and came to sit at the dining table with

Mason. Michael had taken something to help him sleep. He
had clearly been in pain, but after an hour curled against
Evan, he had finally given in to slumber. “Is it usually this
bad?”

Mason looked grimly at him. “Worse.” He sighed and

rested his head in his hand. “Believe it or not, you’ve
actually helped a lot.”

Sighing, Evan glanced back at Michael’s door. “He

seemed okay and then he just…” He folded his arms on the
table and rested his chin against them.

“It’s difficult, I know.” Mason offered a comforting smile.

He sat back in his seat and eyed Evan curiously.

“What?” Evan asked.
“Nothing.” He smiled. “It’s just weird having you here.”
Evan rubbed at his eye and nodded. It was weird

especially to say the last time they had seen each other they
would have happily torn each other apart. “All in the past,”
he said. It seemed the rule he’d made with Michael was just
as relevant here.

The Bad Wolf

They sat in silence for a moment, both likely appreciating

the strange relationship they had that once upon a time had
them ready to kill, but now was a horror they wanted to
forget.

“I was thinking I might head farther out and away from

the property this full moon,” Mason suggested. He lowered
his gaze and idly ran his fingers across the keyboard of his
laptop.

“Why?” asked Evan. “Because of me?”
“Not just you.” Mason swallowed awkwardly and

eventually met Evan’s eyes. “It’s taken time, but Michael has
been able to rein in his wolf. For a while it was almost like
that’s all Michael was. But as Michael came to trust people,
the wolf personality backed down I guess and Michael the
man took control.”

“Okay,” Evan said. He wasn’t entirely sure where this

was going.

“I don’t want to damage that trust. He likes you,” Mason

pointed out.

Evan snorted a laugh. “You think me and you might do

what? A bit of doggy?”

“No. I don’t think we would.” Mason sounded sure. “I

love Niall. Anything I may feel for you I know is rooted in
hate.”

“Tell me how you really feel,” Evan huffed.
Mason shook his head. “I don’t hate you. I hate him.”

Mason couldn’t even bring himself to say Kaine’s name.

“Then why?”
“You saw how Michael was earlier. What he did—though

I don’t know how—was out of jealousy.”

“He knows we would never do—” The fake memory left

Evan feeling very confused.

“Maybe, but does his wolf? I have gone through seven

full moons with him and never before have I feared him. But

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he’s  getting  stronger  every  month,  and  now  this?  I  don’t
think  he  realizes  how  dominant  he  is  in  wolf  form.  He’s
bigger  and  stronger  than  me.  I  don’t  know  if  I  could  take
him in a fight anymore, and I don’t know where your wolf’s
loyalties would stand.”

Evan felt the tight curl of his own beast in his chest. He

wasn’t sure whom he would choose if it came down to it.

“If I’m not here, I can’t be seen as a threat.”
This wasn’t a good idea. “No,” Evan finally said.
“I don’t see we have much choice. We’re not like Michael.

He is his wolf. If he picks a fight, we can only influence ours
to a degree. If they both choose to move against him…”
Mason let his words trail off, leaving Evan to imagine his
own outcome.

“We could kill him.” Evan wanted to believe that

wouldn’t happen. He had to. After everything he, Mason,
and Michael had been through, they deserved to catch a
break. “I think you should stay. I’ll go.”

Mason shook his head. “We still don’t know what

damage a transformation might do to you this early in the
healing process. Even now, the wound Kaine inflicted on me
still causes me pain when I turn.” He smiled comfortingly.
“Better you’re here if anything happens.”

“You forget why I was hurt in the first place,” Evan said

seriously. “What if they’re still in the area?”

Mason ran a hand back through his hair. “I’ll be fine.”
Oh, no. Niall would do more than smack him round the

head with a shovel if something were to happen to Mason
because of him. “No,” Evan said again. He met Mason’s
eyes.

“Then what?”
“I don’t know. But I’m not going to risk your life on a

guess. You don’t know how any of us will react to one
another.” There had to be a better way.

The Bad Wolf

“Okay,” Mason agreed. He was clearly apprehensive

about  the  situation.  But  it  was  obvious  he  understood  the
risk  to  any  of  them  if  caught  outside  the  property.  “But  if
things don’t look good, I’m leaving. I won’t risk any of our
lives,  and  I  don’t  want  Niall  getting  caught  up  in  it  either.
Are we clear on that?”

Reluctantly, Evan nodded. Niall loved Mason as fiercely

as Mason loved him. And Evan was sure Niall wouldn’t
hesitate to step in to protect his lover, wolf of not. “It’ll be
fine. You’ll see.”

Meredith Russell

Chapter Nine

ichael had slept for five hours straight, and when he
opened his eyes the light was already fading outside.

With a groan, he sat up in his bed and held his head in his
hands.

Evan. Michael waited. The familiar jumble of voices

cluttered  his  mind,  and  he  strained  to  listen  for  Evan
returning  his  call.  But  there  was  nothing.  His  head  was  all
over the place, and he lacked the concentration to search out
a single mind.

Gently, he ran his fingers in circles just above his

eyebrows and let the motion soothe him. He closed his eyes
and tried to focus on Evan. Evan. He worried his bottom lip.
Evan,  please.  The  other  voices  were  too  great  a  distraction,
plus he was sure his own mood had something to do with it.
Calming  himself,  he  took  slow,  steadying  breaths.  He
focused  his  mind  on  the  gray  swirl  behind  his  eyes  and
stared  deep  into  the  whirlpool  of  voices.  He  reached  out
with  his  mind,  searching  for  the  thread  that  he  hoped  was
Evan.  One  thread  stood  out,  darker  than  all  the  others.  He
mustered every ounce of energy and concentration he could
to  keep  his  mind  solely  on  that  thread,  until  all  the  others
began to fade into the background.

Are you there? A voice came into focus, but the voice he

heard was not Evan’s. It flowed through his mind like silk
and seemed to belong to someone female. An image flashed

The Bad Wolf

across his vision of what looked like the inside of a hotel
room. I’ve been looking for you, she declared.

Who are you? Michael searched for an image or a clue but

the girl offered him nothing.

He’s coming.
Who? Who’s coming? And just as abruptly as she had

appeared, she was gone again, leaving him with an
unsettling feeling in his gut.

Had he imagined it? Pinching the bridge of his nose, he

closed his eyes and wished for silence. He needed a focus.

Evan.
I’m here, Evan replied.
Relief flooded through Michael, and he lifted his head as

his  bedroom  door  opened.  He  smiled  as  Evan  stepped
inside.  “Evan,”  he  said.  Quickly,  he  got  to  his  feet  and
wrapped  his  arms  around  Evan’s  neck.  “I  thought  I’d  lost
you.”

“Lost me?” Evan asked.
“All these voices in my head, and I couldn’t find you.” He

pressed his mouth in a line. Should he mention the other
voice? Had she even been real or his mind tormenting him
during his search for Evan? No, he didn’t need a reason for
Evan to think him more crazy than he probably already did.

“Do you hear them now?”
The girl was gone, having returned to the low rumble of

noise. “A little,” Michael said. “But not like before.” If he
could focus on Evan, then all the rest faded away along with
the torment they caused him. He kissed Evan and held onto
him tightly. He didn’t want to lose him among the others
ever again.

“It’s okay,” Evan said as he broke the kiss. “But we need

to talk to you.”

We? Michael released Evan and hugged himself. “I don’t

know what to say to him.” He had never meant to upset
Mason. It had been stupid of him to send the thought. He

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knew Mason cared about him, loved Niall, and would never
dream of hurting either of them, not because of Evan.

Evan wrapped his hand around Michael’s. “The truth,” he

said. Was it really that simple? “You were able to show him
your thoughts just like you can with me. I think it would be
good if we did this together.”

Michael wasn’t so sure. He connected to Evan when Evan

had called out first, maybe even with this girl who was God
knows where. But could he really choose to pick out another
voice from among the others? He didn’t want to risk losing
Evan again. “Why?”

Something flickered in Evan’s eyes. Concern, fear,

Michael couldn’t decide. But there was clearly something
bothering Evan.

Please. The truth. Michael needed to hear whatever had

Evan suddenly so wary.

“I promise. But you need to hear it from both of us,” Evan

said. He kissed Michael and smiled. You won’t lose me. No
matter what.

Reluctantly, Michael let Evan guide him by the hand

through to the main room. Mason was sitting at the dining
table, his closed laptop in front of him as he rested his
elbows on the edge of the table. He smiled as the two men
joined him. “How did you sleep?”

Michael nodded. “I feel better,” he said. He and Evan sat

in the seats opposite Mason, and Michael was glad Evan still
held his hand. It became clear that neither Mason nor Evan
were all that comfortable either. There was a weird tension
in the room.

Relax. Evan’s voice comforted him, and he dropped his

shoulders and leaned back in his seat.

“I’m sorry,” he said to Mason. He should have never done

what he did. He had no right to invade Mason’s mind that
way.

The Bad Wolf

Mason seemed to relax as well. “It’s okay,” Mason said.

He looked between Michael and Evan. “How did you do it?
I thought it was only Evan you could share your thoughts
with.”

Michael nodded. “It was. Like with him the first time, I

think it was more by chance than actually knowing it would
work.”

“It’s still hit and miss with us,” Evan chipped in. “It

seems to differ every day, affected by our moods, our
emotions, our desires. I assume the coming full moon also
influences what happens.”

Mason looked from Evan to Michael. “Can you do it

now?” Mason asked.

“Are you open to it?” Michael asked. “You have to want

to let me in. After this morning, I wouldn’t blame you for
shutting me out completely.”

“I want to do this,” Mason said. From the look in his eyes,

he was telling the truth.

Evan squeezed Michael’s hand, offering his support.
“You know I don’t know how this works, right?”

Seriously,  at  times  Michael  wished  he’d  come  with  a  user
manual.  Michael  took  a  deep  breath  and  locked  eyes  with
Mason. He focused on their color and almost swore he saw
the hazel ignite, yellow sparks skittering around the edge of
Mason’s pupils. He imagined Mason’s voice, used it to focus
in on the same tone within the mass of voices. The threads
wove in and out of one another, all the same, all one large
mass,  but  suddenly  one  moved  closer  toward  him,  leaping
from  the  crowd.  The  thread  shimmered  silver  and  with  it
came the familiar sound of Mason’s voice.

Hear me. Hear me. Mason was repeating the words over

and over.

Mason.

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From the smile on Mason’s face, Michael knew his friend

had heard him.

“Oh my God,” Mason said.
“You hear him?” Evan asked.
Mason nodded. This is incredible.
Thank you. Michael smiled.

For what?
For not shutting me out.

“So what now?” Michael asked. He was drained from

focusing so damn hard on keeping both Evan and Mason
from disappearing back among the other voices.

Mason’s smile slowly faded. He had seemed to enjoy

being part of Michael and his developing skills. He glanced
toward  Evan,  and  Michael  felt  a  surge  of  envy  at  the
connection  between  the  two  men.  There  was  no  way  to
emulate  that  same  bond  in  his  and  Evan’s  relationship.
Chewing  on  his  lip,  he  tried  to  shake  away  the  negative
thoughts.  He  didn’t  believe  either  man  would  choose  to
have such a connection if given a choice.

“Michael,” Evan said and squeezed his hand, reining in

his racing mind.

Michael pulled his hand from Evan’s and leaned forward.

“I’m sorry.” He looked at Mason. He hated feeling this way,
because he knew better than that.

“We need to figure this out,” Mason said.
“I know,” Michael agreed. “It’s like my wolf is blinded by

the bond you share. That’s all he can see.” He paused. “It’s
all I can see.” He was his wolf after all.

“If you can’t get control, either Mason or I will have to

leave,” Evan confessed.

“What? No.”
Evan took Michael’s hand in his again. “You wanted the

truth and here it is. We’re concerned what your wolf will do.
Clearly, it is still driven to protect you.”

The Bad Wolf

“But you aren’t a threat. Neither of you are.” Michael met

Evan’s eyes. An image flashed in his mind. The same one he
had shown Mason. Anger flared in his gut as he let out a low
growl and turned to face Mason. It was everything he could
do not to jump across the table and slash at Mason’s throat.

Mason sat back, clearly unsettled by the rage etched on

Michael’s face.

“No,” Michael said desperately. He closed his eyes and

calmed his urges. How could he stop this? He needed Mason
as much as ever. Mason had grounded him for all those
months, had been his rock. This wasn’t fair.

Evan was suddenly in his head. We’ll fix this.
How? Michael met Evan’s eyes. Their clear blue pulled

him in and wrapped him in a feeling of tranquility and
peace. Right then, he believed everything would be okay.

You’ll see.
Evan turned to be able to pull him into a warm embrace.

Michael rested his chin on Evan’s shoulder and looked at
Mason. They would figure it out. He had faith in Mason and
Evan. Things would be okay.

* * * *

Evan  idly  stroked  his  fingers  through  Michael’s  hair.  After
supper,  the  two  of  them  had  claimed  the  couch,  Michael
curling up and laying his head in Evan’s lap. From the soft
snores, Evan was sure Michael was asleep, but he found the
feel of Michael’s short hair beneath his fingers relaxing. With
a sigh, he turned from the  television and looked across the
open plan room to where Mason and Niall were standing in
the  kitchen  area.  He  watched  the  two  men  share  a  tender
moment.  Niall  had  his  hands  on  Mason’s  waist,  his  mouth
close  to  Mason’s  ear  as  he  whispered  I-love-yous,  causing
color  to  rise  in  Mason’s  cheeks.  The  couple  were  good

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together and good for each other. Both seemed to have
grown as people—strong, happy, settled.

Looking down at Michael, Evan wondered what it must

be like to commit to someone, to be each other’s everything.
Could  he  do  that?  Could  he  love  someone  that  much?  He
stroked  Michael’s  hair.  It  was  all  about  finding  the  one,
right? The one that changed everything. He pressed his lips
together.  Did  he  want  to  change?  Being  in  the  pack  with
Kaine had been easy. No reason to take responsibility for his
actions.  There  was  always  Kaine  to  blame.  Kaine  was  bad
and  Evan  was  bad  by  association.  The  last  four  years,
however,  that  was  all  him.  Anyone  he’d  hurt,  anyone  he’d
fucked over, that was all on him. Michael stirred and slid his
hand  into  the  pocket  of  Evan’s  pants.  Evan  smiled.  Maybe
there were some things worth changing for.

