Wolves Of Stone Ridge 9 - Casey's Love Bite

Caspian Carpathian is a nearly two centuries old vampire. He’s learned to control not only his

blood  lust,  but  his  emotions  as  well.  That’s  how  he  became  the  perfect  diplomat  for  the  Vampire
Council. In an effort to warn the vampire population ahead of time, Caspian is sent to Stone Ridge to
learn  about  the  scientists  threatening  shifters.  He’s  not  prepared  to  come  face  to  face  with  his
beloved. After a rocky start, he discovers that Casey, a small bunny shifter, fears him and his teeth.
Now  Caspian  has  to  use  every  ounce  of  restraint  he  can  manage  and  every  seductive  tactic  in  his
arsenal to win the trust of the one man that completes him.

Casey Streusel is beyond grateful to a number of members of the Stone Ridge wolf pack. After all,

they saved him from an almost certain torturous death at the hands of scientists. Sure, Casey is still
extremely skittish and deathly afraid of needles, but he’ll get over that eventually, right? Discovering
his mate is a bloodsucking vampire throws his newly completely off-kilter. He suddenly battling two
sets of urges, both new to him. Can he figure out how to relinquish control to his mate and accept the
pleasure he offers? Or will he give in to his desire to flee from those needle-sharp fangs?
created world finds himself

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Casey’s Love Bite

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Chapter One

aspian Carpathian glared at the GPS unit. It told him the address he’d entered was almost a

quarter mile back behind him, but there had been nothing but trees for the last seven miles. Growling
softly, he punched several buttons, silencing the unit’s insistent voice telling him to turn around.

Seconds later, he slammed on the brakes when a deer appeared out of the gathering gloom and

bounded across the narrow road directly in front of him. The SUV skidded to a halt. He let out a sigh
and rested his head on the steering wheel, breathing deeply and thanking the gods for his vampire
reflexes.

He ’d have damned the deer for its possibly painful sudden appearance, but when he looked back

up, he spotted a gravel and dirt track branching off to his right. Caspian turned down the driveway, if
you could call it that, because he thought it looked extremely overgrown with deep potholes and a
couple ruts. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought the road was so overgrown because the
alpha wolf wanted people to miss him.

Caspian had bought the SUV for the legroom, needing it to comfortably fit his six-foot-three inch,

slender frame. Now he felt grateful for the high undercarriage as he bounced down the driveway.
Keeping a firm grip on the wheel, he navigated the rough terrain as best he could in the dark and
finally, after he felt certain his fangs had just about rattled out of his jaw, he stopped the vehicle in
front of a large, lodge-style building with stunning brickwork and a wraparound porch.

He took his time getting out of the car, taking in the impressive home and dark pine forest around

him.  Inhaling  deeply,  he  felt  a  fissure  of  surprise  slither  down  his  spine  upon  smelling  not  only
wolves,  but  a  couple  other  shifter  scents  he  couldn’t  easily  identify.  He  assumed  one  of  the  smells
would be the elephant shifter he hoped to get a chance to speak with, but he couldn’t be sure since
he’d  only  dealt  with  wolf  and  cat  shifters  in  the  past  and  couldn’t  readily  identify  other  species  by
scent.

Cautiously, he strode toward the deck. It wasn ’t often he ventured into a shifter’s territory, but

Caspian had been ordered by the Vampire Council to learn everything he could about these scientists
that Adalric had told them particular wolf, tolerant of other shifters in his territory, and Caspian
really hoped that acceptance extended to other paranormals in general.

When no one appeared outside to confront him, he climbed the steps and rang the bell. A moment

later a short, slender blond opened the door. Although the man’s aroma confirmed that he was human,
wolf scent saturated his skin, telling Caspian the man was someone’s mate. Declan is definitely more
tolerant.
about. Fortunately, he’d heard this Declan McIntire, was exceptionally

Most alphas still don ’t consider humans good enough to mate. Very interesting!

“Can I help you?” the blond asked warily.
Caspian gave him a smile, keeping his lips carefully closed to hide his fangs. Even though this man
probably knew about vampires since he was mated to a shifter, it didn’t mean Caspian might not scare
him. “Good evening,” he said.“I’m looking for the alpha of the house.”
The human’s brow lifted and then he gave Caspian a smile.“Of course. Please come in.”
He nodded and stepped through the door. It was a good thing the myth about having to invite a
vampire into your home was total bullshit, otherwise this poor unsuspecting human would have been
screwed, and not in the way Caspian suspected he enjoyed.
He’d just made it into the foyer and stepped aside so the blond could close the door when a roar

erupted  from  the  bowels  of  the  home.  A  massive  angry  African  American  barreled  down  the  hall
toward  him,  and  it  took  everything  in  Caspian  to  remain  calm  and  lift  his  hands  in  surrender.  The
alpha closed strong fingers around his neck and slammed him against the wall.
“Declan!”
He  heard  the  human’s  shocked  cry,  and  some  part  of  his  mind  registered  that  he  now  knew  that  the
human was the alpha’s mate. And that explained the attackfirst-ask-questions-later policy.
“What are ye doing here, vampire?”
“My name is Caspian Carpathian,” he managed to get out.“I mean you and your mate no harm.”
Slowly, the hand around his throat loosened, easing the pressure on his windpipe. He wanted to draw
a sigh of relief, but didn’t think he was out of the woods just yet.
Declan backed away, grabbing his mate and pushing the slender blond man behind him.“What are ye
doing here?”
“There  are  really  vampires?  I  thought  you  all  were  just  pulling  my  leg.”  The  human  tried  to  peer
around Declan’s much bigger frame.
“Aye, Lark,” Declan said, giving Caspian the human’s name.“There really are vampires.” Even as he
confirmed their existence to his mate, the wolf’s focus never left Caspian. “Now what are ye doing in
me territory? What coven sent you?”
Caspian shook his head slowly.“I’m not affiliated with a coven,” he admitted. He saw the curling of
Declan’s lip and hurried to explain, knowing how pack animals viewed those not part of a group.“I’m
an arbitrator between covens. A scholar they turn to when they have questions, and a diplomat for the
Vampire Council.”
That had Declan’s eyes narrowing further. “A diplomat,” he stated.“Why would the Vampire Council
send a diplomat here?”
“They’re interested in finding out more about the scientists that are targeting shifters,” he explained.
“Why? I’ve not found any evidence that they even know about yer kind.”
Caspian lowered his arms to his side, seeing that the shifter seemed more relaxed.“That may be. But
if  our  situations  were  reversed,  wouldn’t  you  want  to  know  about  it? You  could  warn  your  people
ahead of time, so they know there’s a possible risk.” he pointed out.
Declan nodded once.“I see yer point. Let’s go to me study and I’ll tell ye what’s been going on.” He
wrapped an arm around Lark’s waist and gestured down the hallway.
Even though he didn’t like having the shifter at his back, Caspian knew it would be rude to balk at
walking in front of him. He gritted his teeth and strode forward. A low chuckle sounded behind him,
and he knew Declan could read the tension in the lines of his back, or maybe he scented it. Whichever
way,  the  other  man’s  murmured  words  confirmed  he’d  sensed  Caspian’s  unease.  “Relax,  Caspian
Carpathian. I don’t attack others without provocation. Even vampires. Turn left there.”
“And the episode at the door?” he asked dryly, glancing over his shoulder.
Declan gave him a toothy grin.“Defending me mate, of course.”
“Of  course,”  he  replied,  obeying  Declan  and  moving  into  a  spacious  office.  A  large  oak  desk
dominated one end of the room, while several leather chairs and couches filled the space on the other.
“Lark,  will  ye  get  us  some  coffee  and  perhaps  a  few  of  those  fantastic  cinnamon  rolls  from  Brad’s
Bakery?”
Caspian turned to watch the couple in the doorway and saw Declan peck a soft kiss to his mate’s lips.
Interesting,  the  big  shifter  has  a  soft  spot  for  his  mate  that  doesn’t  seem  to  be  based  strictly  on
possessiveness. Nice to see.
The small human nodded, then slipped from the room. Declan lifted a hand, motioning for Caspian to

choose  a  seat,  so  he  did,  settling  into  the  soft  leather  of  a  comfortable  armchair.  Declan  seated
himself  on  the  couch  at  a  right  angle  to  him,  but  instead  of  easing  into  the  comfortable  looking
cushions, he leaned forward, settled his forearms on his thighs and pinned his dark brown-eyed gaze
on Caspian.
“Where did the vampires hear about our troubles from?” he asked bluntly.
Caspian  could  appreciate  Declan’s  interest  in  that  information.  Vampires  and  shifters  often  ran  in
completely  different  circles.  Shifters  normally  steered  clear  of  heavy  populations,  keeping  their
territory to more remote areas since they needed room to shift and run. Vampires needed humans for
their blood, so covens tended to form near large cities. When the two groups did come into contact, it
was  often  due  to  turf  wars,  which  didn’t  encourage  open  communication.  He  opened  his  mouth  to
respond when a soft, melodic voice reached his ears.
“There’s really a vampire here?” someone in another part of the house asked.
“Yeah. Declan went all protective on his ass until the guy assured us he wasn’t here to cause trouble,”
Lark replied faintly.
Caspian lifted a brow, pinning his focus on Declan, who snorted and shrugged.“Instinct,” he said, as
if that one word explained everything, and it did.
“Can I meet him?” the first man asked Lark.“I’ve never met a vampire before.”
“Sure, Casey. Grab the cinnamon rolls and I’ll take the coffee. Hey, do vampires eat food? I thought
they lived off blood,” Lark asked.
Caspian straightened in his chair. He didn’t relish being a spectacle for some ignorant stranger and
frowned at Declan.
The shifter had the audacity to smirk.“Come on, man. How many shifters have ye met in yer life?”
“Enough,”  he  snapped  before  regaining  his  composure.  Caspian  returned  Declan’s  smirk.  “The
cinnamon rolls had better be worth it.”
To  his  surprise,  Declan  threw  his  head  back  and  laughed. After  a  few  seconds,  he  got  a  handle  on
himself  and,  between  chuckles,  replied,“Aye,  they  are.  Ye  won’t  be  disappointed.”  A  large  grin
spread over Declan’s face.“I think I may end up likin’ ye, Caspian Carpathian.”
Caspian had to admit his own instincts told him that Declan was a response was followed by a short
albino.  The  little  man  couldn’t  stand  more  than  five  feet  and  would  maybe  reach  Caspian’s
breastbone if he were standing. But damn is he cute!
His short white hair was cut into wispy waves that framed his lovely oval face and exotic pink eyes.
He  wore  an  orange  short-sleeved  t-shirt,  showing  off  toned  arms.  A  green  wrap  was  around  his
elbow,  as  if  he’d  just  had  blood  drawn  recently.  But  it  was  the  man’s  limp  that  roused  Caspian’s
normally dormant curiosity most. Lifting his gaze to the cutie’s face, Caspian realized the limp didn’t
cause pain, so it had to have something to do with muscles or tendons.
Shifters, like vampires, could heal from almost anything. Is he still healing from something? What
good man. His need to think up a interrupted by the arrival of Lark,
happened to this man? And why the hell do I care?

Lark approached him, holding a serving platter containing several mugs as well as a small pitcher

of creamer and bowl of sugar.“Since Declan said to get you coffee, I’m assuming you drink it?” the
blond asked, his blue eyes showing open curiosity.

“ Yes, thank you,” he replied.“And I do eat food. Although I drink blood, real food is also a

requirement for a vampire’s survival.”
“Oh,” Lark muttered, his face flushing.

Not really intending to embarrass the human, he smiled and moved the conversation forward. He

wasn’t a diplomat for nothing.“Declan tells me the cinnamon rolls are delicious. Did you or your
friend make them?” he asked cordially, not really caring about the answer as he helped himself to a
mug of coffee from Lark’s tray.

“ Um, no,” Lark replied, quickly regaining his composure.“A local shifter is an amazing baker and

we like to keep some of his goodies at the house. His cinnamon rolls are his specialty and they really
are fantastic.”

Caspian nodded slightly, looking toward the pastries on the tray held by the other man. Their

sweet scent called to him on a more primitive level than he expected, and to his surprise, he felt his
shaft stir. As the albino with the food stopped in front of him, the wonderful aroma hitting his senses
intensified. His blood surged south and his cock wasn’t the only thing that suddenly ached. His fangs
itched and a low growl rolled through Caspian’s throat as realization struck. It wasn’t the sweets that
called to him, it was the shifter! This guy could very well possibly be his adorato, his beloved.

“ Mine!” he snarled, dropping the cup, not caring what happened to it, and reached for the sweet-

smelling man in front of him. He wrapped his hands around the small shifter’s arms, just below where
they met his shoulder, careful to keep the claws that had lengthened from his nails from digging into
the guy’s flesh.

A hard pull had the shocked albino forward and sprawling over his lap, the cinnamon rolls

tumbling from his hands and clattering gods knew where. The feel of the man’s compact body against
his own had a pleased groan rumbling up his chest. Caspian’s vision hazed, giving everything a
reddish tint, and he knew his eyes had turned blood red, something that happened only when a
vampire fought or fed. Caspian knew which one he wanted, needed, to do right now.

Caspian buried his face in the small man ’s neck, inhaling deeply. Loving the effect the scent had

on his jerking shaft, Caspian placed wet, open-mouthed kisses up the man’s neck. When he reached
the soft flesh behind the other man’s ear, he sucked softly. The firm body in his arms seemed to melt
into him, molding against him in Caspian’s lap. A soft sigh breathed across Caspian’s ear, telling him
exactly how much the shifter enjoyed the sensations he created.

Needing more, Caspian scraped his teeth down the throbbing vein. Imagining how wonderful this

man would taste, this man whom he was ninety-nine percent certain was his beloved, his soul mate,
had a shudder working through Caspian’s body. He couldn’t wait to confirm his suspicions. Caspian
opened his mouth and stumbling platter of suckled the pulse point of his shoulder, preparing to strike,
to give the man as much pleasure as he knew he’d receive, when his cute little man was wrenched
from his grip.

Caspian roared and leapt to his feet, only aware of his visceral reaction to reclaim the albino. He

needed to confirm that this guy was indeed the one Fate had granted him. Caspian rushed after the
alpha’s mate, who was pulling the albino out of the room.

Before he could take two steps, a massive, three hundred pound wolf drove him to the ground.

The shock of having a shifter on his chest, or maybe it was the blazing pain rocking through his head
from where it hit the coffee table on his way to the floor, had his bloodlust receding enough to think.

He froze under the heavy body and looked into the angry brown eyes of the wolf pinning him to

the floor. The murderous glint in the intelligent eyes told Caspian one thing—he’d just royally fucked
up.

“W

ait! Wait! ” Casey squealed, fighting against Lark’s hold as he was pushed from the room. He

wasn’t certain what all was going on, but he just knew he had to find a way to stop the alpha from
hurting the vampire.

“ Are you okay?” Lark asked, still holding him. “What’s wrong?”

“We have to help him,” he replied. He stopped fighting, knowing it would be the best way to get his
new friend to listen.
Lark patted his hand.“Don’t worry. Declan will be fine!”
Casey shook his head.“No. No, we need to help the vampire!”
“But he just attacked you!” Lark pointed out.“Why do you want to help him?”
Casey  knew  the  alpha-mate  was  completely  confused,  and  he  wrung  his  hands,  trying  to  understand
his own reactions.“Because—because I think he’s my mate,” he blurted out, his brain finally putting
the pieces together.
“Really?” Lark whispered after a gasp.
“Yeah.” His voice squeaked out the word, and he could see the disbelief in Lark’s expression.“I’ve
never  been  attracted  to  anyone,”  Casey  admitted,“but  I  was  attracted  to  him.”  Wrapping  his  arms
around his middle, he dropped his gaze to the floor, trying hard not to be completely mortified at his
admissions.“Yes, I was scared of him, but he startled me. Then when he started kissing up my neck, it
felt amazing,” he whispered.
Lark rested a hand on Casey’s arm in sympathy. “But then you stiffened back up,” he reminded.“I saw
it in your spine.”
“His fangs felt like needles,” he whispered.
“Oh, Casey,” Lark murmured, wrapping both arms around him and pulling him into a tight hug.
Casey knew Lark understood his problem. It had taken deep breathing exercises and half a day to gear
himself  up  to  allow  Lark  to  draw  his  blood  to  make  certain  everything  was  okay.  If  he  couldn’t
tolerate his mate’s fangs on him, how could he ever be claimed? But, first things first, Casey thought.
He  straightened  to  his  four-foot-eleven-and-three-quarter  inch  height  and  pulled  away  from
Lark.“Please don’t let Declan hurt the vampire.” And wasn’t it pathetic that he didn’t even know his
mate’s name yet?
Lark  nodded  once,  then  pivoted  and  reopened  the  door.  Walking  back  into  the  room,  Casey  saw
Declan’s wolf pinning the tall man to the office rug.“Declan,” Lark pleaded.“Please, don’t hurt him.”
The wolf stopped growling, but he didn’t move off the man.
Lark  tried  again.“There  are  things  you  don’t  know,  my  mate.  Please,  give  Caspian  a  chance  to
explain.” At those words, the vampire’s gaze jerked to focus on them. Lark crossed his arms over his
slender chest and frowned.“You can do that, can’t you, vampire?”
Caspian blinked once, his mind obviously working fast.“Yes.”
“And in the future you will control yourself in our home?” Lark pressed.
“Yes,” he instantly replied again.
Declan  gave  one  more  low  growl  before  hopping  off  Caspian’s  chest.  He  trotted  toward  them  and
stood  guard  as  Caspian  slowly  sat  up.  Casey  could  see  the  tension  vibrating  through  the  vampire’s
lean body as he climbed to his feet.
Caspian ran both his hands through his short, thick brown hair and took in a slow, deep breath. His
nostrils flared and his gaze fixed on Casey for several seconds before he spun away and crossed to

stand behind the chair he’d been sitting in earlier. He clutched the back of it, almost as if he needed to
use it as a shield.
While  Caspian  was  moving  away,  Declan  took  the  opportunity  to  shift.  The  big African American
glared at the vampire.“I allowed ye into me home. Ye assured me ye weren’t a threat, and yet the first
thing ye do is attack one of me pack.”
“I would never hurt him,” Caspian denied swiftly. “Never!”
“Explain yerself then!” Declan demanded.
Casey  couldn’t  keep  quiet  any  longer.  He  took  a  limping  step  forward,  his  arms  wrapped  securely
around his own waist, and whispered, “You’re my mate, aren’t you?”
Caspian blew out a loud breath.“I think so.”
“What?” Declan snapped, his head jerking as he looked between them. From where he stood between
Casey  and  Declan,  Lark  just  shrugged.  The  alpha  returned  his  focus  to  Caspian,  his  eyes
narrowing.“Are ye not sure if Casey is yer mate?”
He  found  himself  shivering  under  his  mate’s  intense  stare.  It  was  filled  with  heat,  and  lust,  and
something  else,  something  Casey  didn’t  understand.  Caspian  licked  his  lips,  drawing  Casey’s
attention to them. What would it be like to taste those lips? He’d never wanted to kiss anyone before.
Would Caspian give him his first kiss?
“I’m not one hundred percent certain,” Caspian murmured. The words were like a knife to Casey’s
gut, and he couldn’t stop his soft gasp of surprise. Caspian didn’t know?
“Please, understand,” Caspian added quickly.“I’m a vampire. Your blood calls to me like no one’s
ever has. That’s one of the signs that you’re my beloved, but I won’t know for certain until I actually
taste you,” he admitted.
Casey whimpered at the idea of those needle-like fangs piercing his skin, a shudder working its way
through him.“Oh.” It was the only thing he could think of to say.
“If I promise not to bite you, would you sit with me while I talk with Declan?” Caspian asked, the
pleading look in his eyes reaching deep into Casey’s heart and settling him a little bit.
He  glanced  toward  his  alpha,  and  at  the  big  man’s  lifted  brow,  he  knew  it  was  his  choice.  Declan
would back him either way. After taking a deep breath, Casey nodded.“I can do that.”
He  watched  Caspian  move  around  his  chair  and  pick  up  his  coffee  cup.  The  coffee  itself  had  long
since soaked into the rug, and the lean man grimaced.“I am sorry about that,” he said.“I’ll pay for the
cleaning.”
Casey hurried forward and picked up the platter, happy to see at least a dozen of the cinnamon rolls
were  still  on  it.  The  other  three  rolls  he  had  to  dig  out  from  under  a  sofa. A  groan  behind  him  had
Casey looking over his shoulder to see Caspian staring at his ass, an unmistakable look of lust filling
his green eyes. For a second, the color bled away to be replaced by a deep red color. Then Caspian’s
eyelids dropped, he jerked his head to the side, and when he reopened his eyes and focused on the
fresh coffee Lark was pouring, the deep glowing red was gone.
A  few  moments  later,  Casey  settled  on  the  couch  next  to  Caspian,  keeping  several  inches  between
them. Caspian cocked his head and eyed the space between them for a couple seconds before lifting
his  arm  and  asking  with  his  expression  if  Casey  would  come  closer.  He  nibbled  his  lip  for  a  few
seconds, letting his gaze rove over the other man’s face.
“I promise, nothing but my arm around you,” Caspian murmured, evidently reading his insecurity.
Inhaling  slowly,  Casey  took  in  the  vampire’s  pleasant,  citrusy  scent.  Strangely  enough,  he  found  it
settled him. He nodded. If he couldn’t trust his mate, then a relationship with the man was out of the
question. Just because the vampire had lost control before, it didn’t mean he’d do it again. Now that

Caspian  knew  Casey  was  probably  his  mate,  he  could  control  his  instincts.  Casey  curled  his  legs
under him and leaned against the man’s firm body.
Caspian’s arm came down around him, giving his opposite shoulder a light squeeze as he murmured,
“Thank you.” He didn’t wait for an answer. Instead, Caspian turned his emerald-eyed gaze to Declan,
who  now  wore  only  a  pair  of  sweats  that  had  probably  come  from  one  of  his  desk  drawers,  and
said,“The  Council  learned  from Adalric,  a  coven  leader  in  New  Mexico,  that  your  pack  has  been
fighting a private war against humans who are experimenting on your kind.”
“And where did Adalric hear of our problem?” the alpha asked.
“From the grizzly bear shifter Kontra Belikov.”
“Aye,  I  understand  now.  Here’s  what  we  know  about  the  scientists.”  Declan  launched  into  an
explanation,  telling  how  they  originally  thought  they  were  poachers,  only  to  learn  that  experiments
were being done and a network of scientists and buildings were already up and running. When they’d
find a place, they would break in and do their best to remove the shifters and destroy the scientist’s
facilities.  He  went  on  to  explain  how  they  learned  that  a  pack  of  shifters  in  Tucson  was  actually
supplying the scientists with shifters, Casey being one of them.
A low snarl vibrated through Caspian’s chest. “Casey was sold to the scientists? Who did this?” he
snapped.
“We’re not certain,” Declan admitted.“Casey said he left his herd south of there, so it wasn’t them,
and there are no other registered shifter packs in that area.”
“I still think we need to send someone down there,” a low voice cut into the conversation from the
doorway.
Casey spotted his friend Jared leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his lean chest. The
human’s  glittering  hazel  eyes  were  pinned  on  him.  Standing  behind  his  shoulder  was  Jared’s  mate,
Carson, the wolf pack enforcer. The large Native American’s focus was also riveted on him.
He  couldn’t  stop  the  blush  heating  his  cheeks  as  he  realized  what  his  two  friends  saw.  A  large,
strange  man  was  holding  Casey  tight  against  his  side.  Casey  unconsciously  pressed  closer,  taking
comfort in his mate’s warmth and scent.
“It’s not that simple, babe,” Carson stated, resting a hand on Jared’s shoulder.
Jared  tore  his  gaze  away  from  Casey  and  looked  at  Carson  over  his  shoulder.“Why  not?  We  send
someone down. They look around and report back.”
Casey knew the man’s words weren’t really meant to challenge his mate. The human just wasn’t used
to having to follow rules not his own. He’d lived a solitary life for over a decade, working alone as
an assassin, and this was an adjustment for him.
“I  don’t  have  permission  to  send  a  group  of  shifters  into  that  area,”  Declan  growled  out,  glaring  at
Jared,  not  so  understanding.  “Just  because  ye  like  to  skirt  the  laws  of  humans…skirt,  hell,”  he
snapped,  rising  to  his  feet.  “Ye  don’t  even  believe  laws  apply  to  ye,  Jared.  I  don’t  have  that  same
luxury. I break shifter law and repercussions fall not only on me, but on me pack, too.” He finished by
swiping a hand between them.“I cannot take that chance.”
Jared’s brows drew together.“What about that girl? The wolf girl? Can she tell us anything?”
Casey  knew  his  friend  referred  to  a  female  teen  wolf  shifter  who’d  been  rescued  from  a  facility  in
Boise just the week before.
“Maybe in time, but Diana’s still pretty traumatized right now. Doctor Digby will let us know when
she’s ready to share what happened to her.” Declan’s voice was firm, leaving no room for doubt that
his mind would not be changed regarding the girl.
“Wait,” Caspian spoke up, drawing everyone’s attention.“You said Casey’s herd was down there. Do