“What time is it?” Michael asked sleepily. He gave a soft

groan as he stretched his other arm out from under him.

“Nine thirty,” Evan said and rested his hand on Michael’s

shoulder. “You had about forty minutes.”

Michael took a deep breath as he struggled to sit up. He

squinted as he looked at Evan and then at the television.
“Did I miss anything?”

Evan smiled. “Nothing.” He wasn’t entirely sure what he

was watching. He’d flicked through the channels, settling on
what looked like a made-for-TV cop movie of some kind.
There hadn’t been an actor he’d recognized.

Michael yawned and rubbed at his eyes. “I might head to

bed.” He sat up and rotated his shoulders.

“You want any more meds?” Evan asked.
Michael shook his head. “I’m okay.” He glanced to where

Mason and Niall were talking in the kitchen and then looked
back at Evan. “Will you come with me? Just until I fall back
to sleep.” He smiled hopefully.

The Bad Wolf

Evan leaned forward and kissed Michael’s cheek. “Of

course,” he agreed.

They said their goodnights to Mason and Niall and

headed  for  Michael’s  room.  The  room  was  larger  than
Evan’s—big  enough  for  a  double  bed  compared  to  Evan’s
single—and  had  a  walk-in  closet.  Both  men  stripped  down
to their underwear and climbed into bed.

Evan settled beneath the comforter, and Michael curled

against him. He laughed as Michael’s feet entwined with his
in a playful game of footsy and lifted his arm so Michael
could move closer. Hugging Michael close, Evan gently ran
his fingers up and down Michael’s bare arm.

Thank you. Michael’s voice sounded small and far away.
“For what?” Evan asked.
“For everything,” Michael said. He traced circles over

Evan’s chest.

Evan sighed. He didn’t feel like he’d done all that much.

In fact, he felt like he had only caused more problems in his
time there. This thing with Mason. If Evan hadn’t shown up,
Michael wouldn’t resent the man who had been nothing but
his friend.

“I know there’s nothing there,” Michael said.
“Were you listening in?” Evan asked. He really needed to

get used to internalizing better.

You’re very open.
Evan kissed Michael’s forehead.
“I trust you. I keep telling myself over and over again. I

just can’t make it stick.”

What do you fear? What can’t you get past? Evan hugged

Michael close.

The two of you. That you’ll choose him over me.
Would never happen. Yes, there were feelings there for

Mason. But not in the way Michael feared. It was more a
sense of familiarity. A sense of pack.

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“But he’s…” Michael stopped moving his finger and laid

his palm flat against Evan’s chest.

“What?”
Michael lifted his head and met Evan’s eyes. He could

satisfy you.

Gently, Evan touched Michael beneath his chin, guiding

his  head  back  before  kissing  him.  With  his  other  hand,  he
took Michael’s hand and pushed it down beneath the covers.
“You  satisfy  me  just  fine,”  he  whispered  into  the  kiss.  He
pushed Michael’s hand lower until they reached his erection.
“See.” He smiled as Michael closed his hand around his dick
and  applied  a  gentle  pressure.  Evan  considered  pushing
upward and appeasing his rising arousal, but then he had a
better idea.

Claim me. Evan kissed Michael more firmly, cupping his

jaw and holding him close. Claim me as yours. Michael went
to shy away, but Evan held him fast. “No you don’t,” he
said.

“But, I’ve never…” Michael looked into Evan’s eyes. In

the dim light from the bedside lamp, Michael looked scared.

“We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” Evan

leaned forward and kissed him. “I promise. We need to
show that wolf of yours I belong to you, nobody else. But
you need to take control.” He kissed Michael openmouthed
and more aggressively.

“Okay,” Michael said breathlessly into the kiss. “But I

don’t have anything in here if we decide to, you know?”

Evan stopped and pursed his lips. “Okay. I’ll be right

back.” He jumped out of bed and quickly pulled his clothes
back on. There’d be lube and condoms in his pack. “Don’t
move,” he said. Kissing Michael on the cheek, he slipped out
of the room.

* * * *

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101

Michael  lay  on  his  bed  and  looked  up  at  the  ceiling.  What
the  hell  were  they  doing?  Kissing  and  hand  jobs  were  one
thing—this  was  something  else.  Claim  Evan?  How  the  hell
did  he  do  that?  Michael  had  always  been  more  inclined  to
fantasize  about  some  big  strong  top  manhandling  him  into
the  sack  and  having  his  wicked  way  with  him.  Did  that
work on the claiming front?

Where are you? It felt like forever since Evan snuck out of

his room.

One minute, Evan told him.
Michael smiled and stared at the adjoining wall between

their rooms. He imagined Evan raiding his bag, clothes and
toiletries  flung  around  in  a  desperate  search  for  lube.
Michael  slid  his  hands  beneath  the  covers  and  rested  them
over  his  dick.  Just  the  thought  had  him  hard.  Brushing  the
head of his dick, he tugged down his underwear and kicked
them away. Hurry up.

On that thought, his bedroom door opened. He smiled

and waited for Evan to join him. He chewed on his lip as
Evan undressed. Wow. His gaze glided over the perfect
naked body of the man standing in front of him. This had to
be a dream, right?

Evan looked at him and grinned. The man was clearly not

embarrassed about his body, nor should he be. He was
beautiful. His body was a perfectly defined map of muscle. If
not for the marks on his chest from the silver, his skin was
flawless and tanned. Just wow.

Michael’s gaze roamed over each dip and bulge of Evan’s

body and then downward. Oh crap. The guy was, well, as big
as anyone Michael had ever fantasized about.

Placing the condoms and lube on the nightstand, Evan

joined Michael in bed. He arched his body into Michael,
eliciting a growl from Michael as Evan’s erection pressed on

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102

his thigh. “Kiss me already,” he uttered and Evan complied.
In a sweeping  move, Evan was suddenly  over him, kissing
him  and  pressing  their  erections  together.  He  moved  his
body  over  Michael’s,  causing  an  overwhelming  friction.  It
was  as  if  every  nerve  in  his  body  was  being  teased  as  he
trembled beneath Evan.

He held Evan’s face as they met in a sloppy, hurried kiss.

Arousal coursed through him as he moved his hands around
the back of Evan’s neck and joined his hands. Evan bucked
against him, sending pulses through his body from his head
to  his  toes.  Evan’s  touch  was  electric.  Each  touch  caused
sparks  across  Michael’s  skin.  He  closed  his  eyes.  His  chest
felt  tight  and  all  he  wanted  was  to  kiss  Evan  harder  and
more  aggressively  in  order  to  quell  the  hurting  ache  of  his
body.

Eventually, Evan broke the kiss and slipped from

Michael’s  hold.  He  met  Michael’s  eyes  before  kissing  him
gently. Slowly, he worked his way down Michael’s body in a
series of nips and licks. Evan kissed Michael’s neck inch by
inch, his chest and each nipple, and onto Michael’s stomach.
Each  time  Evan  returned  his  gaze  to  Michael’s  between
kisses.

Michael looked down the line of his torso. Evan dipped

his tongue in and out of Michael’s belly button and then
licked a line downward. Please. He squirmed in delight as he
felt Evan’s breath on his erection. Evan nuzzled the side of
his dick and kissed his thigh.

“Mine,” Evan whispered. He applied pressure with his

lips, sucking until he had surely marked Michael’s skin. On
a kiss, he moved his attention back to Michael’s dick.
Cupping Michael’s balls in one hand, Evan held Michael’s
shaft, holding it upright as he gave it several firm strokes.

Oh shit. Michael arched his back as Evan took his dick in

his mouth. It was an amazing feeling, all wet and warm, and

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103

fuck, how Evan was moving. Evan teased his tongue around
the head of Michael’s dick and met Michael’s gaze as he
hollowed his cheeks. He took all of Michael into his mouth,
sucking hard before focusing his attention on the head of
Michael’s dick. Evan sucked and licked every inch of him, all
the time gently squeezing and massaging his balls.

This was all kinds of crazy and all Michael could think

was,  I  want  you  in  me.  He  reached  down  and  wound  his
fingers  in  Evan’s  shaggy  locks.  Gently,  he  guided  him
upward and into a kiss. He breathed in through his nose and
sighed  as  Evan  finally  pulled  away  to  claim  the  lube  from
the  nightstand.  Closing  his  eyes,  he  waited.  Evan  stroked
and  kissed  a  path  down  his  body  and  positioned  himself
between his legs.

“Bend your knees,” Evan instructed.
Michael did as he was told and settled in a comfortable

position.  Evan  stroked  Michael’s  inner  thigh,  and  used  his
other hand to gently tease Michael’s dick, keeping him hard.
When  the  touches  ended,  he  opened  his  eyes  and  watched
Evan squeeze some lube into the palm of his hand and then
spread it to his fingers. Nudging Michael’s legs higher, Evan
rested one hand on Michael’s knee. He met  Michael’s eyes,
holding his gaze as he lowered his hand between Michael’s
legs.

Catching his breath, Michael tensed at the feel of Evan’s

hand against him.

Relax. Evan was with him inside his head, and Michael

felt more at ease. He relaxed and focused on the sound of his
breathing. Evan ran his hand across Michael’s entrance. The
sensation  was  strange  at  first  and  a  low  ache  twisted  in
Michael’s  stomach,  creating  a  wave  through  his  body.  He
waited, knowing Evan would press inside soon. He tried not
to  tense  and  bit  on  his  lower  lip  as  Evan  finally  inserted  a
finger.

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The preparation was slow and sensual. With each finger,

Evan leaned over Michael for a kiss and then gently teased
his erection.

And that’s three. Evan moved his hand slowly back and

forth, and Michael clawed at the bed sheets. His senses went
crazy, the smell of sex, the taste of Evan’s mouth on his, the
feel of Evan inside him. He was driven to the edge, but Evan
wasn’t ready to let him jump. A few more steady thrusts and
Evan pulled away. He tugged on his own dick until he was
fully  erect  and  quickly  sheathed  himself.  Dick  in  hand,  he
moved  forward  and  teasingly  rubbed  the  head  of  his  dick
against Michael’s entrance as he squeezed  more lube along
his length. As he teased, Evan looked at Michael. He waited,
clearly checking for the green light from his lover.

Michael indicated he was ready. Be mine.
Clearly, it was what Evan needed to hear. Steadily, Evan

pressed against the slicked dip of Michael’s body, breaching
his entrance. Michael panted and held onto Evan’s
shoulders. Evan edged forward, pushing Michael’s knees
back and farther apart.

A delicious burn coursed through Michael’s body as Evan

thrust  deeper,  filling  him.  It  was  incredible,  the  feel  of
having  someone  inside  him  like  that.  Like  he  was  drawing
Evan in and wrapping his body around him. Though it hurt
a  little,  Evan  seemed  to  slide  in  without  causing  him  too
much  discomfort,  and  soon  Evan’s  thighs  were  flush  with
his  ass.  Evan  leaned  down  for  another  kiss  as  he  stroked
Michael’s dick, and Michael tensed as his orgasm rose.

Fucking tight. Evan groaned.
Evan released Michael’s dick and the thought of having to

wait nearly drove Michael insane.

Move. Take me as your lover, he pleaded. He wanted to be

fucked, to be loved.

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105

Evan smiled and kissed Michael. Michael hungrily

nipped at Evan’s mouth and dared to lift his hips. Michael
gasped as he seemed to drive Evan deeper. Was it possible
to be split in two?

Soon. Slow. Evan moved lower, hooking his arms under

Michael’s legs and pushing them higher. He leaned forward,
almost bending Michael in half as he sought one more kiss
and  then  he  started  to  move.  He  made  slow  and  steady
thrusts  at  first,  but  that  was  not  enough  to satisfy  either  of
their wolves.

“Fuck me,” Michael growled and wrapped his hands

around  Evan’s  strong  arms,  holding  on  as  Evan  seemed  to
give  himself  over  to  the  animal  inside  him  and  thrust
hungrily  inside  Michael.  “Fuck.”  Michael  bit  on  his  lip,
trying to keep his voice low, though from the sound his bed
was  making,  he  was  under  no  illusions  Niall  and  Mason
were now aware of their union.

Evan thrust hard and true, exciting every nerve in

Michael’s body as Michael held onto Evan as if his life
depended on it. Hunger twisted in his gut, and he looked up
at Evan through wide eyes.

So fucking close. Evan grabbed Michael’s legs and spread

them  wide.  His  thrusts  were  rough,  violent  almost  as  he
sought  his  release.  He  leaned  back,  creating  space  and
Michael  instinctively  went  for  his  dick.  He  was  so  damn
hard  and  needed  to  come  like  right-the-hellnow.  Roughly,
he brought himself off. He dug his fingers into Evan’s arm,
tensing his body as he came across his stomach in white, hot
threads.  Breathlessly,  he  held  onto  Evan.  Each  of  Evan’s
thrusts  caused  friction  against  his  sensitive  balls  and  he
could  barely  take  it.  He  clung  to  Evan,  started  to  move,
encouraging Evan to find his own release.

With a groan, Evan thrust fast and hard, his body

shuddering as heat radiated from him and through Michael.

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106

With  a  stilted  cry,  he  arched  back  as  he  came,  his  body
trembling as he gave a final thrust and collapsed, boneless,
across  Michael.  He  panted,  his  warm  breaths  falling  across
Michael’s chest.

Stiffly, Michael lowered his legs and wrapped his arms

around Evan.

You okay? Evan asked as he caught his breath. He lifted

his head and rested his chin on Michael’s chest. He looked
into Michael’s eyes and waited.

Michael slid a little lower, managing to capture Evan’s

mouth in an awkward but tender kiss. That was… He wasn’t
sure  he  had  the  words.  He  smiled  and  stared  directly  at
Evan.  It  must  have  worked,  as  Evan  closed  his  eyes  and
breathed  in  deeply.  A  euphoric  expression  passed  over  his
face as Michael shared his emotions with him.