you still have family down there, little one?”
“Yeah, but I haven’t seen them in nearly a year. I didn’t leave on good terms,” he admitted.
“Who the hell are you?” Jared snapped.
“I apologize. My name is Caspian Carpathian. And you are?” Caspian responded evenly.
Carson sniffed the air, and the hand on Jared’s shoulder tightened and his eyes narrowed.“You’re a
vampire. What is a vampire doing here?”
Declan  answered.“The  Vampire  Council  learned  of  our  problems  with  the  scientists.  They  want  to
prepare their own people for the possibility that the scientists will target them next.”
Lark rose from his position on the couch and looped a hand through Declan’s arm. With a smile, he
eased the big man back onto the couch.“How do they plan to do that?” Lark asked softly, directing his
question at Caspian.
Casey wanted to know that, too.
Caspian  smiled.“Vampires  have  a  central  network  that  most  coven  leaders  keep  in  touch  through.
When  there  are  emergencies  or  rogues  loose,  they  share  that  information  with  everyone  in  the
network. Maintaining the safety of our people is the main focus. Doesn’t your Shifter Council have the
same?”
“We  did,  but  it  fell  out  of  use  half  a  century  ago,”  Declan  admitted.“I  don’t  even  know  who  I’d
contact anymore.”
“Maybe we should see if we can figure that out,” Lark suggested gently.
Declan nodded. “Aye, baby. We shouldn’t be fighting this battle alone.” He turned and looked toward
the  doorway.“Carson,  tell  Shane  his  top  priority  is  to  establish  who  in  the  Shifter  Council  handles
species  safety  matters.  It’s  time  we  started  working  together  on  this.”  He  ran  a  hand  over  his  bald
head and stood, pulling Lark with him.“Alphas have been safeguarding their territory too strongly and
need to come together again.”
“A little territorial, huh?” Jared quipped, a wry grin curving the corner of one lip.
Shrugging, Declan replied,“At times, I’m afraid.”
“Well, are you ready to give me an answer, Casey?” Caspian cupped Casey’s jaw and tilted his head
up so he could meet the vampire’s gaze.“Would you like to see your family again?” he asked softly.
Casey  took  in  the  other  man’s  calm  expression,  the  smooth  skin  of  his  jaw,  and  his  searching  look.
The man really was stunning, and all his focus was on Casey. “I’d love to see my mother and sisters
again,”  he  admitted.  His  father  and  brother  he  could  take  or  leave.  His  father’s  insistence  on  going
through with a marriage he’d arranged for him had been the last straw between them. His father had
given him an ultimatum. Marry a woman of his choosing, or leave the herd. Casey had left.
A soft press of lips brought Casey out of his memories. His eyes widened as his gaze met Caspian’s
only  an  inch  from  his  own.  Caspian’s  firm,  dry  mouth  slid  across  his  own  again  before  he  moved
back, putting a few inches between them.
“There you are, little one. You disappeared for a second there,” he murmured.
His  thumb  stroked  over  Casey’s  jaw,  and  a  shiver  worked  its  way  through  Casey.  A  pleased
expression spread across Caspian’s face.“I could take you down there to see them.”
“Really?” He cocked his head, straightening a bit. “Why?”
Caspian smiled.“Two reasons. One, I’d like to meet your family, if only to rub it in your father’s face
that you found your true mate. And two,” he shrugged, “your new pack needs information. We can get
it for them. You visiting your family circumvents the permission law.”
Casey’s  brain  latched  onto  only  one  thing.“How’d  you  know  my  father  wanted  me  to—to  marry
someone else?”

Chapter Three

aspian kept the cringe from his features. The sweetsmelling man had caught his slip. He forced a

smile, although he carefully kept his lips together, as he knew he must to hide his fangs from view. He
didn’t want to scare Casey again.“There are several ways a vampire recognizes their beloved,” he
answered slowly, carefully choosing his words.

“ You said earlier the scent of their blood was one way,” Casey said, telling Caspian that, even

though the man didn’t say much, he paid attention to everything.

He nodded. “Yes. That’s right. The second way is…” He sighed.“A vampire can pick up the

thoughts or feelings of their beloved during times of strong emotion. Once they bond, they can even
communicate telepathically,” he admitted.

He stroked a thumb over Casey’s cheekbone, relishing in the smooth white skin under his bronzed

finger. Enjoying the feel under the pad of his thumb, he stared into the man’s exotic pink eyes for a
few seconds, just because he could. “You still harbor resentment over what your father did,” he
finally whispered.

Casey stiffened in his arms. He swallowed hard and ducked his head.“Yeah. If he hadn’t tried to

push me into marrying, I wouldn’t have left my herd.”

Caspian listened, trying not to react as Casey ’s tone hardened with each word. He didn’t like his

little man upset, but Casey seemed to need to get this out.

“ If I hadn’t left my herd, I wouldn’t have spent six months, barely getting by, living on the streets

of Tucson. And I wouldn’t have been found by the wolves. I wouldn’t have been sold by them to the
scientists. I wouldn’t have been experimented on.”

He knew it was time to intercede when the man pressing against him began to tremble. Caspian

pulled Casey into his lap, ignoring the spike of lust bursting through his veins as Casey’s sweet
bubble butt settled against his hard shaft. This man needed to be held, not seduced, and it didn’t
matter if he had to have blue balls for the next week, Caspian would soothe this man.

Deciding a subject change was in order, he rubbed his cheek over Casey’s soft hair and

asked,“You keep saying you’re from a herd. I’m afraid I can’t really differentiate between shifter
scents,” he admitted. “What kind of shifter are you, my little one?”

“ A rabbit. A white rabbit,” Casey replied.

“Oh, I bet you make the most adorable rabbit,” he whispered, rubbing a hand up and down Casey’s
back. He became aware of the rest of the men in the room when Declan discreetly cleared his throat.
“If ye can promise there won’t be a repeat of earlier, I’m going to take me leave of ye. I have things to
take care of.”
“You have my word,” he assured. “I am under control.”
“What does he mean by that?” Jared asked, waving a hand at them.“What happened before?”
“Nothing  that  wasn’t  handled,”  Declan  replied  evenly.  “Lark,  ye  need  to  head  out  and  get  Sara.
Carson, contact Shane as instructed.” He moved to the door, an arm around Lark, and paused in front
of  the  other  human.“Jared,  compile  everything  we’ve  learned  so  far  about  the  shifter  pack  near
Tucson and give it to Caspian.”
Before leaving the room, Declan looked over his shoulder at Caspian.“I can’t send a bunch of shifters
with ye, but Jared will probably want to accompany ye, which means Carson will also want to go.
Despite being a little hot headed, I don’t know another human I’d be willing to have watch me back.”
Caspian’s  brows  shot  up.“High  praise  coming  from  a  pack  alpha,”  he  murmured,“although  I  don’t

need their help. I have friends of my own that would be more than happy to accompany me.”
“If you think you’re taking my friend back down there by yourself, you are out of your fucking mind,”
Jared snapped.
“Please,” Casey whispered from his lap. “Jared broke me out of the scientist’s lab. He’s been there
for me as I healed. I’d really like it if he came, too.”
An  emotion  that  could  only  be  described  as  jealousy  surged  through  Caspian.  His  mate  wanted  the
presence of another to feel safe. Caspian tried to remember that they’d just met, not to mention he’d
already scared the man once. It didn’t make him feel any better about it, but it did give him enough
presence of mind to nod. Forcing a smile, Caspian murmured,“Of course. Your friend and his mate
are welcome.”
“Oh, how gracious of you,” the human had the audacity to sneer.
Fortunately, Casey piped up,“Please, Jared. We’d planned to get down there anyway once things died
down. Besides, I’d like—I’d like to get to know Caspian better.”
The  final  words,  spoken  so  softly,  had  warmth  spreading  through  Caspian’s  chest.  He  squeezed
Casey’s shoulder and didn’t bother trying to stop his grin. His man smiled back, his gaze sweeping
over  his  face.  His  focus  riveted  onto  his  mouth.  His  smile  slipping,  Casey’s  face  blanched  and  he
looked away.
Surprised by his man’s reaction, Caspian opened his mouth to ask what was wrong when he realized
where the shifter’s gaze had been fixed. My fangs. His mood dipped. Since he was amongst shifters,
it hadn’t occurred to Caspian to control how big he smiled, to hide his fangs, like he did with humans.
I guess I’ll have to smile smaller for my beloved for a while.
“I’m  sorry,”  Casey  whispered.  He  seemed  to  know  exactly  what  happened.“I  just—I  forgot.  And
seeing them surprised me.” He slipped off his lap and Caspian forced himself to release him. Casey
didn’t  go  far.  He  turned  around  and  settled  on  the  coffee  table  in  front  of  him.“I’m-I’m  afraid  of
needles.”
“I’ll  be  outside  if  you  need  me,”  Jared  muttered.  Casey  glanced  his  way  and  nodded,  watching  the
man slip from the room. Jared softly shut the door behind him.
Caspian wasn’t certain what to make of the human, but decided to worry about Casey’s friends later.
He focused on his beloved instead.“It’s not your fault, my sweet,” he assured.“It’s mine. I shouldn’t
have  lost  control  when  I  first  smelled  you. Your  scent  came  as  quite  a  shock  for  me.”  He  leaned
forward  and  rested  his  forearms  on  his  knees.  “I’ve  been  waiting  a  long  time  to  find  my  beloved,
Casey. I guess it just got me a little excited.” He shrugged.
Casey leaned forward, and Caspian fought the urge to close the distance and kiss him. The guy really
was just too cute with his sweet, open expression, his kind, almost haunted eyes, and his obviously
thoughtful disposition. But he knew the move would destroy all the fragile ground he’d gained over
the past couple hours.
He’d  certainly  admit  the  guy  was  hard  to  resist,  though.  The  cute  little  rabbit  shifter  smelled  so
fucking  delicious!Surely  he’d  found  his  beloved—if  only  he  could  just  taste  Casey’s  blood,  he’d
know.
“Will you show me your fangs?” Casey whispered.
His brows drew into a concerned crease.“Are you sure, little one?”
Nodding, he confirmed,“Yeah. I don’t want to be scared of them.”
Casey’s  sweet  admission  nearly  destroyed  his  fragile  control.  It  took  everything  in  Caspian  to  not
grab the man and pull him close. Instead, he nodded and opened his mouth, pulling back his lips to
reveal his pointed canines.

Casey’s  stare  went  on  long  enough  that  Caspian  started  to  become  uncomfortable.  He  almost
straightened, when Casey lifted a hand and cupped his jaw. Caspian froze, amazement filling him, as
the shifter rubbed a thumb over his lip. He shuddered slightly, his eyelids dropping to half-mast, as
Casey moved the pad of his finger along his lip and down one extremely sensitive fang. The caress
transferred straight to Caspian’s cock, and he had to bite back a growl as he struggled not to let his
aching shaft lead the charge and tackle the shifter.
“So,  your  fangs  are  always  down?”  Casey  asked  tentatively,  pulling  back  slightly.“You  can’t  raise
and lower them?”
Caspian  straightened  and  took  two  calming  breaths  before  he  could  answer  intelligently.“No,”  he
answered softly.“My fangs are part of my teeth, Casey.”
“But shifters do with their canines,” Casey pointed out.
It took great effort not to snarl at the comment, as if his possible beloved found him lacking.“I am not
a  shifter,  sweet.  I  am  a  vampire.  We’re  two  different  species. You  change  into  an  animal.  I  drink
blood.” He’d thought he’d done a good job of keeping his frustration from his voice, but from Casey’s
stiffening posture and paling features, Caspian realized he’d failed, miserably.
“I’m sorry, my sweet,” Caspian crooned.“I didn’t mean to snap.”
Casey’s slender shoulders jerked. “It’s a touchy subject for you. I get it.”
Sadness filled Caspian, and he shook his head.“I don’t have problems with shifters. I really don’t. In
fact,  I  have  a  number  of  shifter  acquaintances.  Being  compared  to  them,  however,  is  something  I’m
not used to.” He grimaced and gently cupped Casey’s chin, pleased when the little shifter didn’t shy
away from him.“I’ve never tried to explain vampires to anyone before.”
“Oh,”  Casey  whispered.  His  lips,  the  pink  plump  ones  that  Caspian  ached  to  feel  against  his  own
again, formed an oh of surprise.“Never?”
Caspian  shook  his  head  and  curved  his  mouth  into  a  smile,  careful  to  hide  the  fangs  that  seemed  to
bother the shifter so much.
“No,” Casey stated.
Caspian’s brows lifted in confusion and his smile faded.
“Please  don’t  hide  from  me.”  Casey  leaned  forward  and  touched  the  corner  of  Caspian’s  mouth.
“Please.”
It  took  a  second  to  realize  what  Casey  was  referring  to,  but  once  he  got  it,  Caspian  couldn’t  have
stopped the real smile if he’d tried. His pleased grin revealed his teeth and fangs.“Sorry, sweet. It’s
habit. I’ll try not to do it around you, but remember if we’re with others, I will hide them for safety’s
sake.” He shrugged.“I’ve discovered over time that some humans just think they’re fake and give me
amused or funny looks. Others—they freak out and give me a wide berth.”
To his relief, Casey nodded.“Yeah, I can understand that.” He smiled. The look on the man appeared
almost  tentative  as  he  met  Caspian’s  eyes.“I  want  to  kiss  you.  Can  we  do  that  without  you,  um,
biting?”
Caspian gulped, weighing his words. He decided to go with the truth.“There are many things I wish to
do  with  you,  my  sweet,  but  a  kiss  would  be  a  wonderful  start. And,  yes,  I  can  do  it  without  biting
you.” It would require excessive self-control, but to win his beloved, Caspian would get it done.
For  the  longest  of  seconds,  Casey  didn’t  answer  and  Caspian  worried  he’d  said  the  wrong  thing.
Casey gave a single nod, his eyes searching his face. Evidently, he made a decision on whatever he
found, because the shifter whispered,“I…I want to try.” Casey stared into Caspian’s eyes, revealing
his vulnerability to the vampire.“Can we just go slowly?”
Caspian deliberately licked his lips and he felt a grin slowly curve over his features.“Yes, my sweet.

I can go slowly. For now,” he amended, praying he could follow through with his words.  Damn  it!
I’ll do it if it kills me!
Not letting any of his self-doubt show, he gently cupped Casey’s jaw and slowly leaned in, giving the
shifter  plenty  of  time  to  stop  him.  He  didn’t.  Caspian  sealed  his  lips  over  Casey’s  mouth.  Pressing
against  the  shifter’s  soft  lips,  he  flicked  his  tongue  out  and  teased  the  man’s  lips.  After  a  couple
touches, Casey cracked his lips, giving him access to the warm, wet recesses of his mouth.
Dipping  his  tongue  inside,  Caspian  tasted  the  shifter’s  heady  essence.  It  was  even  more  wonderful
than he had imagined, and his control quickly unraveled. He gripped Casey’s hip with his free hand,
jerked him from his perch on the coffee table and hauled him onto his lap. To his immense pleasure,
the shifter, his beloved, his adorato, offered no resistance and willingly melted against his chest.
Casey straddled his lap as Caspian plundered his mouth, dipping his tongue into his adorato’s  mouth
again and again, loving his sweet lemon flavor. This was where Casey belonged. Here, in his arms,
safe, secure, and oh-so-willing.
Suddenly,  Casey  rocked  his  rock  hard  erection  against  Caspian’s  cock,  sending  a  shudder  through
him.  Caspian’s  fangs  began  to  ache  with  a  nearly  uncontrollable  desire  to  taste  the  man  so  nicely
draped over him.
He jerked his head back, desperate for some space to regain control.“Stop!” he snarled.“Oh, by the
gods, my adorato, you must stop!”
The man on his lap froze, his shaft pressed painfully against Caspian’s. He tried to think through the
tingles of pleasure-pain shooting through his system. It took him a second to realize that the man in his
arms trembled, and his scent told Caspian it was no longer in pleasure.
That knowledge doused his desire quicker than a bucket of cold water.“I’m not upset, my sweet. I just
needed to breathe before I did something to scare you.”
Casey  hid  his  face  in  the  crook  of  Caspian’s  neck,  unconsciously  nuzzling.“Sorry  to  be  so  much
trouble,” he whispered.“I just…” he shook his head, still hiding his face for several seconds. Finally,
Caspian  felt  his  Adam’s  apple  move  as  he  swallowed  before  Casey  lifted  his  head  and  faced
him.“Where do we go from here?”
Caspian smiled at the pretty shifter. “I think that depends on you, my  adorato.  I  would  like  nothing
more than to take you to the nearest bed and show you the greatest pleasures imaginable.” A gleam of
lust  shot  through  Casey’s  eyes,  so  Caspian  knew  he  had  to  warn  the  man.“But  if  I  do  that,  I’m  not
certain I could keep myself from biting you,” he admitted.
The concerned crease in his little beloved’s eyes told Caspian all he needed to know. He pressed one
more quick, closed-mouth kiss to Casey’s lips and then settled him back on the coffee table.“I know
you’re  not  ready  for  that  yet,  so  perhaps  we  should  just  get  to  know  each  other  better.  I  still  have
things I need to talk to Declan about, then we need to make our plans to head south.”

Chapter Four

asey nodded, uncertain if he felt relief or regret. His erection had wilted when Caspian snarled at

him. He’d seen the flash of red light in the vampire’s eyes as he struggled to regain control of himself.
For a tense couple of seconds, he’d thought the man would try to bite him again. He shivered.

The idea of those pointed teeth sinking into his skin freaked him out. He knew it wasn’t the same

as having a regular needle inserted into him, and he figured it would probably even be pleasurable,
but he couldn’t seem to get his mind to accept that information.

“ Hey, don’t beat yourself up about it, my adorato,” Caspian murmured, trailing a finger down

Casey’s temple to his jaw.

The touch sent a shiver running down his neck. He smiled, liking the sensation.“What does that

mean?”
“What?”
“Adorato?”
Caspian smiled. His mouth was closed, but the smile still reached his eyes, deepening the green to a
dark  emerald  color.“Beloved,”  he  whispered.“You  are  my  beloved,  my  heart.”  He  pecked  another
kiss to Casey’s lips and Casey found he really enjoyed how that felt.
“I like how your kisses feel,” he admitted softly.
“Oh, yeah,” he teased.“Better than anyone else’s?”
Casey paused, looking at his mate, wondering why Caspian would even doubt such a thing. Even if he
had ever kissed someone else before, Casey just knew they’d never compare to any kisses from his
mate.
Caspian  cleared  his  throat  and  rose  from  his  chair,  and  seeing  the  way  he  was  not  looking  at  him,
Casey realized he’d been quiet too long. He leapt to his feet and grabbed the bigger man’s hand.“I’ve
never kissed anyone else before,” he admitted.“I’ve never done anything with anyone before.”
“What?”
The  gasped  word  conveyed  his  mate’s  shock  and  amazement,  disbelief  even.  Casey  stared  up  at
Caspian, taking in the man. He stood around six foot three and Casey barely reached the middle of his
chest. He was lean and muscular, and his green eyes pierced Casey as if he was trying to look into
Casey’s soul.
He shrugged.“It’s true. I’d never been attracted to anyone. That was one of the things that my dad and
I always argued about. I didn’t think I was gay, just, well, uninterested.”
Caspian’s  brows  drew  together,  clearly  concerned.  “And  now  that  you  know  your  mate  is  male,  is
that a problem for you?”
He  thought  about  all  the  relationships  he’d  seen  over  the  past  couple  weeks,  between  the  crazy
protective love Declan bestowed on companionship between Gordon confrontational explosions that
Lark, the quiet and Grady, to the happened between Carson and Jared that ended in wildly passionate
encounters.  Well,  he  assumed  they  were  from  some  of  the  noises  he  overheard,  since  they  always
managed to yank each other into a room and slam the door.
A bubble of mirth flooded him and he giggled. “No.”
“Good,” Caspian replied quickly, taking him at his word.“Let’s go find Declan.”
Casey nodded. He liked how Caspian took his hand, intertwining their fingers together, so he could
keep him close as he led them from the room. When Caspian opened the door, Casey spotted Jared
leaning against the opposite wall.

He lifted a brow, as his gaze dropped to their clasped hands.“Everything okay, Case?”
Casey nodded.“Yeah. It’s good.”
Jared  nodded.“Just  about  everyone’s  in  the  kitchen  and  dining  room.  Lark  will  be  back  with  Sara
soon and then supper will be on.” He led the way down the hall, grumbling,“I’m tired of these dark
days already and it’s not even Christmas.”
Carson glanced up as they stepped into the room, pausing in setting the table.“Just wait until January,
babe,”  Carson  teased,  obviously  having  heard  Jared’s  grumbles.“You  think  east  coast  winters  are
dark and cold, Rocky Mountain snows are downright frigid.”
Stepping into Carson’s embrace, Jared grinned at his mate.“Good thing you’re here to keep me warm
then, huh?”
Casey giggled as he watched the two men engage in a deep lip lock.
Caspian chuckled.“Are they always like this?” he softly.
“They’re worse,” Casey replied with a snicker. “Normally by now one of them would have wrenched
the other into a room, the door would have slammed shut, and then a body would thud against it.”
“How do you know that?” Caspian asked, squeezing Casey’s hand to get his attention.
He grinned up at his mate.“I live with them. I was just here so Lark could draw blood for the last of
my  blood  work.  He  wanted  to  make  certain  everything  healed  as  well  as  possible  after  what  the
scientists did to me.” Casey tried to state it matter-of-factly, but just the memory of what he’d gone
through at the scientist’s hands, and then having to endure Lark’s needle so he could confirm that all
the scientist’s drugs were finally out of his system had a shudder working through his body.
A soft growl erupted from Caspian’s throat right before the man crushed Casey to his body. He froze,
uncertain, but then Caspian’s cheek nuzzled the top of his head, and he whispered,“I don’t know if I’m
upset  because  you  live  with  other  men,  or  because  you  had  to  go  through  so  much,  but  holding  you
makes me feel better.”
Casey pressed his cheek against Caspian’s chest and sighed.“I like being held by you,” he admitted
back. “You can hold me any time.”
“Good,” Caspian growled.
“Caspian, what are your intentions toward Casey?” Carson’s question interrupted their quiet moment.
Casey  tilted  his  head  up,  watching  his  mate’s  face  as  Caspian  turned  and  lifted  a  brow  at  the  wolf
enforcer. “He is my adorato. I will bond with him, and he with me. I will do everything in my power
to make him happy,” he replied.
“Where do ye call home, Caspian?”
Smiling,  the  vampire  turned  to  Declan.  “Twenty  questions,  huh?”  When  no  one  responded,  Caspian
replied,“I own a home an hour and a half outside Atlanta, Georgia, near where some of the others on
the Vampire Council live.”
Casey drew his brows together in concern.“That’s a long way away,” he whispered.
“I’m not there an awful lot,” Caspian admitted.“I do a lot of traveling, if not for the Council, then for
other  covens.”  He  squeezed  Casey’s  shoulder  and  gave  him  a  smile  before  refocusing  on
Declan.“Which  brings  me  to  a  request  passed  on  by  a  coven  in Africa.  They  share  territory  with  a
small  elephant  shifter  herd  that  is  struggling  to  maintain  its  bloodlines.  The  shifters  are  looking  for
new blood. They heard that an elephant shifter has relocated here and wondered if he’d be interested
in—”
“Ye must mean Doctor Gordon Digby,” Declan cut in quickly. “He’s already mated. I doubt he’d be
interested in anything they have to offer.”
Casey wasn’t certain if he appreciated  the  change  in  subject  or  not.  He  knew  his  friends  wanted  to