That good, huh? Evan greedily kissed Michael.
Michael nodded. “Uh huh,” he mumbled into the kiss. He

breathed  in  deeply  as  he  listened  to  Evan’s  thoughts.  The
guy  was  an  open  book.  Evan’s  every  thought  and  every
emotion  tumbled  across  Michael’s  mind,  reliving  every
moment  of  their  union,  but  this  time  from  Evan’s  point  of
view. The man had loved every minute. The unadulterated
emotion of pure pleasure coursed through Michael, and  he
was already hard again. He kissed Evan hungrily, nipping a
line down across his jaw and to his neck.

He sucked hard, desperate to bruise Evan’s skin, even if it

would  only  last  a  short  while.  Claimed.  Content  with  his
marking,  he  lay  back  against  his  pillow  and  ghosted  his
fingers  over  Evan’s  back  and  shoulders.  If  this  was  what
claiming  Evan  was  about,  he  would  certainly  like  to  claim
him all over again.

Give it ten minutes. Evan lifted his head and grinned.
Michael laughed and hugged Evan tight. He looked up at

the ceiling and stroked Evan’s hair. Mine.

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108

Chapter Ten

van woke slowly. The smell of coffee filled his nostrils
and gently lured him from his slumber. Blinking, he

looked down at Michael, who  lay on his front,  his head on
Evan’s  arm  and  his  own  arm  across  Evan’s  stomach.  The
position  didn’t  look  all  that  comfortable.  Michael’s  arms
seemed to go back and away from him as he hugged Evan’s
waist. Tiredly, Evan rubbed at his eyes. He wasn’t sure what
time the two of them had finally succumbed to exhaustion,
but  being  deprived  of  sleep  was  worth  what  he  had
experienced last night.

Michael might not believe him, but Evan found him

amazing.  The  way  he’d  made  Evan  feel.  The  touches,  the
kisses,  the  primal  urge  to  fuck  the  young  man  into  the
mattress and make  him his  forever. Fuck. The thought  had
him hard all over again. Evan wasn’t sure he’d ever felt this
way about someone before. Sure, he had fucked and claimed
and  made  his  lovers  his  for  the  night,  but  that  was  pretty
much it—for one night.

Trying not to wake Michael, Evan slid his arm from

beneath Michael’s neck. He sat up and couldn’t help but run
his  hands  over  Michael’s  back.  Michael’s  skin  was  littered
with  scars,  and  Evan  was  damn  curious.  There  were  only
two  things  that  scarred  a  werewolf—the  bite  that  made
them, and silver. Evan brushed his fingertips over the raised
edges of the largest scars. He could never ask what Michael
went through at the hands of the people who took him as a

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109

child. Yes, he’d heard the story, or part of it, from Mason.
Mason had wanted him to understand how far Michael had
come, and heaven help him if he hurt Michael in any way.

Evan leaned down and kissed Michael on the cheek. He

could never ask. It was their rule. Never look to the past,
only the now.

The smell of coffee teased him, and Evan decided it was

time to get up. He was in desperate need of a shower. The
scent of Michael and sex clung to him in a heady mix and as
delicious a memory last night was, the call of hot water and
the sweet smell of soap was too strong to ignore.

Quickly and quietly, Evan dressed in yesterday’s clothes

and then slipped outside, pulling the door shut behind him.
He turned around and was met by a concerned-looking
Mason. “Everything okay?” he asked. Then he remembered
exactly whose room he had stepped out of. “Is this going to
hurt?”

Mason sighed and hugged the mug he held.
Coffee called to him, and Evan bravely stepped forward

to get himself a mug.

“You really think last night was a good idea?” Mason

finally said. He leaned back against the kitchen unit.

“Yes,” Evan said honestly. The way he figured it, the

closer and more secure Michael felt about the two of them,
the less likely he’d see Mason as a threat.

Mason rubbed his forehead. “You were at it pretty late.”
“You heard, huh?”
“Heard, felt, saw.” Mason closed his eyes and shook his

head. “Saw more than I ever wanted to.” He nodded toward
Evan’s crotch and then turned around. “I guess he was
making a point.”

“I didn’t realize. Should have figured, though.” Evan

poured himself a drink. Whether aware he was doing it or
not, Michael would have wanted Mason to know Evan was

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his  and  only  his.  “You  okay?”  he  asked.  Mason  certainly
looked  tired.  Evan  smiled  inwardly  as  he  remembered  just
how many times he and Michael had made love last night.

Mason shrugged. “Apart from wanting to scour my eyes

clean and being so fucking horny last night that Niall’s still
sleeping it off, or he could be dead, who knows, but
otherwise, I’m great.”

Evan quirked an eyebrow. “I’m not sure what to say.”

Awkward didn’t quite cover it. He doubted he’d appreciate
the image of a couple of guys screwing being beamed
directly into his head either.

“Nothing. I think it’s best you say nothing.” Mason

smiled this time and sipped his coffee. “I doubt there’s
anything you can tell me I don’t already know.”

“Sorry,” Evan said.
“It’ll be worth it.” Mason looked at Evan. “If it works,” he

said.

The thought was sobering. Okay, so Evan wouldn’t say

the sex had been for nothing. He liked Michael—more than
liked  Michael,  if  he  was  honest.  Sleeping  with  him  wasn’t
just about tomorrow night, it was about the connection they
shared.  With  Michael,  there  was  a  chance  to  finally  have
someone  beyond  a  fuck.  Maybe  an  actual  relationship.
Michael  had  called  to  him,  and  hell  he  had  been  well  and
truly drawn in. He hugged his drink. He just hoped it wasn’t
like the story of sirens and he’d end up smashing his ship on
the  rocks.  They  had  been  through  too  much  already.  It
wasn’t  fair  for  Mason  or  Michael  to  suffer  because  of  him.
But  then,  why  should  it  be  any  different  here.  Bad  stuff
followed him around. Fuck, he’d had a hand in causing it for
years.

Mason sipped his drink. “I guess we just wait and see.”
Evan nodded. He might not trust himself to make the

right choice all the time, but he had faith in Mason and in

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111

Michael. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and no
matter what, he would do everything within his power to
see they all got through the night safe and together.

* * * *

This was a really shit idea. Niall chewed on his thumbnail as
he looked up at the moon. Though he couldn’t tell, he knew
there was a sliver missing. The true full moon wasn’t until
tomorrow night, but for whatever reasons, Mason’s and the
others’ curse extended on either side.

“I’d prefer it if you went into town tonight and got a

room at the motel,” Mason said from behind him.

Niall closed his eyes as Mason wrapped his arms around

his waist and pressed his body to Niall’s back. “I’d prefer it
if  we  could  both  head  to  town.”  He  turned  around  in
Mason’s  hold  and  met  his  lover’s  eyes.  There  was  already
the  hint  of  silver  blotting  out  their  usually  beautiful  hazel
color. “But we don’t always get what we want,” he pointed
out.

Mason sighed and kissed Niall. “Promise me you’ll stay

inside the house.”

“You won’t hurt me. You never have and never will,”

Niall said.

Mason gave him a firm look. “I remember a time back at

my apartment when you were pretty sure I was ready to
take a bite.”

Niall shrugged. “I like to think that was more about my

wolf than me.” Just one of the many memories filed away
under werewolf crap.

“Maybe.” Mason didn’t look convinced. “But this isn’t

just about me.”

“Michael wouldn’t hurt me,” Niall insisted. Though the

closest he had gotten to Michael in wolf form involved them

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sitting either side of the toughened glass doors at the back of
the house.

“This isn’t about anyone going after you. This is about

you wading in if there’s a problem.” Mason released Niall
from the hug and pressed his palms to Niall’s chest. “You
stay inside. No matter what.”

Despite what Niall thought on the subject of Michael and

Evan, it seemed that since their night together, things
between the three wolves had gotten better. Or at least that’s
what he had been led to believe. “I thought everything was
okay. Is it?” He hated when Mason thought lying to him was
the best option—the safe option.

“We’re fine,” Mason assured him. “I promise.” He smiled

as he leaned in for another kiss. “But like I’ve said before, I
don’t know how all this works. Just because things seem
okay while we’re human doesn’t necessarily mean anything
once we’re wolves.”

Nothing was ever simple. “Okay,” Niall said.
“You stay inside. I don’t need you playing hero. I would

not be able to live with myself if something happened.”

Mason had made a habit of telling Niall how much he

loved him almost every day. Niall had apparently been his
rock and his reason to move on after Kaine. Having already
lost so much, Mason was very protective of Niall when it
came down to anything wolf-related. He had told Niall on
many occasions he didn’t want to see Niall cursed again or
worse, and for that Niall was grateful. Niall loved Mason’s
passion and the flame he held just for him.

“Promise me,” Mason insisted. His eyes seemed to glow.
“I promise.” Niall pulled Mason into a hug. “But I need

you to promise, too.”

“What?” Mason asked.
He would not see Mason hurt. “If things go south, you

run off the property and you don’t stop until you’re far

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away. You’re smaller and faster than Michael. You’ll be
safe.”

Smiling, Mason nodded. Niall knew he wasn’t a fool. “I

love you,” he whispered and kissed Niall on the cheek.

“I love you, too,” Niall said. He stepped away and looked

across the room. Michael was standing with Evan beside the
large sliding doors at the back of the house. “Be careful.”

Mason nodded. “I always am.” Mason took his hand and

guided  him  to  join  Michael  and  Evan.  Niall  noted  how
firmly  Michael  held  onto  Evan’s  arm.  He  hoped  Evan’s
grand  gesture  had  been  enough.  Though  Michael  and  his
wolf were in essence the same, years of abuse had somehow
split the two apart and the wolf personality had stepped up
to protect him.

“It’s okay,” Mason said in a low voice. He drew Niall’s

focus back to him with a kiss. “Lock the doors behind us and
stay away from the windows. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Niall nodded. A sense of loss spread through him as

Mason  slipped  his  hand  from  Niall’s  and  then  joined  the
others. He waited, watching as the three men stripped down
to  their  underwear  and  then,  each  picking  up  a  blanket,
headed  outside.  Cold  air  stung  Niall’s  cheeks  as  Mason
opened  the  door  and  the  three  men  stepped  out  onto  the
porch. Niall hugged his waist and walked up to the door. He
looked at Mason. The familiar pained expression creased his
brow.

“Goodnight,” Niall said, smiling as Mason leaned back

inside to kiss him.

“Lock the door,” Mason instructed.
The couple shared another kiss, and then Niall slid the

door  shut  and  turned  the  key.  He  met  Mason’s  eyes  one
more  time  through  the  glass  before  all  three  men  rid
themselves  of  their  underwear  and  descended  the  steps.
Niall drew the blind across the door and looked through the

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open slats. He hated watching Mason shift into a wolf. The
transformation  was  much  more  painful  from  man  to  wolf
than  wolf  to  man.  He  watched  the  men  walk  toward  the
trees, putting space between each other before stopping and
looking  up  at  the  moon.  It  was  like  some  strange  form  of
theater,  a  choreographed  performance  as  the  three  men
started to transform.

Mason fell to his knees, his body swelling as his bones

twisted  and  reformed.  Niall  closed  his  eyes  when  Mason
cried out. His lover’s cries blurred with those of Michael and
Evan until they turned to howls. He opened his eyes. First he
checked on Mason, his wolf disoriented as he settled into his
changed form. Next he checked on Evan. Though there was
obvious  discomfort  as  he  moved,  Evan’s  wolf  seemed
unfazed by the injuries his human host had suffered. Mason
and  Evan’s  wolves  were  similar  in  size  and  build.  While
Mason’s coloring was auburn and light browns, Evan was a
single  dark  shade  of  brown.  Niall  watched  Mason  for  a
while as he shook away the haze of transformation. The wolf
was its own being, separate from Mason. But with  practice,
Mason’s  personality  and  thoughts  had  a  clear  influence  on
the animal. He assumed it was the same for Evan, since he
was the one who had said Mason needed to accept his wolf
if he was ever going to truly learn to live with it.

A shiver passed over the length of his spine as he heard

the deep howl that belonged to Michael. Niall narrowed his
eyes and ducked his head. Where was Michael? Niall
searched the line of the trees and nervously worried his
bottom lip. How would Michael react to the new situation?

Suddenly, Michael appeared. His black wolf ran from the

right and stopped in front of Mason and Evan. When he had
first turned, though larger in height, Michael’s wolf was as
skinny as he was. Years of abuse and then living rough had
brought about malnutrition, and apart from desperate

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scrapping,  neither  human  or  wolf  had  had  the  energy  to
fight.  But  now  Michael  was  stunning.  His  wolf’s  coat  was
thick  and  blacker  than  night,  shimmering  in  the  moonlight
as  he  moved.  His  body  was  strong  and  muscular,  and  his
eyes glowed yellow. He was the perfect hunter.

This was it, Niall guessed. After everything, did Michael

have  control  over  himself  and  his  emotions  to  accept  the
shift in dynamics? Nervously, Niall waited. Michael moved
between the two wolves, bumping his head against both of
them  and  checking  them  out  in  turn.  He  rubbed  his  head
against Mason wolf’s side, nudging at the auburn wolf as if
testing  him  and  seeing  how  he’d  react.  But  Mason’s  wolf
didn’t.  The  wolf  stood  there,  simply  lifting  his  head  as
Michael continued to rub against him. Michael then moved
on to Evan’s wolf. The contact between the two wolves was
similar  to  that  with  Mason’s,  but  more  lingering.  Michael
seemed more dominant as he continued to nudge at Evan’s
wolf until the brown wolf lowered his head. Niall watched
as  Mason’s  wolf  struck  the  same  pose  as  Evan’s  and  he
lowered his head.

Fascinated, Niall waited. It was as if the two wolves had

submitted to Michael, accepting his dominance over them.
Did this mean Michael was some kind of alpha to them? The
leader of their ragtag pack? Niall had always imagined
Mason in that kind of role. He’d been the father figure, the
big brother to waifs and strays. But it was clear that was not
to be. There was no doubt of Michael’s leadership here.

Niall watched the three wolves for a little while longer as

they  seemed  to  adjust  to  each  other  and  their  new  roles.
Eventually,  Michael  headed  toward  the  trees  and  Mason’s
and  Evan’s  wolves  followed  him.  Niall  breathed  a  sigh  of
relief before closing the blind. He didn’t want to jinx it, but
all he could think was how things were looking up and that
finally, for once, things were going their way. The right way.

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Chapter Eleven

unlight shone on Evan’s face, warming him as he
struggled to open his eyes. His eyelids fluttered as he

broke through the sleepy barrier. Dazed, he opened his eyes
and lifted his head, trying to figure out where he was. What
had happened last night? Memories came back to him as he
realized he was not alone. Michael was in front of him. There
was dirt on the man’s face and around his fingernails.
Michael was sleeping on his arm and curled up facing Evan
with one of his legs draped across his lover’s.

There was a noise behind Evan, and he looked over his

shoulder to find Mason. Mason lay on his side with his back
to Evan. Dirt and dead leaves clung to his skin. Evan looked
up at the sky. The sun sat above them but gave no real clue
as to what time it was.

They had fallen asleep in a clearing somewhere in the

wood  near  the  edge  of  the  property.  The  chest-high  wire
around  the  land  stood  a  few  yards  away  wrapped  around
trees marked with the strong smell of Mason. Evan shuffled
closer  to  Michael  and  wrapped  an  arm  over  his  waist,
pulling the man to him and into a sleepy kiss.

Michael groaned but didn’t open his eyes, instead

choosing  to  bury  his  face  in  the  warmth  of  Evan’s  chest.
Evan grinned as he felt Michael’s erection against his thigh.
He  checked  behind  him.  Mason  appeared  to  be  asleep.
Gently,  Evan  stroked  Michael’s  hair  and  thought  on  the
previous evening. He remembered how his wolf had felt. He

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117

remembered his wolf’s desire to belong and how readily he
had submitted to Michael. Evan shifted a little, the memories
arousing him. Despite Evan’s strength and tough guy image,
the  idea  of  Michael  dominating  him  was  pretty  damn  hot.
He  had  accepted  Michael  as  his  alpha,  and  Mason  had
followed  his  lead.  Whatever  their  roles  as  humans,  their
wolves  followed  a  different  set  of  rules.  Michael  was  in
charge—and how amazing it had been. Michael could talk to
their  wolves,  lead  them,  organize  them.  They  hunted  as  a
unit,  and  the  bobcat  that  had  strayed  onto  the  property
hadn’t stood a chance.

The sound of footsteps on dry leaves drew Evan’s

attention, and he lifted his head to find Niall making his way
toward  them  with  the  blankets.  Niall  stopped  a  few  feet
away  and  looked  at  the  three  men.  On  spotting  the  small
distance  between  Mason  and  the  couple,  Niall  seemed  to
relax.  Evan  could  only  imagine  the  fears  he’d  had  for  both
the emotional and physical wellbeing of his lover.

“Morning,” Mason said as he rolled onto his back and

stretched  his  arms  above  his  head.  He  lifted  his  head  and
looked at Evan. He nodded and then Niall helped him to his
feet.  “What  time  is  it?”  he  asked  and  shrugged  the  blanket
up and around his shoulders. He lowered his chin  beneath
the beige material and leaned into Niall’s side.

“Almost noon. I didn’t want to come too soon.”
Mason smiled and kissed Niall. “It’s fine.”
“Time to get up,” Evan said to Michael. He gently teased

Michael’s hair and brushed his finger over his forehead.

Michael mumbled a protest into Evan’s chest and then

rolled away and onto his back. He took a deep breath and
lifted his head from the forest floor. He looked from Evan to
Mason and smiled. “We did it,” he said.

“We did,” Mason agreed.

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118

“What exactly happened?” Niall asked and hugged

Mason close.

“I’ll fill you in over lunch,” Mason said and bumped his

hip to Niall’s.

Niall smiled. “Okay, then Michael and I need to head to

the store.”

Michael squinted against the noon light. “Really? Today?”
“‘Fraid so,” Niall told him. “I’ve a delivery at three. Need

your help to bring it in and unpack.”

With a groan, Michael lay down and draped his arm over

his face. “Fine,” he said.

Evan snorted a laugh. He leaned over Michael and kissed

him. Unfortunately, Michael’s alpha status had little sway in
the human world. “I’ll be here when you get home,” he
reminded him. “And you can tell me about your day?”

Dropping his arm from over his eyes, Michael looked up

at Evan. I’d like that.

Michael’s words warmed Evan from the inside. Never

had he imagined sticking around anywhere or with anyone
long enough to hear about their day. Damn, he’d become all
domesticated. He suppressed a smile. He kind of liked it.

Lunch came and went quickly, as did the afternoon. Evan

was sitting on the couch. Last night had left his chest tender
and his shoulder stiff. He didn’t think there was anything
seriously wrong with him, but the stress his body had been
under shifting to wolf form had taken its toll.

“The doc should be here by four,” Mason said. “He’s still

forty minutes out. Detours due to a semi losing its load.” He
sat down beside Evan and held out a mug of hot chocolate.
“Thought this might help.”

Evan took the drink and smiled as he admired the neat

spiral of cream and mini marshmallows. “Just like Mom
used to make,” he said. He met Mason’s eyes and shared a

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119

brief moment of grief. “When will Niall and Michael be
home?”

Mason scratched behind his ear and then stretched out his

neck. He sipped at his own drink. “The delivery’s running
late, caught in the same traffic jam as Anderson.”

“Will they be back in time?”
“Niall won’t be late,” Mason said. He sounded sure, and

Evan figured Niall knew the risks. It had taken Evan more
full moons than he remembered before he was able to stave
off  the  transformation  until  the  last  possible  moment.  It
seemed Michael had no true control as of yet. Michael might
have been born a werewolf, but he lived by the same laws as
Evan  and  Mason  did.  The  moon  influenced  him  every
month, and once the sun set and the moon took its place in
the  sky,  the  urge  to  transform  was  overwhelming.
Apparently,  it  hurt  him  too  much  to  fight  the
transformation. Taking wolf form offered him relief from the
constant din of voices in his head. Evan could only imagine
how  difficult  it  must  be  to  never  be  alone,  never  to  have
space or a moment of quiet.

Mason sighed and glanced at Evan. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For proving me wrong.”
“How?”
Mason rubbed his shoulder as he seemed to search for the

right words. “For not being the asshole I remember.” He
smirked. “For being his friend.”

Evan snorted a laugh. Not that he could disagree. “I was a

bit of a dick, wasn’t I?” Nine years didn’t sound all that long
ago, but in light of everything that had happened in a single
week, it felt like a lifetime.

“Maybe a little,” Mason agreed. “But of everyone Kaine

turned in the five years I was with him, you were the only

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one I thought might be different.” He met Evan’s eyes. “Who
I thought might hold on to a shred of his humanity.”

Unease settled in Evan’s stomach. “I’m not different,” he

said. He wasn’t. His wolf had killed people and Evan had let
it and had even enjoyed it.

“Our worst critics are always ourselves,” Mason stated.

“You’re not the monster you see yourself as.”

“You have no idea what I see.” When he looked into a

mirror, no longer was he able to ignore the stains on his soul.
Instead of things getting better, they were actually getting
harder.

“You’d be surprised what I know.” Mason offered a

comforting smile before asking, “Do you love him, even a
little?”

Love? Evan wasn’t sure he’d ever loved anything in his

life,  not  even  himself.  One  thing  he’d  learned  in  the  nine
years  was  life  was  short  and  he  shouldn’t  get  attached  to
anything,  anywhere,  or  anyone.  Be  able  to  make  a  clean
break, and above all else, always have an exit strategy.

“Evan?” Mason pressed.
“I don’t know,” Evan said honestly. He had feelings for

Michael. Of that, he was sure. But what those feelings were,
he hadn’t quite figured out yet. He cared about the man, and
the way Michael made him feel just by looking at him was
amazing.  God,  the  thought  had  him  aching  to  see  Michael
again.  He  wanted  Michael  to  be  safe  and  hell  if  he  didn’t
want  to  be  the  one  who  protected  him.  He  dared  to  look
toward Mason who eyed him with interest.

“I think you do,” Mason said. He sipped at his drink and

turned away. A knowing smile spread across his face.

Evan looked at his drink, a smile of his own at the corner

of his mouth as he realized just how much of his heart
Michael had stolen.

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* * * *

Michael was bored. The delivery was late, Niall was looking
through  the  accounts,  and  he  had  run  out  of  jobs.  He’d
swept the floor to within an inch of its life, tidied the shelves
and  racks,  and  packed  the  large  dresser  for  collection.  He
then  played  Mister  Interested  to  the  handful  of  customers
needing  screws,  fixtures,  and  fuses  as  they  detailed  their
days to him. His favorite story had been the one about some
man’s  kettle  tripping  the  power  late  last  night  and  him
falling over his toddler’s train set. Exhilarating stuff here in
Blackhill.

As Michael closed his eyes and yawned, the bell above

the  door  rang  and  he  quickly  covered  his  mouth.  If  it  was
the  little  old  lady  looking  to  set  him  up  with  her
granddaughter again, he might have to call Niall to the front
of the store and make out right then and there. Sorry I’m gay
hadn’t  even  made  the  woman  blink  as  she  had  rattled  off
details of her granddaughter’s life.

The breeze through the open door brought with it a

strange  scent.  Michael  eyed  the  girl  standing  before  him.
Familiarity struck him and he tried to recall why. Not that he
knew many residents of the mountain town, but he was sure
she  wasn’t  a  local  girl.  She  looked  to  be  in  her  teens—not
more  than  sixteen—thin,  and  dressed  in  dark  denim.  Her
dark hair was tied back from her face, exposing the pale skin
of her swanlike neck. She was unconventionally pretty. Her
heavy straight bangs gave her face a hard edge, but makeup
softened her mouth and cheekbones.

“Afternoon,” Michael said and stood up straight. He

wasn’t sure what it was, but he was undeniably fascinated
by her and had the strange desire to make an impression.

She looked at him through smoky gray eyes that were

outlined with dark eyeliner and mascara. Smiling, she

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122

glanced over her shoulder before walking toward the
register.

“Can I help you?” Michael asked.
The girl didn’t say anything, simply looked at him.
The other day through the window. That’s where he’d seen

her. He breathed in deeply. What was with the way she
smelled?

She arched her neck and took a deep breath as she seemed

to inhale his scent. She met his eyes in an intense stare and
reached  out  to  hold  him  by  the  wrist.  It  was  all  Michael
could  do  to  not  stumble  backward.  A  high-pitched  sound
rang  in  Michael’s  ears,  and  he  curled  his  hand  against  the
counter.  The  girl’s  grip  was  bruising  as  she  wrapped  her
hand  more  tightly  around  his  wrist  and  held  it  to  the
wooden surface.

Images flashed in Michael’s mind though he struggled to

make out much as they moved behind a gray mist. He closed
his eyes and tried to focus. He saw what he was sure was the
same motel room he’d seen the other night. Was this the girl
who had spoken to him? A short sequence played out in his
head, a guided tour of the room that ended in the bathroom
and  in  front  of  a  mirror.  He  looked  in  the  mirror  and  the
girl’s reflection stared back at him. Mascara mixed with tears
ran  down  her  cheeks  in  dirty  black  lines.  There  was  a
terribly desperate look in her eyes, and then like skipping a
reel  in  a  movie,  suddenly  she  had  the  edge  of  a  razor
pressed  to  her  throat.  Her  reflection  smiled.  Blood  was  on
her teeth as she dragged the blade across her skin.

Pain shot through his forehead as the image changed to

the girl standing in front of some trees, her hand
outstretched as she pointed toward him. Then came a
barrage of flashes accompanied by loud bangs—gunshots.

Michael opened his eyes and snatched away his hand.

The girl shook her head, a tear running down her cheek as

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123

she slowly backed away. Her eyes on his, Michael heard a
voice in his head. They’re coming.

The bell rang as the door opened and a tall, dark-haired

man  stepped  inside.  He  rested  his  hands  on  the  girl’s
shoulders  and  she  looked  up  at  him.  As  she  nodded,  he
grinned and looked at Michael.

Michael held onto the edge of the counter and desperately

tried to catch his breath. The bell above the door rang again
and Michael lifted his head to find the pair gone. There was
no doubt about who she was. She was the girl Evan had seen
before he’d been shot.

“Are you okay?” Niall asked from behind him, and

Michael flinched.

“It was…” Michael’s legs weakened and he sank to the

floor.

“Shit. What happened?” Niall rushed to his side,

supporting his weight.

Michael clutched his chest. Fuck. It felt like a panic attack.

Niall gently lowered him to the floor and then disappeared
to the back of the store, returning quickly with a glass of
water and a wet paper towel.

“Here.” Niall held the glass to Michael’s lips, and Michael

lapped at the tepid liquid. His chest hurt, but the water had
distracted him enough for his breathing to steady. Gently,
Niall pressed the paper towel to Michael’s head. It was cold
against Michael’s hot skin.

“Better?” Niall asked.
Michael nodded and sat forward as Niall rubbed his back.

“We need to call Mason.”

“Sure, whatever you need,” Niall said.
“You don’t understand.” He met Niall’s curious gaze.

“They’re coming,” he repeated the girl’s words.

“Who?”
“The hunters.”

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Fear and panic flickered behind Niall’s eyes. Quickly, he

got to his feet, returning with his cell phone and the store’s
cordless phone. He handed Michael the handset. “You doing
okay?” he checked.

Michael nodded.
“You try the house. I’ll try Mason’s cell.”
“Okay.” He looked at the phone, reminded himself of the

number, and typed in the digits. He waited, listening to the
repetitive tone as the call waited to be picked up. He glanced
up at Niall. Why hadn’t Mason answered one of them
already?

“Shit.” Niall looked at his cell briefly before trying again.

“Do you know Evan’s number?” he asked.

“No,” Michael said. He hung up. “How about Doc

Anderson?”

Niall ended the call and made a new one. They waited

and relief visibly relaxed Niall’s body. “Are you at the
house?” Niall asked. He paused and Michael focused on
Anderson’s side of the conversation.