protect him, especially since he’d leaned on them as he healed and recuperated. Now that he’d found
his mate, would Caspian want to take care of him? Did he even want that? He’d just applied for a job
in Colin City at Brad’s Bakery. He’d planned to make a life here, be his own man—could he do that
now that he’d found a mate that traveled the world?
Caspian  held  up  his  hand,  and  Casey  tried  to  refocus  his  attention,  deciding  to  worry  about  the
possible complications later.“They actually know he’s mated,” Caspian admitted. “They were hoping
to work out something for sperm.”
“I’ll give ye his number,” Declan replied.
“Thank you,” Caspian said.
Lark walked in with Sara, who greeted everyone with youthful enthusiasm, taking it in stridethat she’d
found a vampire in her home. The doctor headed upstairs and returned a few moments later, followed
by  Gustav  Hermance.  Casey  recognized  the  six-foot-six,  bronzed-skinned  man  as  the  rhino  shifter
rescued  from  the  Idaho  facility  with  two  others.  He’d  discovered  through  overheard  conversations
that a lion shifter had also been rescued, but he’d already returned to his pride in Montana.
Twenty minutes later they were all seated for supper. With the innocence of a youngster, Sara drilled
Caspian with a number of questions that Casey hadn’t been able to figure out how to tactfully voice.
“So, how old were you when you were turned?” she asked curiously.
Caspian  chuckled.“Vampires  aren’t  turned,  Sara,”  he  replied.“Just  like  shifters  are  born  and  not
made, vampires are born. Humans cannot be turned into vampires.”
“Huh,” she muttered.“Does that mean you’ve drank blood your entire life?”
“No,”  Caspian  said.“When  vampires  go  through  puberty,  sometime  between  thirteen  and  sixteen,  a
vampire will slip into what appears to be a coma for three to seven days. They’ll wake periodically
to hunt for blood. Their parents will normally have either a donor nearby, or bagged blood.”
“I’m sorry. Donor?” Carson cut in.
Caspian grimaced as he glanced toward the youngster. A wave of unease flooded Casey, and he tried
to  pinpoint  the  source  of  his  sudden  anxiety.  It  wasn’t  until  Caspian  started  speaking  that  Casey
realized he was picking up his mate’s tension.
“I assume your claiming bite is pleasurable,” he said slowly, glancing around the table.
Casey  immediately  spotted  Jared’s  big  grin,  but  when  Jared  went  to  open  his  mouth,  he  grunted
instead. Casey hid his smile behind a hand, knowing Carson had jabbed his mate in the ribs.
Declan nodded curtly.
Clearing  his  throat,  Caspian  muttered,“Vampires  can  choose  to  give  that  same…enjoyment  to
whoever they bite. Humans like to take advantage of that,” he muttered the last couple words quickly.
Sara  looked  around  at  the  men  occupying  the  table  and  then  rolled  her  eyes.“Geez,  didn’t  you  guys
know that sex-ed is given in ninth grade? I’ve known about sex for ages.”
“Sara,” Declan scolded gently.
She sighed.“Sorry, Papa,” she replied, dropping her gaze in a clear move to express her submission
to not only her alpha but her adopted father. Seconds later, her head popped up and she asked,“So,
can you guys tell the difference between humans and shifters?”
Casey wasn’t the only one who was grateful for the subject change.
Caspian smiled and nodded. “Yes. Traditionally, human blood is standard fare and has a smooth, dry
taste. A shifter’s blood is more bitter, but also more nutritious for a vampire, allowing us to go longer
between feedings. A demon’s blood is toxic to us, and an elf’s blood is like drinking ice wine.” At
her confused brow scrunch, he grinned.“Incredibly sweet.”
“So,  there  are  demons  and  elves,  too?”  Lark  said.  “What  about  angels? And  dragons?  How  about

gnomes or imps?” he added eagerly.
Caspian grinned, but it was Declan who answered. “Aye, Aye, but don’t expect to see any, and no.”
For a second, Lark’s brows scrunched, then his blue eyes widened.“Really? There are really dragons
out there?” Declan chuckled, and Lark’s jaw “Why wouldn’t we see them?”
“Because they’re incredibly intelligent, creatures that have seen what humans are capable of,”
Caspian replied dryly, shaking his head.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Jared snarled.
Casey touched his friend’s hand where it rested on the table, tightly clenched around a fork.“I’m sure
he didn’t mean it the way it sounded.”
Caspian grimaced.“Sorry. I don’t normally converse about paranormal creatures with humans present.
It’s nothing personal, but try to see it from our perspective. Animals go extinct every year, and that’s
just due to loss of habitat. Hunted animals, animals considered a threat to human population, like
alligators, snakes, komodo dragons…they’re in danger of extinction as dropped.

magical well. Imagine what would happen if a large, predatory animal was revealed. It would be

gone after with extreme prejudice,” he pointed out.

Jared grunted. “Yeah. I gotcha. We don’t even care about killing our own race. Why would we

care about killing off a dragon?”

“ Right,” Caspian responded, drawing the word out slowly.

From his drawn brows and the intense look on his face, Casey knew he was trying to figure out how
sincere Jared was being.
Everyone fell silent, and they ate the salad, steak, mashed potatoes, and green beans in silence. Casey
enjoyed his salad, piling the green beans on top. He cut off a two ounce portion of a steak for himself.
As a bunny shifter, he wasn’t interested in a lot of meat. Caspian seemed more than happy to eat the
remaining ten ounces.
“What’s yer timeframe for heading south?” Declan asked once the meal was nearly complete.
Caspian and Casey exchanged a look, but Casey couldn’t begin to read the bigger man’s expression.
Caspian smiled, almost as if to reassure him.
“I  have  to  report  to  the  Council,  but  that  can  be  done  via  conference  call. After  that,  it  depends  on
your friends and a couple buddies of mine that I’ll ask to come.”
Declan  nodded  and  turned  to  Carson.“Before  ye  go,  I’d  like  ye  to  start  thinking  about  others  in  the
pack who’d make good enforcers.”
Carson paled.“You’re replacing me?”
The alpha shook his head quickly.“Of course not, Carson. Ye’re the best enforcer I’ve ever had the
privilege of working with,” Declan quickly soothed the agitated wolf. “But with the size of our pack,
one enforcer really isn’t enough anymore. Plus, with ye traveling so much and the danger the scientists
represent,  we  need  a  couple  more.  I’m  thinkin’  if  ye  made  a  list  of  half  a  dozen  possible  wolves,
we’ll give them a chance to fight it out for position.”
A small smile curved the Native American’s lips. His relief was almost palpable.“Thank you, Alpha.
I’ll come up with a dozen wolves, and you can wean the list to those you think are best. I’ll have the
list to you before we leave for Tucson,” he promised.
“Perfect,” Declan replied.
Casey  helped  Lark  do  the  dishes  while  the  silent  Gustav  lumbered  back  upstairs.  The  others
wandered  back  to  the  office  to  discuss  what  they  knew  about  Tucson,  including  what  Casey  had
shared regarding where he’d been caught and how many wolves he’d seen.
“Does it bother you that they didn’t invite you for their conversation?”

Casey set down the dishes and paused to look at Lark.“No. I don’t want to talk about what happened
to me again,” he admitted.“If they can decide what needs to be done without any input from me, I’m
okay with that.”
Lark  lifted  a  blond  brow  and  nodded.  “I  can  understand  that. You’ve  been  through  a  lot  in  the  last
year or so.”
Casey nodded back, turning to head back out of the room. He paused when Lark dropped a hand to his
shoulder and squeezed.
“I really hope this works out well for you.”
He inhaled deeply and then let out a shuddering breath. Casey nodded again.
“Are you okay?”
“What if I can’t let him claim me?” he whispered his fears.
Lark  pulled  him  into  a  hug,  rubbing  a  hand  soothingly  over  his  back.“You  let  me  draw  blood,”  he
pointed out gently. “And he said at dinner that a vampire’s bite is pleasurable.”
“He scraped his fangs up my neck in the office. That’s why I tensed up,” he reminded Lark. “They felt
like needle pricks against my neck,” he whispered.
“What  makes  it  different  for  me  to  draw  blood  as  opposed  to  the  possibility  of  your  mate?”  Lark
asked gently.
“But I know you.”
“You didn’t the first time.”
Casey grimaced.“But Jared was there. He vouched for you, and he was the one who saved me from
the scientists.”
“So you take a couple days to get to know Caspian. Spend time with him. He seems like a decent guy,
even  considering  what  first  happened  in  the  office.”  Then  Lark  grinned  cheekily.  “Besides,  he  can
give you pleasure when he draws blood,” he teased.
Blushing, Casey couldn’t stop his giggle.“That’s true.” Then his mirth faded and he grimaced.“If I get
past that first time, I’m sure there won’t be future issues, right?”
Lark gave him a smile.“Yeah. Yeah.”
He  said  the  words,  but  his  tone  didn’t  sound  too  certain.  Casey  took  a  deep  breath  and  let  it  out
slowly. “Fate wouldn’t give me the wrong mate.” He forced more surety into his words than he truly
felt, but he had to believe it. There was so much pain in his past. Didn’t he deserve a little happiness?
“Hey,” Lark interrupted his tormented thoughts.“I bet you’ll be able to see the world! That would be
amazing!”
He  released  the  other  man  and  smiled.  Heading  back  to  the  dining  room  to  get  some  more  dishes,
Casey called over his shoulder, “Do you want to see the world?”
He heard Lark answer from the kitchen.“Yeah,” the small doctor admitted. “There are definitely some
places I’d like to visit.”
“How come ye’ve never said anything before, love?” Declan asked from the doorway.
Lark looked up from where he washed a skillet and smiled at his mate. “Your duties are here, and I
wouldn’t want to explore anywhere without you,” he stated firmly.
Declan  gave  Lark  a  look  of  such  love,  such  affection,  that  Casey  felt  like  he  was  intruding  on  a
private  moment.  He  returned  to  the  dining  room  to  gather  more  dishes  as  Declan  strode  into  the
kitchen and pulled Lark into his arms. Casey tried not to listen, but his shifter hearing made catching
Declan’s murmured words easy.
“I haven’t had a vacation in  over  a  century,  me  love.  Nothing  would  please  me  more  than  enjoying
some  down  time  with  ye,”  Declan  murmured.“Once  our  new  enforcers  are  chosen,  we’ll  schedule

Chapter Five

eclan had headed to the kitchen to get coffee ten minutes earlier, leaving Caspian in the office to

make his calls. Pulling out his cell, he engaged in a swift conversation with Barnaby Romero, a
vampire secretary who assured him he’d have the necessary council members ready for a conference
call at ten the next morning.