“I just arrived,” Anderson told Niall. “Some accident on

the eighty-seven.”

“Is Mason okay?” Niall interrupted.
“Sure, he’s standing right here.”
“Can you put him on, please?”
There was a pause and Michael made out Mason on the

other end of the line.

“Why weren’t you answering your phone?” Niall asked.
“I came out to meet the doc. It’s on the dining table.”
“Did you not hear the house phone?”
“Maybe…What’s wrong? You’re being kind of weird,

Niall.”

Niall handed Michael the phone. “Tell him.”
“Mason, it’s Michael. Is Evan there?”

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“Yeah, hiding under the hood of his car, polishing his

sparkplugs or something,” he said and laughed. “Seems he
hates doctors.”

“Thank God.” Michael took a calming breath.
“What’s going on?”
“She was here. The girl Evan saw.”
“You sure?” Mason asked.
Michael rubbed his throbbing temple. “Yeah. I’m sure.”
“Put Niall on.”
Michael held the phone out to Niall. “He wants you.”
Niall took the phone, checked Michael was okay, and

then disappeared out back so Michael could no longer listen
in.

Michael leaned back against the counter and closed his

eyes. The voices in his head sounded unsettled, as if his own
emotions had affected them. How had the girl done that? He
thought  back  to  her  and  the  strange  scent  that  surrounded
her.  It  had  held  intoxicating  warmth.  Familiar  and  yet  not.
Something  within  it  screamed  wolf,  but  if  she  was  a
werewolf, he couldn’t tell. And why was  she working with
the  hunters?  Wolf  or  not,  she  had  been  in  his  head.  How?
Why had she revealed herself? And why show him what she
had?

Opening his eyes, he pulled his knees up to his chest and

folded his arms on top of them. Fear swelled inside him and
he felt lost. What the hell were they going to do?

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Chapter Twelve

ichael shifted uncomfortably at Mason’s side. He and
Niall had gotten in around twenty minutes ago and

the sun was already setting. Nobody seemed to know what
to do. He and Niall had closed the store within ten minutes
of calling Mason and headed for home. They stopped only to
buy food and bottled water, all the time looking over their
shoulders, praying to see no one there.

“Why the hell did you come here?” Evan said angrily. He

pointed at Niall. “You should have gotten in your car and
driven far from here. Somewhere safe.”

“Safe?” Niall shouted back. “Seriously? Just me and

Michael, a couple of hours from sundown, and a bunch of
hunters tracking us? You call that safe?”

“So better they follow you here?” Evan shook his head.

Michael wasn’t sure what drove Evan—fear for himself or
fear for others.

“I told him to.” Mason stepped forward. “Here or

somewhere else, we’re stronger together. We move
together.”

“You could come to my hunting grounds,” Anderson

suggested.

“We don’t have time.” Mason looked over his shoulder at

Michael. “We can’t risk him turning in a populated area. We
can’t risk any of us.”

“Don’t suppose you have any of those needles lying

around, just in case?” Evan said to Mason with a huff.

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Mason had told Michael how he used to combat the

change,  before  he  came  to  accept  the  beast  and  control  it.
Michael wondered if such a mixture would work on him. If
they could stay human, the hunters might not track them as
easily as in their wolf form. It would be a hell of a lot harder
to  stay  on  top  of  tire  tracks  across  miles  of  road  than  paw
prints  into  the  mountains.  They  could  get  away  so  much
more easily.

Shaking his head, Mason turned to Anderson. “Would

anything else work? Wolfsbane? Silver?” Mason’s hand
went instinctively to the cross he wore outside his clothes.
He winced as he brushed the metal with his fingers.

The doctor didn’t know.
“We don’t have time,” Niall pointed out. “Besides, better

you’re wolves than defenseless.”

“I have a gun.” Anderson went to his medical bag and

pulled out a handgun.

“You’d be lucky to get a shot off before they filled you

with holes,” Evan said snidely. None of them were
invincible whether they were born or made werewolves.

“Maybe we could talk to them?” suggested Anderson.

“None of us have done anything wrong. I’ve never killed
anyone.”

The men looked between each other. Nothing wrong?

Michael wished that were true.

“They don’t seem big on the talking,” Evan scoffed. He

pressed a hand to his chest, rubbing at his shoulder.

“Is it hot in here?” Michael scratched at his arm. He felt

like  something  was  crawling  beneath  his  skin.  He
swallowed, his mouth dry as he was struck by a dizzy spell.
Mason  must  have  seen  it  coming  and  grabbed  him  by  the
arm.  Awkwardly,  Michael  held  on  to  Mason,  keeping
himself on his feet. Just.

“Evan, help me,” Mason instructed.

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Michael clung to Mason and looked to where Evan had

strayed toward the door. Don’t leave.

Evan met his eyes. “I’m not going to stand around here

and do nothing.” He reached for the door handle.

“Evan, stop,” Mason said. “Don’t be an idiot.”
Evan hesitated. “We should act first,” he said in a low

voice. “I know her scent. Michael, too. We have an
advantage, and we should use it.”

“Advantage? What advantage?” Mason asked. “We don’t

know how many of them there are. What weapons they
have.” He looked pointedly at Evan. “You want to do what?
Hunt them down? Murder them? And what if some
innocent person gets in the way? Would you kill them, too?”

Evan tensed his jaw. “It’s what I do,” he stated.
“Be better than that. Be smart.”
Michael’s head cleared and he stood on his own. He

pulled away from Mason and moved between him and
Evan. “Stay,” he said. Stay with me.

I could end this.
Alone, you’ll die.
Evan visibly flinched at the word and tightened his hand

around the handle. Maybe. He pushed down the handle.

Michael rushed forward and wrapped his hand tightly

around Evan’s. Evan angrily met his eyes, but just as quickly
his  anger  turned  to  fear.  The  dominant  personality  of
Michael’s  wolf  came  to  the  surface,  and  he leaned  in  close,
grunting as his hand  began to painfully  stretch. “We stand
together,” he said with a growl. He ran his tongue over the
pointed edge of his lengthened incisors.

“Niall,” Evan said. “Go to your room.”
“What?” Niall gave an indignant snort.
Michael closed his eyes and focused on his breathing. He

was running out of time.

“Get out. Now!” Evan insisted.

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“Shit,” Niall said. He’d clearly seen the start of Michael’s

transformation. There were scuffled sounds behind Michael
as Mason no doubt hurried his lover to safety.

Michael opened his eyes and looked at his hand around

Evan’s. Slowly, he released Evan and stared at his fingers.

“It’s okay,” Evan said. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Michael nodded. Fuck, it hurt. It always hurt.
What should I do? Evan was in his head. “How can we stop

this?” he asked out loud.

“Keep him focused,” Anderson offered. “Keep him

focused on you.”

Michael let Evan guide him toward the couch. “I’m

sorry,” he said breathlessly. The voices in his head were
getting louder. He needed to calm down. He needed to
regain what little control he did have. Talk to me. Maybe if he
could keep his mind on Evan and only Evan, maybe then he
could chase the influence of the others away.

Okay. Evan squeezed his hands and met his eyes. I’m here.
Michael took slow, deep breaths and kept his eyes on

Evan. He could hear Anderson and Mason behind him and
the wave of voices inside his head rushing back and forth.

It’s going to be okay. Evan massaged the back of Michael’s

hands with his thumbs. I promise you.

* * * *

Mason  pressed  his  palms  together  and  held  them  to  his
mouth.  He  bit  at  his  fingernail  anxiously.  They  weren’t
ready. He wasn’t ready. In his twelve years, he’d never come
up against hunters of any kind. He’d heard stories, seen such
things  in  TV  shows  and  movies,  but  never  thought  there
were  truly  any  out  there.  But  then  again,  when  he  was  a
child, werewolves were only make-believe, too.

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“What are we going to do?” asked Anderson. The man

screwed up his hands and then opened them over and over.
He was scared, just like everybody else.

Mason shook his head and stared at where Evan and

Michael  were  sitting  on  the  couch.  Evan  was  keeping
Michael  calm  and  distracted  from  the  threatening
transformation.  He  glanced  over  his  shoulder.  Niall  was  in
their room with the door secured, though he knew it wasn’t
the werewolves that had him scared. He looked around the
house. The glass was reinforced, the walls built from heavy,
thick wood, and they could barricade the door in addition to
the locks and bolts that already held it firm. He worried his
bottom  lip.  Wood  burned.  They  shouldn’t  trap  themselves
inside.

“We should head outside,” the doctor suggested. “At

least out there we can run.”

“And leave Niall?” Mason couldn’t do that. Not after

everything they’d been through.

“He’s human.”
“Who just happens to be hanging out with four

werewolves. Do you think they’ll hesitate to kill him, too?”

Anderson rubbed his hands over his face, clearly

frustrated. “Then what?” He winced slightly as he curled his
hand at his side. They couldn’t hold back the transformation
forever.

“I don’t know—”
“She’s here,” Michael said loudly and sprang to his feet.

He growled as he stared at the front door. Anger radiated off
the man, and Mason closed his eyes as he let Michael’s
emotion race over him.

Anderson picked up his gun and aimed it at the door. “A

car,” he said, releasing the safety.

Mason moved to Anderson’s side and eyed the door. He

cocked his head and listened. The low rumble of a car engine

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stopped  and  he  made  out  the  sounds  of  people  organizing
themselves.  He  pressed  his  finger  to  his  mouth  when
Anderson  went  to  speak.  He  tried  to  figure out  how  many
people were out there and exactly where they were.

“Four,” he whispered. He looked at Evan, who agreed.
There were soft sounds outside—footsteps on creaking

boards. Cautiously, he stepped back, around Anderson, and
toward  the  closed  door  of  his  bedroom.  He  stood  fast.  He
would  not  let  anything  happen  to  Niall.  The  sound  of  the
screen  door  opening  made  all  four  men  look  at  the  door.
Mason  flinched  as  Anderson  released  two  rounds.  The
bullets  hit  the  door,  splintering  the  wood  as  they  passed
through the panel.

No one moved.
Michael’s low breathy growls echoed in the otherwise

silent room, and Mason’s heart raced. Curling his hands into
fists, he tried to calm down. His wolf was tightly wound in
his chest, desperate for freedom.

“Did I get them?” Anderson stumbled backward in panic.
A gunshot rang out and a large hole was blown in the

door, blasting pieces of wood into the house. There were
people outside and then something was thrown through the
hole in the door. A metal object hit the ground and rolled
toward Anderson. The commanding voice of a man ordered
everyone to clear the porch.

Realization hit Mason too late. He darted forward,

rushing Anderson in a desperate attempt to tackle him out
of the way. He grabbed the doctor’s shoulder as there was a
terrible sound. The object exploded and filled the room with
smoke and debris.

A sharp pain shot through Mason’s leg, and he fell to the

ground, dragging Anderson with him. Mason rolled onto his
back and stared up at the ceiling. Dust filled the air above
him. His ears were ringing, and he could just make out the

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muffled voices of everybody else. Someone cried out in pain.
They sounded so far away. Coughing, Mason tried to move.

He gasped as he managed to sit forward and grimaced as

he  looked  at  his  leg.  Three  pieces  of  shrapnel  from  the
explosion  had  struck  his  thigh.  With  a  shaky  hand,  he
tentatively reached out. He hissed as he touched the pieces
of metal. Silver. Gritting his teeth, he pulled at the first piece,
sliding  the  shard  from  his  flesh  and  discarding  it  on  the
floor.  He  removed  the  other  pieces  and  looked  around.
Michael and Evan were disoriented but safe. The couch had
offered them protection from the worst of the explosion.

“Doc,” Mason called, dragging himself the couple of feet

to be at Anderson’s side. He rested his hand on the doctor’s
back  and  panic  rose  in  his  chest.  The  cries  he  had  heard
belonged  to  Anderson.  Though  muted  beneath  the
aftershock  of  ringing  in  his  ears,  Mason  could  feel  the
vibrations of the man’s pain coursing through his body.

“Evan!”
Evan looked over from where he held Michael, keeping

the young man safe and calm.

“I need you.” Slowly, he rolled Anderson over and

screwed  up  his  face  as  he  saw  the  damage.  Silver  shards
shone as they  caught the light. The shrapnel was peppered
down  the  left  side  of  Anderson’s  face  and  neck.  Mason
checked lower. More pieces were in the man’s torso and leg.
None  of  the  wounds  looked  deep  and  none  were  bleeding
severely,  it  was  more  the  quantity  that  left  Mason  reeling.
“Evan!”

Staying low, Evan made his way to Mason’s side. “Fuck,”

he said as he saw Anderson’s injuries. “What do we do?”

How was he supposed to know? He glanced warily at the

door. They didn’t have time.

“Doc,” Mason cried, holding the doctor’s head steady.

“Oliver!” The doctor’s eyes snapped open, his breathing

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ragged as he looked up at Mason and grabbed his arm.
“What do we do?”

Anderson’s eyes rolled upward and his eyelids flickered

before sliding shut. His head rolled to one side as his body
became dead weight.

“Shit!” Mason shook Anderson by the shoulders. “Come

on. Don’t do this!”

Evan reached past Mason and checked the doctor’s neck

for a pulse. “He’s alive, but there’s nothing we can do for
him now,” Evan said. He placed his hands over Mason’s and
carefully pulled them away. “You need to focus, because any
minute we’re going to have company.”

Mason nodded and let Evan help him to his feet. He

hopped until he found a comfortable footing. Grimacing, he
pressed his hand to his leg. Nothing serious, but it stung like
hell. “If they were looking to piss me off, they did it,” he said
and stepped forward.

“You okay?” Evan checked.
“Fine.”
The two of them joined Michael, who was crouched by

the couch with his hands pressed to his ears and his eyes
tightly shut. Mason looked at Michael’s hands and the claws
sticking out from his lengthened fingers.

Evan got Michael to his feet, and Mason looked the young

man over. He wasn’t hurt, but his transformation had taken
hold.  His  eyes  were  already  bright  yellow,  his  jaw  was
swollen,  and  the  muscles  in  his  arms  had  expanded
downward  to  his  now  enlarged  hands.  No  matter  what,
Michael’s wolf would always protect him.

“What about Niall and Anderson?” Evan said, pulling

Michael to him, keeping the young man as calm as he could.

Niall was safe in the bedroom for now. Mason was glad

Niall had done as he’d been told—no matter what he heard,
he was to stay in that room. Mason glanced back to where

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Anderson lay unconscious. He didn’t know if the man
would change or not, having passed out from the silver and
his injuries.

Mason narrowed his eyes and looked toward the busted

front door. He raised his hand and said, “We protect them.”
He winced as he let the first part of his transformation begin.
Claws extended from his fingers, and he could feel his teeth
change, becoming too big for his human mouth.

A grin spread over Evan’s face. “Finally,” he said at the

prompted action.

Michael slipped from Evan’s hold and looked between

Mason and Evan before turning around. He pulled off his t-
shirt and kicked off his shoes. Removing the last of his
clothes, he got to his hands and knees.

Mason and Evan followed his lead, each man fighting his

own pain as they began to transform. As Mason turned, he
let out a feverish howl and the last thing he remembered as
his human self was Michael’s voice in his head, leading him
into the fight and promising, They will never hurt anyone else
again.

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Chapter Thirteen

ichael looked at the wolves standing on either side of
him. Mason’s wolf limped slightly as it stepped

forward, accustoming itself to the injury on its hind leg. He
looked at Evan. The dark brown wolf bristled in anticipation
of the fight.

Steady, Michael told them both. He looked at the door.

The girl’s scent was strong, mixed in with the distinct smell
of four other people. He listened. There were voices outside,
apprehension in their tone as they debated their next move.
The door was still standing, bolted in three  places, and the
hinges  intact.  The  hole  from  the  shotgun  blast  was  jagged
and splintered, the size of a human head. In wolf form there
was no way to unlock the bolts, and he feared it would take
them  too  long  to  break  through  the  door,  despite  its  poor
state.

He figured they could wait it out, hide and hope the

hunters  did  the  hard  work  and  blasted  the  door  free.  But
there was nothing to stop them throwing in more explosives
or even setting fire to the house. They needed another way
out.  He  stepped  back,  and  the  floor  creaked  beneath  his
weight. Curiously, he looked down. The wood was charred
and  silver  pieces  had  buried  themselves  in  the  boards.  He
pressed down hard with his paw and the board creaked and
splintered.

The floor, he instructed.

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The two wolves joined him in clawing at, jumping on, and

biting the wooden boards. They managed to pry some of the
damaged wood away from the joists and smash the others
through. Lowering his head into the hole, Michael examined
the crawlspace. It would be tight, but they could get to the
back of the house and easily break through the panels
circling the base of the building.

Giving his orders, he directed Mason and Evan into the

hole and told them his intended steps. Once they were out of
the house and had the space to run, the hunters would be
easy to take down.

Evan’s wolf curled his top lip and growled. Michael could

sense the animal’s eagerness to hunt and kill. Bitterness
brought about the desire for revenge. Michael stood tall. He
felt in control of his wolf. He looked Evan’s wolf directly in
his milky white eyes. They were not murderers. They killed
out of the need to protect themselves and the people they
loved, not for the sake of it. The dark wolf seemed to get the
message as he submissively lowered his head.

Ducking his head and stretching his body, Mason’s wolf

dropped down into the hole first. He stopped and looked up
at Michael.

Michael sensed Mason’s concern from within the animal

for the people they were leaving behind. It’s the only way, he
insisted. If they wanted to protect Niall and Anderson then
they needed to leave. They needed to be outside and able to
fight back.

Reluctantly, Mason’s wolf moved forward, freeing space

for  Evan  and  Michael  to  follow  him  into  the  hole.  They
crawled forward through the closed space until they reached
the  back  of  the  house.  Mason’s  wolf  clawed  madly  at  the
trellised  panel,  breaking  it  easily  and  dragging  himself
through.  Finding  his  feet,  he  dashed  for  the  trees,  running
off  his  injury  as  he  sought  cover.  Close  behind  him  were

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Michael and Evan. Gunshots rang out, but they didn’t stop
until they hit the edge of the trees. They had to be sure all
the hunters were focused on them. They had left Niall and
Anderson with no real protection, so they couldn’t risk even
one hunter breaking his way inside the house.

Michael could sense Mason’s unease. The auburn wolf

bristled  beside  him,  ready  to  run  if  Mason’s  lover  needed
him. Cautiously  and keeping out of sight, Michael  checked
the  area.  Four  men  moved  toward  them,  quick  and  low
across the open land. They were all there, though there was
still  no  sight  of  the  girl.  Assuring  Mason  they  had  the
attention of all the hunters, Michael urged them to continue
away from the house.

The voices of the four men and more shots echoed behind

them as they ran through the foliage. They ran as fast as they
could, putting distance between them and the hunters so
they had time to organize themselves.

Clever boy. Michael skidded to a halt as the girl’s voice

came loud in his head. He caught his front paw under a
raised root and flipped over himself, crashing against the
trunk of a tree and landing on his back.

Mason’s and Evan’s wolves rushed to his side. They

looked startled and scuffled with one another as they turned
themselves in circles.

Michael rolled over and got to his feet, shaking off the

surprise of the fall. I’m fine. He tried to calm them, hoped
Mason and Evan could help him to influence their wolves
emotionally.

He brushed his head against both wolves. The action

worked and the wolves settled and took their place on either
side of him. He narrowed his eyes. Who was the girl that she
could talk to him? There was something strange about her
scent. At its roots there was the scent of wolf and her ability
to talk to him was surely the same as his, gifted to him

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having been born a werewolf. And yet, there was something
not quite right, not wholly wolf.

Michael pricked up his ears. The hunters were getting

close. Michael smiled inwardly. It was clear from the echo of
their voices they had spread out to cover more ground. He
looked over his shoulder and passed on his instructions.
Evan’s wolf was to go right and Mason’s left, leaving
Michael heading straight and back to the house.

Be careful.
With a barked growl, Evan’s wolf darted to the right.

Mason  looked  at  Michael,  bowing  his  head  before  running
left.  Michael  waited.  He  could  smell  grease  and  cigarettes
and was sure the two hunters in front of him were in close
enough  proximity  that  if  he  attacked  one,  the  other  could
easily  retaliate.  Warily,  he  headed  in  the  same  direction  as
Mason to begin with. If he could get behind them, he would
have  the  element  of  surprise.  He  ran  forward,  but  his
progress  was  halted  as  a  scream  ripped  through  the  trees
accompanied by gunfire. A pain hit him in the chest, but it
was not his pain. No. Please, no. He ran toward the barrage of
sounds, trying to pick up anything that hinted at what was
going on. The metallic scent of  blood hung in the air as he
raced through the trees.

Skidding to a halt, he stopped, nearly tripping over a

body lying on the forest floor. Michael dug his claws into the
hunter’s  body  and  rolled  it  over.  His  eyes  were  pale  and
lifeless  and  blood  glistened  across  his  chest  and  neck.
Michael  lifted  his  head  as  he  heard  a  sound  in  the  brush.
With  a  growl,  he  backed  away,  staying  low  as  he  watched
the  twitching  leaves.  Limping  from  behind  the  bush,
Mason’s  wolf  appeared  in  the  clearing.  There  was  blood
around  his  mouth  and  a  look  of  regret  in  his  eyes.  It  was
clear from the way the auburn wolf delicately moved he had
been wounded again. Michael moved closer. A dark clotting

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wound was in the wolf’s chest. The bullet hadn’t been silver,
but  it  was  clearly  causing  discomfort.  Michael  breathed  in
deeply.  Wolfsbane.  He  wondered  how  much  of  the  poison
the  bullet  had  contained.  It  would  cause  Mason  pain  and
make him sick, but at least the wound would heal.

The sound of footsteps behind them had both wolves

coiled  and  ready  to  attack.  A  branch  broke  under  a  heavy
boot  and  Michael  ushered  Mason  away.  More  gunshots
echoed from the other side of the forest and briefly a pang of
guilt  lurched  in  Michael’s  chest.  He  knew  very  well  Evan
could  look  after  himself.  The  sound  of  footsteps  indicated
the hunter was close. Michael made for the cover of the trees
and waited.

Eventually, the hunter appeared to Michael’s right.

Checking the area, the hunter moved to his  partner. Anger
creased  the  man’s  brow  as  he  realized  the  man  was  dead,
and  he  turned  around,  scanning  the  area  with  his  gun.  He
looked to the ground, tilted his head, and moved forward.

Michael narrowed his eyes. What had the hunter seen? As

the  hunter  stepped  forward,  Michael  emerged  from  his
hiding  place  and  scanned  the  ground.  He  looked  at  the
blood trail that lay parallel to the man’s boot prints. Mason.
Cautiously,  he  pressed  on,  staying  low  as  he  followed  the
hunter’s tracks.

A whimper urged Michael forward and his only thought

was to protect his friend. He raced on, horrified to find the
auburn wolf on the ground, the hunter over him, aiming his
weapon at Mason’s head. Michael leaped forward, growling
as he slammed his weight into the man. The gun went off as
it  was  knocked  from  the  man’s  hand.  The  bullet  hit  the
ground  behind  Mason,  causing  the  wolf  to kick  at the  dirt.
Michael  landed  running,  circling  round  to  put  himself
between  Mason  and  the  hunter.  He  stood  and  bared  his
teeth, daring the hunter to try anything.

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The man crouched on the ground and met Michael’s eyes.

Michael was aware of where the man’s hand was and what
he was reaching for.

Don’t be an idiot.
The man grabbed for his gun and Michael felt a surge of

hate  wash  through  him.  His  wolf  was  not  one  for  second
chances and this man had just lost his. The hunter managed
to get a round off, the shot grazing Michael’s shoulder as he
charged  forward.  Michael  tackled  the  man  to  the  ground,
knocking  the  gun  from  the  hunter’s  hands  as  he  slashed
frantically at the man’s face and arms. He hooked his claws
in  the  shocked  man’s  cheek  and  mouth.  The  man  looked
terrified,  but  Michael  had  no  mercy  to  give  him.  Blood
sprayed in a crimson mist as Michael violently pulled back
his  paw,  the  hunter’s  jaw  ripped  from  his  face.  The  man
gasped  and  horrid  gurgling  sounds  escaped  his  throat  as
blood  poured  from  the  gaping  hole  in  his  face.  The  hunter
was suffering and Michael felt the tease of pleasure beneath
the  horror  of  what  he’d  done.  Baring  his  teeth,  he  lunged
forward  and  tore  out  the  man’s  throat.  The  dying  hunter
crumpled to the ground and quickly  bled out on the forest
floor.

Michael looked at Mason’s wolf. The wolf was trembling

and seemed unable to get to his feet. The Wolfsbane would
be in his system now, the poison disorienting him, making
him weak.

Euphoria surged through him, and he raised his head as

he heard Evan’s wolf howl from across the forest. Wait here.
I’ll be back. Quickly, he raced through the trees. He could
smell blood and his heart beat madly in his chest. He prayed
Evan was okay.

Clearing the trees, he jumped into a clearing and was

greeted with the terrible reality of just what Evan was
capable of. The body of one of the hunters, or rather parts of
him, lay strewn across the forest floor in a pool of blood and

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innards. Beyond the carnage, Evan stood over the last of the
hunters who had entered the woods. Michael recognized the
man from the store and moved toward him. The man’s leg
was missing at the knee but he was alive. Michael crossed
the clearing to stand at Evan’s side.

“You think this is it?” The hunter spat, blood on his lips as

he grimaced from the pain. There were further injuries to his
shoulder and arm. “There are others. They’ll come looking
for us.”

Michael lifted his head and stared through the trees.
Is he telling the truth? He waited. Would the girl hear him?
“Does it matter if he is?” Michael looked up as the girl

stepped from behind a tree and stood at the edge of the
clearing.

Evan’s wolf tensed and growled beside him, but Michael

ordered him to stand down.

Yes.
The girl shrugged. “Yes and no.”
“Tilly,” the man warned.
The girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Opening

her eyes, she looked at the man with disgust and then stared
directly at Evan. She nodded and before Michael had time to
figure out what was happening, Evan violently lunged for
the hunter’s throat. In one sweeping move, Evan bit into the
man’s flesh, getting a tight hold before twisting it, breaking
the man’s neck and killing him.

Unsettled, Michael padded the ground. He glanced at

Evan’s wolf. The wolf licked its lips and then stepped away.
The  animal  looked  confused  as  he  frantically  looked  from
the dead hunter to the girl and then to Michael. There was a
mournful  look  in  his  eyes  when  he  looked  at  Michael,  and
Michael  swore  it  was  Evan  himself  looking  at  him,
apologizing.

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“I never did like him telling me what to do.” The air

around Tilly seemed less oppressive in light of the man’s
death. Childishly, she rocked between her heels and tiptoes
with her hands behind her back.

What did you do?
“Unlike you, he is just a wild animal. It is in his nature to

hunt and kill. I merely influenced that instinct within him.”

She had more sway over Evan’s wolf than the man

himself. Michael looked at his lover’s wolf. The animal
didn’t seem to appreciate having been taken advantage of as
it hunkered down, readying itself for an attack.

Who are you?
She stopped. Her smoky eyes met Michael’s as she

smiled.

“Natalie Peters.” She pointed at the man on the floor.

“And he was my uncle.”

Are there others?
“There are, but they won’t come looking for you.”

Why should I believe you?
The girl smiled sweetly. “You don’t have to believe me.

But it’s the truth. My uncle didn’t like to share his
playthings. He wouldn’t want others interfering with his
hunt. His prize.”

Michael filled his lungs with her scent. Was she another

plaything? She was like no one he had met before. What are
you? You smell like a wolf. He stepped forward and she
stepped back.

It’s complicated, she replied, this time speaking inside his

head.

Try me. Michael growled.
Tilly eyed both wolves warily. She seemed to sense just

how heated Evan’s blood was. He would rip her apart if she
even looked at Michael the wrong way. Do you know the

chances of a pregnancy coming to term where only one parent is a
werewolf?