Next he hit two on his speed dial and waited. A voice answered almost immediately, “Hey, Cass!

What’s up, man? I thought you were in Hicksville!”

Caspian chuckled at his friend’s greeting. “You better watch it, Seb. I am in Hicksville and it’s

going to end up being a place I visit often.”
“What? Why?”

He grinned at Sebastian ’s incredulous tone, but his reply came out sober.“I found my adorato,

Seb.”
“Really?” Sebastian’s excitement came through the line.“I didn’t know there was a coven near there.
Where did you find your beloved?”
“He’s not a vampire,” Caspian admitted.
“A human, huh?” Sebastian interrupted.“How’d he take you being a vampire?”
“Not a human,” Caspian corrected.“He’s a shifter. A rabbit shifter.”
It  took  a  second  for  the  laughter  he  expected  from  his  friend  to  sound.  What  Caspian  didn’t  expect
was the rage that instantly coursed through his system.“Do not insult my adorato, Seb. You will not
like the consequences,” he growled.
The laughter immediately ceased.“My apologies, Caspian. I meant no offense. I just—”
“No, no,” he interrupted. Caspian sighed and rubbed a hand along the back of his neck, massaging the
tension out of his neck.“I haven’t bonded with him yet and the stress of keeping control is definitely
beginning to wear on me,” he admitted.“The idea of anything or anyone giving Casey any additional
reason not to bond with me just makes me see red.”
“Additional reasons not to bond? I know shifters aren’t best friends with vampires, but certainly he
wouldn’t reject you just because of that,” Sebastian said, clearly concerned.
Caspian shook his head, even though his friend couldn’t see it.“It’s not that. You know I was sent here
to find out about the scientists experimenting on shifters, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, they held him. I’m not sure for how long, but he ended up afraid of needles.”
Sebastian groaned in commiseration.
“Just over three and a half months.”
The whispered comment from the doorway had Caspian spinning around to find his beloved standing
uncertainly just inside the room. He smiled and held out a hand. Relief flooded Caspian when Casey
smiled and limped to his side.
“Cass? You still there?”
The faint voice from the phone reminded Caspian of what he was doing.“Yeah, just a sec,” he said
into  the  phone.  Not  waiting  for  a  response,  he  led  the  way  to  an  overstuffed  chair  and  settled  into
it.“Join me?” he asked the small man, the need to hold his beloved overriding every other desire.
After only a second of indecision, Casey settled onto his lap.“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” he said.
Caspian  wrapped  his  free  arm  around  him  and  encouraged  Casey  to  settle  against  him.  “You  can
interrupt  me  anytime,  my  adorato,”  he  assured. A  sense  of  calm  filled  him  when  Casey  rested  his

head against his shoulder and the shifter’s small body relaxed against his chest. After pressing a kiss
to the top of Casey’s head, he returned his phone to his ear.“Seb, can you and Lex hop on a flight and
get out here? My beloved and I have to head to Tucson tomorrow to meet Casey’s family and I’d feel
more secure if I had some…backup.”
“Sure,  man.  Well,  I  can’t  vouch  for  Lex,  but  I’ll  definitely  be  there.  If  he’s  not  available,  I  can
probably talk Dobs into coming,” Sebastian replied.“Expecting trouble with the in-laws?”
“Not really,” Caspian replied.“But there are some wolf shifters down in that area who have sold a
few  shifters  to  the  scientists.  Casey  has  already  tangled  with  them  once,  and  I  want  him  safe.”  He
paused  for  a  second,  listening  to  his  friend’s  grunt  of  understanding.  “And,  Seb,  I’m  not  sure  Dobs
would be the right choice on this one.”
“What? Why not?”
Caspian was surprised his friend didn’t know. The four of them had been close friends for nearly a
century.“He’s not a fan of shifters,” he muttered. He felt Casey tense against him and ran his hand up
and down his shoulder and arm to soothe him.
“I thought he was over that,” Sebastian replied.
“Not even close,” Caspian replied.
“Well,  maybe  it’s  time  then.  Besides,  if  we  ran  into  problems  with  the  wolves,  it’d  give  him  an
opportunity to get a little payback,” Sebastian added with a chuckle.
Letting out a snort, Caspian rubbed his cheek over the top of Casey’s head.“Let me know when you’re
flying in,” he said.
“You got it, man. Talk to you soon,” Sebastian replied. He’d started to pull the phone away from his
ear when he heard,“And, Cass?”
“Yeah?”
“Congratulations.”
He smiled. “Thanks, Seb.” Caspian hung up the phone and set it on the arm of the chair. Then he used
his  now  free  hand  to  cup  Casey’s  jaw  and  tilt  his  head  up  so  he  could  see  his  sweet  oval  face.
Smiling  down  at  the  pale  man  curled  up  in  his  lap,  he  murmured,“I’d  like  to  kiss  you  again.  Is  that
okay?”
The pink of Casey’s eyes seemed to deepen and he smiled.“Yes, please.”
Grinning, Caspian showed just the tips of his fangs. Pleasure slightly actually asking him for the kiss.
He  closed  the  distance  filled  him  and  moved  when  Casey  puckered  his  lips  a  hand  to  Caspian’s
shoulder, between them, going slow, giving his beloved plenty of time to get used to the idea.
He settled his lips over Casey’s and brushed against them gently, once, twice, enjoying the sensation
of  the  shifter’s  firm  lips  against  his  own.  Then  he  fit  his  mouth  over  Casey’s  more  securely  and
flicked his tongue out, tracing the shifter’s full lower lip. The soft mewl of pleasure, coupled with the
way Casey’s hand clutched the fabric of his shirt, told him that he was doing something right.
Slowly,  he  lapped  at  Casey’s  mouth,  delving  his  tongue  deeper  with  every  stroke.  As  he  gently
explored  the  man’s  lips,  he  slid  the  hand  cupping  Casey’s  jaw  down  to  the  back  of  his  neck  and
kneaded the tendons there.
Casey groaned, sinking into his grip, surrendering to his touch. He tilted his head and opened wider,
allowing  Caspian  free  rein  of  his  mouth,  letting  him  explore  the  soft  tissues  there.  Supporting  his
beloved  with  one  arm  around  his  back,  he  moved  the  second  down  his  body,  gently  teasing  one
sensitive nipple through his shirt, liking how the light touch made Casey mewl and squirm. Moving
on, he found firm flesh covering ribs and toned abs that quivered under his palm.
He  had  to  fight  back  his  own  groan  as  he  took  liberties  and  felt  his  beloved’s  muscular,  compact

body.  What  he  wouldn’t  give  to  lay  him  on  the  couch,  peel  off  every  scrap  of  clothing,  and  nibble
every inch of the man’s body. But Caspian knew Casey wasn’t ready for that.
He gently brought the kiss to an end and almost started nuzzling Casey’s neck. Even as his beloved’s
blood called to him, he knew he couldn’t get close to that yet or he’d have to start all over making up
ground. He forced himself to rub his cheek over Casey’s temple instead.
Sliding  a  hand  down  to  the  shifter’s  hip,  he  squeezed  gently  before  rubbing  his  thumb  across  the
crease between thigh and groin.“Adorato,”  Caspian  crooned,  unable  to  completely  deny  his  urge  to
touch.“May I touch you, Adorato? May I please you?”
He felt Casey’s body tense for just a split second, before he relaxed again and spread his legs just a
little wider.“I-I’d like that.”
His  barely  whispered  words  made  Caspian’s  breath  speed  up.  He  returned  his  mouth  to  Casey’s,
plunging  his  tongue  deep  into  his  beloved’s  mouth.  He  quickly  worked  the  button  of  the  shifter’s
jeans,  almost  afraid  Casey  would  change  his  mind.  Forcing  himself  to  slow  down,  to  show  Casey
how good it could be, he slipped just the tips of his fingers between the now open flaps and traced the
slender prick pressing against the cotton fabric of his briefs.
Casey shuddered in his arms, a soft gasp escaping his throat to be swallowed by Caspian’s lips. He
rubbed the pulsing vein of Casey’s covered dick, working the hard flesh. Groaning, Casey broke the
kiss,  his  head  dropping  back  against  the  arm  of  the  chair  as  his  hips  bucked  up,  trying  to  get  more
pressure on his shaft.
Clenching his jaw to keep his aching fangs away from the pale column of flesh on display to him, he
switched his gaze to Casey’s groin. With quick moves, he worked the shifter’s slender prick through
the brief’s flap. He gripped Casey’s cock and stroked it firmly.
A shocked groan escaped his beloved’s throat, and his eyes snapped open, the pink irises now dark
with passion, to stare at Caspian in shock.“Oh, by the gods, please do that again.”
Entranced by Casey’s open, honest responses, he gave him exactly what he wanted. Caspian stroked
his beloved’s cock, his grip tightening as he reached the top, causing a grunt of pleasure to escape the
other man. On the next upstroke,  he  swiped  his  thumb  over  the  head  of  Casey’s  dick,  spreading  the
bead of pre-cum oozing from his slit across the sensitive head.
“Oh—oh,  your  hand—feels  so  much  better  than  mine,”  Casey  gasped  out.  His  expression  turned
glazed as, to Caspian’s utter shock, his beloved maneuvered his legs so he sprawled across his lap.
Casey thrust his hips up, shoving his cock through the tunnel of Caspian’s fist.
Staring  down  at  the  sweet  albino,  Caspian  couldn’t  believe  the  wantonness  displayed  by  the  sexy
man. Casey’s head was thrown back, resting on the armrest. One hand clutched Caspian’s shirt and
the  other  hand  clutched  his  pant  leg.  Pulling  his  left  arm  from  around  him,  Caspian  yanked  up  the
shifter’s shirt. He exposed Casey’s tight pink nubs and quickly set to work driving the small shifter
out of his mind.
Casey’s  abs  tightened  and  trembled  as  he  rocked  his  dick  into  Caspian’s  tight  fist.  Soft  mewls  of
pleasure escaped Casey each time Caspian rubbed the wrinkled flesh under his dick’s flared head or
when  he  flicked  his  nail  into  the  leaking  slit  and  smeared  the  nearly  translucent  cream  around  the
sensitive head. Caspian felt himself falling in love with those sounds, and worked hard to get as many
as he could to erupt from Casey’s throat.
It didn’t take long, perhaps only thirty seconds or so, but by the time Casey howled his completion,
his cheeks and chest flushed pink with pleasure and blood, shooting milky white cum across his abs
and  Caspian’s  fingers,  it  was  the  most  intense  experience  of  Caspian’s  life. And  considering  he’d
lived for nearly two centuries, that was saying something.

Chapter Six

C
asey twisted his fingers together nervously. Carson settled onto the couch next to him and placed a
hand on both of his.“Relax, Case. He’ll be here soon.”

He shook his head. That wasn ’t what was making him nervous. After the most intense and

pleasurable experience of his life, his mate hadn’t come home with him. Instead, he’d helped him
clean up, helped him right his clothes, and then sent him off with Jared and Carson, giving him some
lame excuse about work in the morning.

“ What’s the matter?” Carson asked gently, squeezing his hands.