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It’s impossible. From what he knew only parents who were

both born werewolves themselves had ever produced
offspring. It wasn’t unheard of for wolves created from bites
to become pregnant, but the fetus never survived—either the
baby was not strong enough to survive the transformation
on full moon or a human mother’s body rejected the foreign
cells.

The girl shook her head. It’s not.
How? Could there be others like her?

Luck. Misfortune. Take your pick. My mother was eight and a

half months pregnant when she was bitten. She took another
step away from them. I was born before the next full moon.

Why the hell was she out here with these men? Why was

she helping them to hunt him and other wolves?

What are you?
I am neither one thing nor the other. I am not a wolf, but on a

technicality I share your curse.

She had been born. Her mother had been bitten and was

therefore a werewolf. It was kind of incredible, and Michael
would surely have appreciated the revelation if not for the
fact he was standing in the blood and guts of the people who
would have happily slain him and the others.

I can hear every single one of you. She pressed a hand to her

forehead as she pulled a gun from behind her back. And it
hurts.

Michael eyed the gun as she aimed it toward him. Evan’s

wolf growled from his crouched position. He was ready to
attack if he needed to. Wait, Michael instructed. He sensed
no danger from the girl, merely confusion and relief.

It’s hurt since I can remember. She looked at Michael with

sadness in her eyes. It hurt in here, too. She pressed a hand to
her heart. My father is dead at my mother’s hands. She and many
others dead at my uncle’s and because of me. She looked to the
dead man on the ground. It doesn’t hurt anymore.

Don’t do this. Maybe they could help each other.

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I don’t hear them now. Only you. I’ve never known silence.

Tilly smiled and raised the gun to her head. I knew you’d be
the one.

No! Michael leaped forward as a shot rang off. It was too

late and all he could do was watch as the girl fell to her
knees. Her arms hung limply at her sides and the gun
slipped from her hand as her body fell sideways and she hit
the ground. Her gaze never left his, and Michael lost himself
in the peace held in her eyes.

Closing his eyes, he sat down and lowered his head. A

sense  of  mourning  washed  through  him,  and  he  was
thankful when Evan’s wolf rested against him. He looked at
the girl. There was blood and brain on the  ground and yet
despite the horror, she still seemed to be smiling.

He closed his eyes and let the warmth of Evan’s wolf’s

body comfort him. He knew he’d never get an answer, but
all he wanted to know was why? Why here? Why them? Just
why?  Opening  his  eyes,  he  got  back  to  his  feet.  He  had  to
think  about  the  living  right  now.  His  friends  were  hurt—
Mason and Anderson and Niall. They had been his family all
these  months,  his  support.  He  glanced  at  the  girl  before
turning  his  back.  They  were  the  reason  he  hadn’t  taken  a
gun to his own head by now. They were the reason he was
alive.

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Chapter Fourteen

t might as well have been a lifetime, the wait to become
human again. Evan opened his eyes and stared up at the

pink  glow  the  morning  sun  had  cast  across  the  sky.  The
color  was  unsettling  and  flashes  of  his  wolf’s  actions  from
last night weighed heavily upon him. He had wanted to be a
better person for Michael. He’d wanted to be a good person.
Last  night  his  wolf  had  taken  over  and  fiercely  defended
itself against the hunters.

He swallowed uncomfortably and grimaced at the

memory of blood on his tongue and slick in his throat. His
wolf had never been one for subtlety. He just hoped Michael
could  forgive  him.  He’d  seen  the  look  of  disgust  and
disappointment in his lover’s eyes. Even more so when with
a simple word of permission from the girl last night, he had
keenly  torn  out  her  uncle’s  throat.  No  second  thoughts  or
hesitation.  Not  until  after  Evan’s  guilt  and  shame  seeped
into the wolf’s consciousness.

Michael stirred where he lay with his head in Evan’s lap.

They had taken it in turns to watch guard over the house
and each other until the morning. Though Michael was sure
the girl had told the truth about there being no others, they
couldn’t be absolutely sure.

“Morning,” Evan said.
“Hey. Where’s Mason?” Michael asked as he stretched.
“The minute he was human again, he headed inside.”

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Michael nodded and rubbed his neck. Evan frowned as he

noted the red-brown smear down beneath Michael’s chin
and how it spread down toward his chest. What had they
done?

“I don’t blame you,” Michael said out of nowhere and

Evan realized he must have been thinking too loud. He
looked up at Evan and his amber eyes seemed to glow.
“What you did to that man…” He paused. I killed a man, too.

“But what I did—”
“Stop.” It was like Michael’s eyes were on fire.
Evan breathed in deeply as he was flooded with

emotions, Michael’s emotions. He smiled. There was nothing
but love.

“Like I said before, I’m not stupid. I know what our

wolves are capable of.” He shifted to sit up and then leaned
back  against  the  glass  doors  with  Evan.  He  sighed  and
stared  out  toward  the  trees.  “I’m  not  saying  it  was  easy  to
see,  but  I  can  understand  it.”  He  leaned  into  Evan  and
smiled. “It’s over, right?”

“I think so.”
Michael fell silent and Evan wondered what must be

going through his mind.

Michael eventually asked, Will you go now?
Evan lifted his arm, inviting Michael into a hug. He

waited for Michael to settle before simply saying, “No.” He
rested his chin on the top of Michael’s head and ran his
hands over the man’s cool skin. He guessed he’d stick
around and see what happened next.

* * * *

“Niall!”  Mason  grimaced  as  he  banged  on  the  bedroom
door.  “Niall!”  He  held  his  injured  shoulder  and  leaned  his
head  against  the  bedroom  door.  “Niall,”  he  said.  Standing

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straight, he tried the handle, surprised as the door opened.
He’d told Niall to lock himself inside. Pushing the door, he
checked the room. Where the hell was he?

“Mason.”
Mason spun around. Relief hit him hard as he stared at

Niall across the room. “Oh my God,” Mason said
breathlessly. He pressed his hand to the wound at his thigh
before taking a step forward.

“I know you said don’t come out, but—”
Mason quickly crossed the room, shutting Niall up when

he pulled him into an awkward hug. “Shut up,” Mason said
and clung to his love. Closing his eyes, he held onto Niall for
fear he might be spirited away if he dared to let go.

“I’m sorry.”
Mason shook his head. He didn’t care. “Why does this

keep happening to us?” He didn’t really expect an answer.

“Are they dead?” Niall’s voice was flat and void of

emotion.

Opening his eyes, Mason leaned back. What was he

supposed to do? Lie? Pretend he’d played no part in those
men’s deaths? “They’re dead. All of them.”

Niall simply nodded. Gently, he ran his hand up Mason’s

arm and stop before he reached the raw wound on Mason’s
shoulder.  “Good,”  he  finally  said.  He  met  Mason’s  eyes,
clearly  aware  Mason  was  about  to  object  to  his  coldness.
That wasn’t Niall. Niall was warm, good, and someone and
something that wasn’t all this shit and violence. “I mean it.
You  did  what  you  had  to  do.  They  weren’t  going  to  stop
until we were all dead.”

His gaze fell to Mason’s mouth. He appeared unsettled as

he cautiously reached up and wiped the corner of Mason’s
mouth.

Mason caught the scent of the dried blood as Niall

disturbed the dried stain on his cheek. Disgust lurched in his

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stomach. He had killed a man tonight. “I swore to never let
the wolf take over like that ever again. I wanted you to be
safe, not scared of me.”

“I’m not scared,” Niall said and Mason dared to believe

him. His eyes shone with a renewed strength and certainty.
“You protected me.” He leaned forward and gave Mason a
chaste kiss. “You protected our home and our friends.”

Friends. Shit. “Anderson?”
“He’s alive, but…” Niall glanced over his shoulder. “I

heard something inside the house so I waited for the sun to
come up before I came out. When I found him he was out
cold.”

Carefully, he cupped Niall’s face and looked his lover

over.  Not  a  scratch.  He  pulled  Niall  into  another  hug.  He
didn’t  know  what  he  would  have  done  if  something  had
happened to Niall. Despite their best efforts, it seemed they
couldn’t  outrun  the  past.  Blood  and  death  followed  them
around. Would their lives always be like this? So violent and
desperate?

“Niall, you’re okay.” Michael sounded relieved as he

stepped inside the house.

Mason looked over his shoulder at Michael and Evan.
“Well, this isn’t awkward,” Niall said as he saw more

than he clearly wanted to of Evan and Michael who were
standing naked near the door. “Not awkward at all.” He
slapped Mason’s naked ass then averted his gaze toward the
back of the house.

Evan cupped his dick and cleared his throat, muttering

some kind of an apology as he twisted his body in attempt to
reclaim a little of his dignity.

Michael, however, didn’t seem to care. He ran up to

Mason and caught him in a one armed hug. No one spoke. It
didn’t seem any of them had the right words to express how
they felt about last night. Michael released Mason and

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stepped back to look around the room. He looked over the
broken furniture and settled on the shards of silver
protruding from the deep red stains that marked the
wooden boards.

When Michael looked at Mason the expression he wore

asked a question, one Mason didn’t know how to answer.

What did we do?
What had they done? They’d killed people. But it had

been self-defense, right? They’d had no other choice. Mason
took a deep breath and reached for Niall’s hand. They would
get through this. They all would.

* * * *

Niall pressed a hand to his mouth. God, he felt sick. He
stopped digging and leaned on the handle of the shovel.

“How can you do that?” he asked.
Evan held one of the dead hunters by his ankles. He

dragged the man toward the first of the deep holes he and
Niall  had  been  tasked  with  digging.  Dropping  the  body’s
legs, he wiped his hands on the back of his overalls. “It’s just
meat,”  he said coldly and crouched down beside the body.
He  patted  the  man’s  pants,  and  after  pulling  his  sleeves
down over his hands, he reached into the man’s pocket.

Niall raised an eyebrow as Evan freed a wallet and

proceeded to take cash from it and tuck it in the back pocket
of the overalls. “Have you no shame?”

“He doesn’t need it,” Evan stated. He flicked through

several cards, pulling them out and piling them on the
ground. He then tossed the empty wallet in the hole. “We’ll
burn the IDs later. Just in case.”

“In case what? There’s no reason anyone would look for

them here.” Though every fiber in him screamed for them to
run as far from this place as possible, the house and the land
were home. And if last night proved anything, it showed

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how strongly they would defend it. If the girl had told
Michael the truth, there was no one who would come
looking.

“Doesn’t hurt to think about the what-ifs,” Evan said. He

held up a photograph from the man’s wallet. “Everybody
has somebody.”

Niall stared at the image of the man, younger than he

looked now, and a woman. For some reason the thought of
dead  bodies  in  his  garden  with  no  ID  was  far  more
unsettling  than  just  the  bodies  themselves.  One  day,
hopefully  a  long  time  from  now,  someone  might  stumble
across them and give them a proper burial.

“Was she the reason he hunted us?” Evan said of the

woman  in  the  photograph.  “Or  is  she  sitting  somewhere,
waiting  for  him?”  Evan  sighed.  “We  have  an  SUV  sitting
outside the house filled with weapons and ammo. We have
five  bodies  and  their  belongings.  Our  clothes,  our
fingerprints,  and  our  DNA  on  anything  we  touched,  or…”
He wafted a hand at the row of bodies.

“Ate?” Niall offered. Evan glared at him. “Throw them

in.”

“You sure?”
“If someone digs up a bunch of dead guys on my land, I

don’t  think  them  knowing  their  names  is  going  to  be  my
biggest  problem.  Let’s  just  get  this  over  with,  yeah?”  Niall
wasn’t  in  the  mood  for  some  weird  bonding  session  over
grave digging and dead bodies.

Evan pressed his mouth in a line. “What if someone does

come here?”

“There is no reason anyone should.” What-ifs were what

got people caught, made them doubt what they were doing,
and inevitably led to mistakes. “And there’s no reason
they’ll ever be found.” Niall met Evan’s eyes. “Unless you
plan on digging them back up tonight.” He rested the shovel

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against the side of the deep grave. Digging was hard work
and then some. He held out his hand and waited for Evan to
help him up and out of the hole.

Standing beside Evan, he looked down at the two graves

they had dug out, and he caught his breath. One large and
deep for the four hunters’ bodies and then one a little way
from them for the girl. A pang of regret struck at his heart.
Would their lives always be like this and tainted by blood
and gore?

“You all right?” Evan asked.
Niall nodded. He was tired and dirty and wished they

had  more  time  before  sunset,  but  yeah,  he  was  okay.  “Are
they  really  just  meat  to  you?”  he  asked.  He  remembered
how  devastated  he  had  been  just  thinking  he  might  have
killed someone when he was a wolf. Turned out, he hadn’t.
If  he  had,  he  wouldn’t  have  become  human  again  when
Mason had killed Kaine.

Evan rested his hand on Niall’s shoulder and joined him

beside the grave. “Honestly, I try not to think about it.”

“They were people.”
“Sure. Bad people. They hurt your doctor friend. They

hurt Mason.” Evan pulled his hand away and moved
around to the head of the body closest to the edge of the
hole.

“Is that what you tell yourself about all the others?”
Evan met Niall’s eyes but said nothing. Niall had only

ever seen ice in Evan’s eyes, but just then, for a moment, he
was sure there was something else. A fleeting sadness. Guilt.
Maybe Mason was right after all—there was still a slice of
humanity in Evan’s heart.

“Grab his shoulders,” Niall said. Time to take a piece of

his own advice and not linger on things that couldn’t be
changed. He bent down and grabbed the man’s ankles.

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Together they lifted the man, and Niall gagged at the

smell of blood and the disgusting sound when the man’s
head flopped backward. Maybe Evan had it right.

“It’s just meat,” Niall told himself. They hefted the man

the couple of feet to the edge of the hole. They looked at each
other.

“On three?” Evan said.
Niall nodded.
“One.”
They swung the man back and forth.
“Two.”
Niall braced himself.
“Three,” Evan said.
The body hit the bottom of the hole with a dull thud.
“One down,” Evan said with a smirk. He moved back to

the line and picked up the leg of the next body. Just the leg.

Niall watched as Evan threw it easily into the grave.

Thank God he’d skipped lunch.

* * * *

Michael  hugged  his  waist  as  he  stood  on  the  porch.  He
closed his eyes and listened. He could make out the sound of
Niall and Evan in the forest, carried on the breeze along with
the sickening smell of blood and death. He’d asked for Tilly
to  have  her  own  grave  away  from  the  others.  It  didn’t  feel
right to lump her in with those men. She had just wanted to
be set free. He could relate to that. For years, the voices had
driven  him  close  to  insane.  They  never  stopped  and  he
wasn’t  sure  they  ever  would.  He  understood  Tilly’s  desire
for  silence,  but  he  wished  she  had  been  able  to  find  a
different way to escape the voices they both heard.

If the doc hadn’t found him, he wondered what might

have become of him. Would he have eventually been faced

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with the same terrible choice? Would he have seen death as
the only way out? He smiled as he felt Mason’s hand on his
shoulder. The heat from the touch soothed him and pulled
his mind from the dark questions.

“How are you feeling?” Michael asked.
Mason leaned against the railing on the porch and stared

at the line of trees. “I think the vomiting is finally over,” he
said hoarsely and gently kneaded his shoulder.

“And Doc?”
Mason shook his head. “Not good. I’ve dug out what I

can but there’s still some discomfort. I’ve given him some
painkillers for now.”

“What about tonight?”
“He’ll turn and it’ll hurt like hell. But we’ll get him

through  it.”  Mason  rubbed  his  hand  over  his  neck.  He
seemed frustrated. “I don’t know what else to do. He needs
more  than  I’m  capable  of.”  Mason  pushed  his  hands  back
over his face and through his hair, linking them behind his
head.  “There’s  nothing  we  can  do  today.  There  isn’t  time.
The sun sets in a couple of hours.”

“He’ll be okay,” Michael said. He gently touched the back

of Mason’s hand and met his eyes. He’ll be okay. Michael’s
touch and words seemed to calm Mason. “What will you
do?”

“When?”
“After tonight? Will you stay here?”
Mason was clearly torn. The house and its land had been

a haven for Mason, and for the wolves who had taken
shelter there, for three years. Until now, no one had
threatened the safety it offered.

“I don’t know,” Mason said. “Part of me thinks, yes, move

on, leave all the bad stuff here.” He lowered his gaze and
stared at the ground. “But I’ve done that before. Moved on

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and left it all behind. Seems bad shit just follows me
around.”

“So, you’ll stay?”
Mason nodded. “I think so. I have to believe the girl was

telling the truth. I’m tired of running. This is my home.”

Michael smiled and breathed in deeply. The smell of

blood was mixed with dirt. “Why did she do it?” he asked.
Last night had played on his mind. He’d tried to think of a
way things might have turned out differently.

“Which part?” Mason asked.
“All of it.”
Mason frowned and gave a shrug. “I don’t know.”
“If you had to guess.”
Mason folded his arms. “I would guess she was torn

between her loyalty to her uncle and to her mother. To
humans and to wolves.” He looked at Michael and offered a
comforting smile. “I would think she was tired. Tired of the
voices, tired of the killing. She felt guilty for the deaths she’d
caused and wanted a little peace. She saw you as someone
that understood.”

“I could have helped her.”
“It had gone too far.”
“You helped me.”
“Stop it,” Mason said. “You’ll just drive yourself nuts.”
Michael knew Mason was right. But it was hard. She had

been standing there in front of him and shot herself in the
head. That wasn’t an image he was going to forget easily. He
met Mason’s gaze. There was something hesitant in the way
he looked at Michael.

“What?” Michael asked. Was something wrong? Was it

the doc? Was it Mason?

Mason reached behind him and pulled a tattered-looking

journal from the back of his jeans. “Niall found this in their

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car.” He curled his hands tightly around the bound pages.
“It was hers.”

Michael looked at the journal. Odd extra sheets of paper

were stuffed between the pages. “Have you read it?” he
asked.

Mason nodded. “A little. She was a deeply troubled

young lady.”

Pursing his lips, Michael studied Mason’s face. He

seemed sad and was clearly upset about what he had read.
“What’s in there?”

“She talked about the voices, about the hunts, and about

her uncle.” Mason gave a sad smile.

A cold shiver passed along Michael’s spine. “Did it say

why they were here?”

“Seems they came across an article about the animal

attack before Christmas.”

“The one you suspected was Rafe and Chloe?”
Mason nodded. “They were here investigating when she

came across Evan.” He held the book out to Michael. “Her
life was anything but a fairytale.”

Shaking his head, Michael turned down the offered book.

He didn’t need to read it, though he was curious about one
thing. “Did she mention me?”

Lowering the book, Mason said, “The last few entries. She

writes how she wished things were different. How if they
had been, maybe you could have helped her.”

Michael nodded. There were too many ifs and maybes.

Mason was right. He would drive himself crazy keep
thinking about them.

“What do you want me to do with this?” Mason asked.
Michael looked toward the trees. He knew where it

belonged. Thinking of Evan, he told his lover, Wait for me.

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Michael chose to make the walk alone. He made his way

through  the  trees  to  where  Evan  and  Niall  were  working.
The  early  evening  light  was  tinged  with  red  and  an  eerie
glow  lit  the  clearing.  Michael  walked  forward.  From  the
large area of uneven ground, it was clear Niall and Evan had
been busy.

“Hey,” Evan said. He stood back from the unfilled hole

and folded his arms across his chest.

Niall was standing on the opposite side of the grave and

glanced down into it. He seemed pale, and dirt and blood
were smeared together in reddish brown stains down the
front of the overalls he wore. Under different circumstances,
the sight of Evan and Niall in matching getups might have
made Michael laugh.

“We waited,” Evan stated. Wiping his palm on his pants,

he then held his hand out to Michael.

Unease crept through Michael. Taking a deep breath, he

walked over to Evan. He wrapped his hand in Evan’s as he
joined him beside the grave. Edging forward, he glanced
down into the hole. He wasn’t sure what he expected to see
when he looked down, but as it turned out, Evan and Niall
had taken great care to lay Tilly’s body in her grave. A small
posy of greenery and pink-flowered stems rested on her
stomach.

Michael looked at Evan who shied away. You?
They’re just some weeds. Nothing special. He seemed

embarrassed.

Michael smiled and looked across the grave at Niall. The

man had a bemused expression on his face. He clearly knew
Michael and Evan were communicating, but as a human,
Niall could not be part of the telepathic connection Michael
shared with the others. It just didn’t seem to work that way.

The journal felt heavy in his hand. He knew getting rid of

it wouldn’t solve anything, but it did, however, feel like the

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closing of a chapter. He squeezed Evan’s hand. Where Tilly’s
story  had  ended,  Michael  felt  that  finally  he  was  ready  to
move  on  with  his.  He  had  people  who  cared  about  him,
supported  him,  and  because  of  them,  he  had  been  able  to
step out of the darkness and not lose himself to it.

He glanced at the front of the journal before crouching

down and dropping it into the hole near her feet. He wished
he  could  have  spent  time  with  her,  gotten  to  know  her
beyond pages in a journal, even helped her. Maybe then he
could believe the emotions and loss he felt were truly all for
her.  But  they  weren’t.  They  were  for  himself.  They  were
about  what  he  had  lost—his  family,  his  childhood,  who  he
might have been.

“You all right?” Evan asked.
Nodding, Michael moved close to Evan and rested his

head on his shoulder. “I’m fine.” Because of people like
Evan, he had a future and chapters to add to his story. He
smiled inwardly and held Evan’s hand tightly. I’m okay. He
really was.

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Epilogue

van eyed the eight ball. He’d done his best to take it easy
on Michael, but this was their third game and the urge to

make it three for three had gotten the better of him. He
checked the remaining balls on the table. He didn’t think
Michael had had chance to sink a single ball this match.

“Top right,” he said, choosing his pocket.
You sure about that? Michael teased
Evan glanced at Michael, who was standing at the

opposite end of the table. He grinned. I’m sure.

If you say so. Michael sipped at his beer.
Who of the two of them was the one who could actually

play this game? He was sure. Evan took the shot. The cue
ball smacked the eight ball before falling into the exact
pocket Evan had picked out.

Michael sighed and finished his drink. “You can make it

up to me later,” he said and picked up his jacket.

A smirk spread across Evan’s face as he thought about all

the ways he could indeed make it up to Michael. Most
involved them being naked. “Do you want to get something
to eat?”

Shaking his head, Michael pulled on his coat. He lifted his

shoulders as he stretched. “Home will do just fine.”

Home. Evan smiled. They’d been renting the one-bedroom

apartment for a month since leaving Blackhill. The sense of
pack that came about after the night the hunters attacked
Mason and Niall’s home had been a hard one to break. As a

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group, they’d been strong and secure, and Evan had been
happy to stick around for four months. He’d probably have
stayed longer if Michael hadn’t made the decision to move
on.

The idea to leave had actually been a seed planted by

Mason.  He  understood  Michael  better  than  anyone  and
knew it was time for Michael to grow as an individual, as a
man, not just how he had developed within the dynamics of
the  pack.  The  fact  Mason  was  able  to  give  Evan  and
Michael’s  burgeoning  relationship  his  blessing  brought
about  an  overwhelming  feeling  of  pride  in  Evan.  Mason
trusted  Evan  to  look  after  Michael,  and  that  meant  a  lot.
Evan didn’t know how long they’d stay in the city, and he
didn’t really care, as long as he was at Michael’s side.

Stepping outside, both men pulled their coats around

them. The wind brought with it chilling rain. Evan grabbed
Michael by the hand and they jogged across the street in
search of shelter. The buildings protected them a little from
the wind but the rain was getting heavier. Michael slipped
free of Evan’s hold and sprinted in front of him. He turned
around and looked at Evan and then up at the sky. His hair
had grown in the last few months and was plastered to his
head in wet, dark locks.

What are you doing? He followed Michael, who walked

backward along the sidewalk.

Have you ever danced in the rain?
Evan watched Michael curiously. No.
Michael stopped and outstretched his arms. Me either. He

looked up at the sky above the city.  It’s so big. He wiped at
his  face  and  lowered  his  gaze  to  meet  Evan’s  eyes.  Water
clung to his lashes and his beautiful amber eyes held a smile.
Evan  wasn’t  sure  he’d  ever  seen  Michael  look  so  happy.
Walking briskly forward, he took Michael by the hand once
more and guided him down an alley. He pushed Michael so
his back was to the building. He cupped Michael’s face and

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ran his hands back through the young man’s dark hair. His
gaze fell to Michael’s mouth and he had the overwhelming
urge to kiss him.

Passion and desire surged through him and he pulled

Michael close. He kissed him, all openmouthed and hurried,
as if his life depended upon it. The kiss deepened as he was
granted entrance to Michael’s mouth and he slid his tongue
between Michael’s soft lips. He breathed in through his nose
and enjoyed the taste of the man—his man—on his tongue.

With a pleasurable groan, Michael leaned into him and

rested his hands on his waist. Let me love you.

Michael’s voice was in his head. A delicious shiver passed

through  his  body  as  the  kiss  turned  tender,  and  he  slowly
pulled  away.  He  met  Michael’s  gaze  and  brushed  the  wet
hair  from  Michael’s  forehead.  The  subject  of  love  in  its
gentlest form had been something Evan had tended to push
to one side. Yes, he was attracted to Michael, and hell if he
didn’t find his body amazing and the sex equally so. Saying
the word love was something else. Something deeper.

“Do you love me?” Evan asked. He watched Michael

closely. It had been a little over five months since chance had
brought  them  together,  and  in  that  time  Evan  had  seen
Michael  bloom.  Seriously,  the  man  was  incredible  and
stronger  than  anyone  Evan  had  ever  known.  There  was
much  about  Michael  that  Evan  had  grown  to  love.  That
those  things  were  all  wrapped  up  in  the  gorgeous  man
standing  in  front  of  him  often  had  him  wanting  to  pinch
himself to see if it were real.

Do you?
Michael met his eyes. There was a brightness to them that

warmed Evan’s heart.

Smiling, Evan assured him, I want you to love me.
Without hesitation, Michael answered him. I love you.
Evan stepped forward and looked deep into Michael’s

eyes. Gently, he ran the back of his hand over Michael’s

The Bad Wolf

161

cheek.  You  are  amazing.  He  leaned  forward  and  kissed
Michael  before  pulling  him  into  a  brief  hug.  Leaning  back,
Evan focused on Michael, admiring every inch of his lover’s
face.  Let  me  show  you  how  much  I  love  you.  He  breathed  in
deeply  and  closed  his  eyes.  He  opened  his  mind,  letting
Michael in, and thought on his lover and every moment they
had  shared.  He  shared  how  brave,  strong,  and  kind  he
thought Michael was, how he valued him as a friend and as
a lover, and how truly blessed he felt to have found him.

Michael’s hands closed around his and he opened his

eyes. Michael’s eyes shone as he smiled. They kissed again,
and Michael’s hands traveled south. Evan groaned as
Michael brushed his erection, and all he wanted was to claim
him right here in the rain.

Nipping Evan’s lip, Michael instructed, “Home.”
Michael didn’t hide his emotions, and his arousal

wrapped around Evan like a taut line.

The mix of his desires and Michael’s drove Evan near

crazy. Fuck, how Evan wanted the man naked and writhing
beneath him. Evan pulled Michael into a hot kiss. I love you.
He planned to show Michael how much he loved him more
than once that evening.

Michael kissed him again and grabbed him by the wrist

before venturing out into the rain. He looked over his
shoulder and grinned, letting go of Evan’s hand. “Race you
home.” He ran and Evan chased after him.

It didn’t take long for Evan to catch Michael, hooking his

arm around Michael’s waist, and spinning the man around
and into his arms. Laughing, they kissed. The rain poured
down as thunder rumbled above them.

Evan held Michael close as he kissed him. Mine.
Michael nipped and sucked at his lips. I am yours, my love.

About the Author

Meredith Russell lives in the heart of England. An avid fan
of many story genres, she enjoys nothing less than a happy
ending.  She  believes  in  heroes  and  romance  and  strives  to
reflect  this  in  her  writing.  Sharing  her  imagination  and
passion  for  stories  and  characters  is  a  dream  Meredith  is
excited to turn into reality.

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