He lifted his gaze to the strong wolf enforcer.“Why did he leave me last night? Doesn’t he want me?”
Carson’s dark brows creased, and he looked toward the doorway. Jared pushed away from where he
leaned a shoulder against the wall and crossed the room. He dropped to his knees and stared up at
Casey, his normally hard hazel eyes filled with understanding.“I admit, I think he’s an ass for leaving
you,” Jared stated in his typical blunt fashion.“But I understand why he did. He’s here on assignment
for  the  Vampire  Council.  There  are  some  things  he  needs  to  complete.  It’s  not  personal,  Case,”  he
assured.
“Are you sure?” Casey hated that he felt so uncertain, but his bunny was trembling with doubt in his
mind.“Maybe I’m too much trouble.”
Carson growled softly, drawing his attention.“If he thinks you’re too much trouble, he doesn’t deserve
you,” he snapped.
To Casey’s surprise, it was Jared who defended Caspian.“Now, babe, you of all people should know
not to judge a book by its cover. You gave me a chance. Surely vampires take care of their mates as
well as I take care of you.” He practically purred the last few words, and halfway through his speech,
Jared had trained his focus on Carson.
Casey could smell the arousal flood the air around him as Carson suddenly grinned, his dark brown
eyes smoldering as he stared at his mate. “Point taken. Besides, we’ll be there if Casey needs us.”
“Exactly.”
Casey rolled his eyes, realizing his presence was no longer registered by either man. His suspicions
were  confirmed  when  Carson  grabbed  the  back  of  Jared’s  head  and  yanked  him  forward  into  a
plundering  kiss.  In  the  past,  he’d  watched  them  make  out  with  an  almost  analytical  fascination,  but
now he understood what it felt like to be on the receiving end of one of those kisses.
His memory of Caspian’s firm lips and thrusting tongue had his dick thickening in his jeans. Unable to
keep watching while he wondered if his own mate still wanted him, he rose and strode from the living
room. He closed the sliding doors, but could still hear Carson’s throaty growl followed by a thump,
then Jared’s low chuckle.
Shaking  his  head,  he  turned  toward  the  kitchen,  thinking  maybe  a  cup  of  tea  would  help  settle  his
nerves.  He’d  just  pulled  a  mug  from  the  cupboard  when  the  doorbell  rang.  Knowing  the  other  two
men  wouldn’t  bother  stopping  for  something  as  trivial  as  welcoming  a  guest,  Casey  limped  through
the house to the door.
Casey  pulled  the  door  open  and  stared  up  at  the  vampire  smiling  down  at  him.  “Hello, adorato.  I
finished my meeting early, and wanted to see you. I hope you don’t mind.”
He blinked, trying to work moisture into his suddenly dry mouth. Gods, my mate is stunning. A throat
clearing caught his attention, and Casey realized Caspian wasn’t alone. Gathering his wits, he smiled
and held the door open wider.“Of course, you’re always welcome,” he said.“And your friends, too.”

Caspian stepped forward and pulled Casey into his arms.“I wanted to do this, too,” he whispered.
When  the  vampire’s  lips  came  down  on  his  own,  Casey  melted  against  his  hard  body.  The  arms
around him tightened, lifting him, and he instinctively wrapped his legs around the lithe man’s waist.
A low growl rumbled through Caspian’s chest. Seconds later, Casey found himself pinned against the
wall and Caspian was devouring his mouth with intense focus.
A low chuckle followed by another man’s snort caught Casey’s attention. It must have registered with
Caspian, too, because he slowly brought the feral kiss to an end.“I missed you,” he breathed against
Casey’s lips.“I don’t want to spend another night apart.”
Casey thrilled at the admission. “I worried,” he admitted.
“What did you worry?” Caspian immediately asked.
“I worried I’d done something wrong yesterday. I worried you thought I was too much trouble.” He
couldn’t have stopped the confessions even if he tried. Something about this man made him want to
share  his  deepest  secrets.  “I  worried  that  I  should  have  reciprocated  and  you  were  disappointed  in
me. I worried that you didn’t want to hassle with someone who didn’t know how to please you.”
“Ah,  my  adorato,  I  am  so  sorry  my  actions  caused  you  such  doubts,”  Caspian  crooned,  tucking  a
strand of hair behind Casey’s ear gently. Still holding him, the vampire moved deeper into the house
and settled onto a dining room chair. Once seated, he cupped Casey’s jaw and stared deep into his
eyes.“The fact that you are untouched in that manner is a powerful aphrodisiac.”
“It is?” Casey squeaked, disbelieving.“But I don’t know how to take care of your needs.”
Heat and desire burned in the depths of Caspian’s green eyes.“I will teach you.”
“Okay,”  Casey  whispered.  He  must  have  said  the  right  thing  because  Caspian’s  mouth  claimed  his
again, this time bestowing on him a slow, sensual kiss that felt so much like a promise. His hard dick
throbbed against the seam of his  jeans  and  he  could  feel  an  answering  hardness  against  his  ass.  He
rocked against it experimentally, liking the groan that escaped the man beneath him.
“Oh, adorato, we must stop,” Caspian groaned, wrenching his mouth away.
Casey’s  eyes  snapped  open,  and  he  gasped  when  he  saw  the  blood  red  color  that  dominated  his
mate’s normally green eyes.
Caspian  swallowed  hard,  his  eyelids  falling  closed.  When  he  reopened  them,  the  red  was
gone.“Sorry, Case,” he murmured gently, resting his forehead against Casey’s,“but the scent of your
blood  calls  to  me,  and  when  we  kiss,  when  I  become  aroused,  or  when  I  smell  your  arousal,  it
increases the desire tenfold.”
He blushed. “I don’t mean to be so much trouble,” he whispered.
“I understand it will take time. I know you’ve been through a lot,” Caspian replied, his voice filled
with  understanding.  Before  Casey  could  come  up  with  an  answer,  his  mate  looked  to  his  left  and
nodded  toward  two  men  who  stood  in  the  doorway  watching  them.  “This  is  Sebastian  Russo  and
Vincent Marché.”
The man on the right, Sebastian, was smirking at them.“Congrats on finding your mate, Casey. Cass is
a good guy. He’ll take good care of you.”
He wasn’t certain how to respond to that, so simply replied,“Thank you.”
The  other  man  nodded  stiffly,  his  gaze  not  meeting  Casey’s  eyes.  He  could  see  the  tightness  in  his
stance  and  shoulders.  Not  certain  how  to  break  the  ice  with  Vincent,  Casey  settled  his  head  on
Caspian’s  shoulder  instead.  They  sat  in  silence  for  a  moment,  but  with  Caspian  rubbing  soothing
circles over his back, it wasn’t uncomfortable –at least, until the sounds of grunts and groans could be
heard through the walls. Casey’s face suddenly felt like he’d been sunburned.
Caspian’s lips twitched as if trying to keep a straight face.“Is that Jared and Carson we hear?”

Casey was too mortified to do anything other than nod.
Sebastian wasn’t nearly as restrained. The vampire doubled over, loud peals of laughter rolling from
his throat.
After a moment, even the uptight Vincent let out a low chuckle before smacking Sebastian across the
back of the head.“Settle down, Seb. It’s not that funny.”
“Oh, yes, it is,” Sebastian replied between chuckles, making no effort to conceal his mirth. His fangs
flashed as he grinned at the others.“They’re certainly not shy, are they?”
To Casey’s surprise, the sight of those pointy teeth didn’t bother him at all.  Maybe because I know he
won’t bring them near me?  He finally cracked a smile of his own.“It is their house,” he pointed out.
Before  more  could  be  said  on  the  subject,  he  slid  from  Caspian’s  lap  and  limped  toward  the
kitchen.“I was about to make some tea. Does anyone want some?”
It wasn’t until he was in the kitchen and none of the men had answered that he paused and looked over
his shoulder at them. Sebastian and Vincent both shared nearly identical looks of shock. Caspian was
frowning at them, his jaw tense.
Vincent  found  his  voice  first.“You  weren’t  kidding  when  you  said  your  beloved  was  injured,”  he
whispered.“Can he still move in animal form?”
Casey wrapped his arms around his chest, hugging himself. Unexpected rage flooded him.“Yes, I can
still move,” he snapped. He didn’t move well, but he wasn’t going to admit that to the vampires.
“My apologies, my adorato,” Caspian quickly said, rising from his seat and crossing to him in half a
dozen  long  strides.  He  pulled  Casey  into  his  arms  and  pressed  a  kiss  to  the  top  of  his  head.  Did  it
make him weak that he instantly snuggled into his mate’s embrace? Caspian kept talking.“Vincent is
not known for his tact.”
“Damn  it,”  the  vampire  in  question  grunted.“I  am  sorry,  Case.  I  didn’t  mean  anything  by  it.  I,  too,
have…scars,” he finished in a whisper.
“Ah, Vincent, you don’t need to—” Caspian started.
“Gods of ages, stop calling me Vincent,” the vampire snapped, thrusting a hand through his shaggy,
black hair.“I keep expecting my father to walk into the room. I’m Dobs to you,” he said before shifting
his dark-eyed look to Casey.“And will you, please, call me Dobs as well?”
Casey  could  see  the  vampire  was  trying  to  be  friendly,  offering  an  olive  branch  of  sorts.  It  was
probably  for  his  friend’s  sake,  but  Casey  couldn’t  fault  the  guy  for  trying.  He  smiled  and  nodded.
“Your apology’s accepted, Dobs,” he replied softly.“Does that stand for anything?”
The vampire in question smiled faintly.“That’s a story for another time.”
“Sorry  we’re  late,”  Jared  called,  brashly  pushing  past  the  two  vampires  still  blocking  the  hall  and
striding into the kitchen. He grinned wickedly at Casey and Caspian. “We had some things to finish
up.”
Carson  groaned  from  where  he  followed  his  mate  into  the  dining  room.“Behave,  stud,”  he  ordered
gently. He settled into a chair and crossed his arms over his chest, taking in the strangers filling his
home.“Are these the friends traveling with us, Caspian?”
Caspian nodded.“Yes. This is Sebastian Russo and Vincent  Dobs Marché,” he said, waving a hand at
each in turn.
“I’m Carson Angeni. This is my mate Jared Templeton.” After the perfunctory round of  nice to meet
yous, Carson turned toward them.“We’re able to leave whenever you’re ready.”
Caspian glanced down at Casey, as if looking for direction. But he had none, so he just smiled up at
his sexy vampire.“After lunch then.”

Chapter Seven

even hours into the drive from Stone Ridge to Tucson, Caspian caught Casey shifting

uncomfortably in the passenger seat. His friends had long since fallen silent, both stretched out in the
captain’s chairs that made up the middle row of seats in his SUV.
“Are you all right?” Caspian asked, looking toward

Casey again.

“I’m really sorry,” his adorato whispered.“I need to
get out and walk for a while.”
Casey tried to hide it, but Caspian could hear the
pain in his tone. His brows creased as he looked over
and really saw the shifter. Streaks of red and pink
slashed the sky behind Casey’s head, the setting sun
accentuating the man’s pale skin. The pinched look of
his sweet lips and creases at his eyes told Caspian all he
needed to know.
“Ah, adorato, why didn’t you tell me you were in
such pain?” he asked, truly astonished that he hadn’t
picked up on it sooner. Once we establish our bond this
will never happen again.
“The short stroll from SUV to bathroom and back again when you fueled the SUV helped,” Casey
murmured.“I wanted to get as far as possible before
having to stop for the night.”
“That was almost three hours ago, my sweet,” he
replied.“We will stop at the next town. It’s only about
another fifteen minutes,” he assured.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Casey nod. He found a small, non-affiliated motel and pulled
into the parking lot. After shutting off the engine, he
leaned over and pulled Casey in for a quick kiss.“I’ll
be right back,” he said. Leaving his adorato in the care
of Seb, he dropped into step beside Dobs.“How are you
holding up?” he asked gently, knowing his friend still
had trouble dealing with shifters.
Dobs gave him his patented half-smile, the one that
said I don’t want to talk about it so leave it the hell
alone. “Everything’s fine.”
“Okay, okay,” he replied, lifting a hand in placation.
He opened the door for his friend and as he passed his
whispered,“If you ever want to talk about it, you know
I’m always there.”
His friend paused halfway through the door, his
brows scrunched into a confused look.“I know,” he
said. After another few seconds, he added,“I actually
think I’m going to like Casey.”

Relief flooded Caspian. He hadn’t wanted to admit,
even to himself, how important his friend’s acceptance
of his beloved had been. It wouldn’t have stopped him
from pursuing Casey, but it sure made his life easier
knowing his friends would back him.“I’m glad to hear
that.”
Striding to the desk, they were met in the lobby by Carson. Caspian lifted a brow when the wolf
shifter confirmed a room with a king bed and a hot tub.“Like
to relax, huh?”
Carson grimaced.“Had to,” he muttered,“otherwise
Jared would be back down here requesting a room
change to whatever passed for this hotel’s presidential
suite.”
“Oh, that’s rich,” Dobs sputtered between laughs. “Yeah, he is,” Carson replied with another
grimace,
taking the room key from the woman. He grabbed
Caspian’s arm, getting his complete attention while
Dobs put in a room order for two queen beds for him
and Sebastian.“Are you getting a separate room for
Casey?”
Caspian knew he probably should have asked his
beloved, but he hadn’t wanted to give the man a chance
to say no. He shook his head.“I’m getting a room with
two queens. I’d like to hold him all night, but I’m going
to give him the option.”
That had Carson smiling.“Good man.” He started
toward the door before stopping and leaning close.“If
you get the opportunity, don’t scrape his neck. Just
plunge in, and make sure to give him as much pleasure
as possible.”
Caspian cocked his head, watching the wolf shifter
hurry from the room, intrigued by his cryptic advice.
He thought back to the first time he’d held Casey. The
man had been fairly pliable until he’d scraped his teeth
along his neck, then he’d stiffened and had been yanked
from his arms. Can it be…
“Can I help you, sir?”
The clerk’s impatient tone had Caspian wondering how many times she’d had to call out to him. He
quickly requested a room, got his key, and hurried back to the car. He hopped behind the wheel and
got it moving, following the woman’s directions to the easiest access to their room. Fortunately, Seb
and Dobs’s room
was right next door.
Caspian opened the passenger door and helped his
beloved from the vehicle, keeping one arm around him
as Casey moved stiffly beside him. After opening the

room and leading him inside, Caspian hurried back out
and gathered their things. He stepped back inside to
find Casey standing beside one of the beds, his gaze
staring at the generic floral pattern so common in
motels.
“Is everything all right, Case?” he asked softly, not
wanting to spook the man.
Casey turned and gave him a tired smile.“Yeah, I’m
just trying to decide if I have enough energy to do a few
leg exercises.” He grimaced.“If I don’t work my hip,
I’m going to be so stiff in the morning I probably won’t
be able to move.”
“Is there any way I can help?”
That earned him another smile, this one reaching
those exotic pink eyes Caspian thought he could easily
drown in.“Would you just talk to me? I won’t have the
energy to say much back, but I like the sound of your
voice.”
The quiet confession had a lump forming in
Caspian’s chest, and he knew without a doubt that he’d
do anything for this man.“I’d be happy to,” he replied.
“What do you want me to talk about?” he asked, setting
the duffle bags on a chair. While waiting for an answer,
he pulled out the pair of shorts he intended to sleep in. “Will you tell me about yourself?”
The quiet question came from near his elbow, and he
realized Casey stood right next to him. He watched the
small man dig into his own bag and pull out a pair of
sweats and something that looked like a bungee cord
with a handle on each end.
He nodded. “Of course. Would you be more
comfortable if I changed in the bathroom?” When
Casey opened and then closed his mouth, he added,
“You are welcome to it first, if you’d like.”
“I—” His brows creased as he seemed to search for
words.“I’m a shifter,” he finally said.“Nudity doesn’t
bother me.”
Well, that certainly wasn’t what Caspian was
expecting. “Ah, I do forget that about shifters,” he
murmured, smiling to take any possible sting out of his
words.“In that case,” he cupped his beloved’s cheek,“I
would love to see your beautiful body again.”
A tremble worked through Casey’s body. He stared
up at Caspian through thick, pale lashes.“Only if I get
to see you this time.”
“Oh, I think that can be arranged,” Caspian replied

before pressing his lips briefly against Casey’s in a soft
kiss. He stepped back quickly, knowing his beloved had
things to do, and if he stayed close to the man much
longer, he’d run the risk of losing control. He crossed to
one bed, kicked off his shoes, and then pulled off his
shirt.
A glance toward Casey showed the rapt interest on
the other man’s face. He peeled off his jeans, watching
the interest smolder into desire. Because he knew they couldn’t do anything about it just yet, he
quickly pulled on his shorts and sat down on the bed. Casey swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as
he glanced up
at Caspian’s face.
Caspian smiled at the obvious appreciation gleaming
from his beloved’s eyes, immensely thrilled that the
other man found him aesthetically pleasing. Caspian
leaned against the headboard, pulled up one knee and
rested an arm on it. His gaze slid away from Casey as
he thought through how much to share with the man
now, and how much could wait. “I was born in
Florence, Italy one hundred eighty two years ago,” he
began.
“Wow, how long do vampires live?” he asked,
pulling off his own shirt and jeans and then pulling on
the track pants and sneakers.
Caspian’s focus slipped back to
“Vampires live several hundred years,
shifters,” he replied absently as he raptly watched
Casey lie on the floor on his back and begin working
his legs and hips. “I understand Fate extends the life of
whoever is older to match the life of the younger.
Although,” he reasoned,“if the younger dies, then the
older will follow much more quickly.”
That got a grunt of acknowledgement from Casey.
Sweat had started to bead on the man’s forehead as he
worked through his muscle strengthening exercises and
Caspian had to squelch the desire to crawl onto the
floor and lick those beads off his skin. He returned to
the shortened version of his life story.
“My parents were good people. After my transition
at fifteen, they taught me the importance of never the shifter. similar to
slaying my donors.”
“Will I get to meet them someday?” Casey gasped
out between panting breaths.
A wash of sadness filled him and he shook his head,
even though Casey wasn’t looking at him. “No,

adorato. They and the rest of my coven were slain by
rogues nearly eighty years ago.”
That had Casey pausing, and he tilted his head up to
look at him from the floor.“I’m sorry.”
“Thank you, sweet man. My friends are my family
now. After my parents passed, I finally left Italy. It was
the first time I’d ventured out of the country. I
wandered all over Europe, then Asia, and finally Africa.
I met Lex first, you’ll meet him eventually, then Dobs,
and finally Seb. We are each other’s family now.” “They seem like good men.”
Caspian smiled.“They are. I’d do anything for them,
just as I know they’d do the same for me. We all work
for the Council now in one capacity or other. Lex and
Dobs are enforcers, while Seb is in acquisitions.” At the
questioning look Casey sent him, he chuckled.
“Enforcers are probably very similar to your pack’s,
though on a broader scale since they work for the
Vampire Council. Seb, on the other hand…” he cocked
his head, trying to think of a way to explain that his sly
friend could charm an Eskimo into buying ice.“If the
Council needs something, land, a company, even the
services of someone, they send Seb to get the job
done.”
“That’s a lot of faith in one man,” Casey said. “It is at that,” Caspian conceded.
Finally, Casey flopped back, his arms spread wide as he panted for breath. Caspian leaned forward,
concerned at how exhausted his beloved looked from what appeared to be fairly simple
exercises.“Are you
okay, Case?”
“Yeah, just give me a minute,” he panted, waving a
hand absently.“I didn’t do them yesterday because I
got home so late, and knew I couldn’t put them off
another day, so they kinda took it outta me.”
“Why do you need them?” he asked curiously,
sliding off the bed and crawling toward his beloved, the
allure of all that glistening skin too much of a draw to
stay away.
Casey grimaced.“The scientists removed a large
part of my hip and thigh muscles. I have to constantly
work the muscle I do still have to keep it strong enough
to be able to carry me.” He turned his head and watched
Caspian’s approach. “It’s doesn’t really cause pain
anymore, just weakness,” he murmured.
“Ah, I understand,” Caspian replied. And he did, and
if he ever met any of the scientists that hurt his beloved,
he was going to drain them dry. Carefully, keeping his

anger out of his expression, he slid his arms under
Casey’s body.“Let’s get you in the shower, then I’m
going to give you a massage,” he murmured, tucking
the small man under his chin.
“Oh,” Casey let out a startled squeak before cuddling
close in his arms and inhaling deeply.“That sounds
wonderful,” he whispered against the skin of Caspian’s
neck.
The soft breath followed by the shifter’s tongue
sliding across his skin had tremors working through his
body.“Ah, adorato, shower first, then massage.” He set Casey down and carefully stripped the man of
clothes, then pulled his own from his body. Leading
him under the spray, he began washing the lean, toned
body of his adorato, loving every bit of firm flesh he
touched.
“Then will you claim me?”
Caspian almost missed the softly whispered question
over the sound of the shower. He paused in the action
of washing Casey’s hair, closed his eyes, and tried to
control the surge of lust and hunger those five little
words caused him. His cock jerked, a bead of pre-cum
oozing from the slit. His heart rate tripled, and Caspian
knew if he opened his eyes, he’d see the red haze of
bloodlust super-imposed over his vision.
“There is nothing I want more than to bond with you
and twine our lives together,” he replied carefully,“but
I don’t wish to scare you, either, adorato. I never want
to scare you.” Even though his dick was still painfully
hard, those words at least helped him regain control of
his heart rate, and when he opened his eyes again and
looked at Casey he knew they were back to their normal
green.“Now, let’s move to the bed and we’ll see how
far we get, hmm?”
“Okay.” From Casey’s nervous smile, Caspian
thought he’d feel grateful, but as the shifter turned away
from him and grabbed his towel, one clear thought
blasted into his brain. He doesn’t want me.
Caspian gritted his teeth, struggling not to react to
the information Casey had unintentionally shared.
Grabbing his own towel, he dried himself quickly and
followed his beloved from the bathroom. He’d just have
to find a way to prove him wrong and bond with the man. How to do that he wasn’t so certain, but at
least a
plan started forming in his mind.
Hurrying after the shifter, he quickly caught up with

Chapter Eight

asey crawled onto the bed, his body a jumble of tense nerves, apprehension, and excitement all at

once. He desperately wanted his mate to claim him, but he was desperately afraid that feeling
Caspian scrape his teeth along his neck again would make him freak out.

Then the towel was pulled from his waist. He tried to lift his body to look at Caspian, but the

vampire laid a firm but gentle palm on his back between his shoulder blades and forced him back
down.“You’re not going to need this,” Caspian assured.“Just relax and enjoy.”

And enjoy he did. How could he not? Caspian started at the bottom, massaging his feet, applying

just enough pressure to his instep not to tickle. He moved on to his calves, then thighs. Casey almost
said something about the uneven size of his legs, probably something stupid like apologizing, but then
Caspian was touching his injured leg with firm, rhythmic pressure.

The depleted muscle twinged for a second, then relief flooded his overtaxed muscles. “Oh my,”

he groaned.“That’s amazing.”

Caspian worked the leg for several minutes, kneading the smooth flesh. Casey could at least be

grateful that he didn’t have any scarring. His shifter healing made certain of that, but even shifters
couldn’t re-grow removed muscle.

His mate moved on to his butt next, and Casey couldn’t stop the moan of pleasure at the vampire’s

touch. His dick instantly took attention, going rock hard under him. He wanted to scream in frustration
when Caspian moved on after only a moment, but then relaxing bliss overtook him as his mate’s
fingers and palms did amazing things to his back, to his shoulders, to his neck. Even his scalp, arms,
and hands were kneaded and massaged.

“ Okay, adorato,” Caspian murmured, tapping his good hip lightly.“Turn over. Now the front.”

Casey grunted, but managed to roll over. His dick had softened to half-mast, but as soon as Caspian
leaned  over  him  and  started  working  his  chest,  tweaking  his  nipples,  it  quickly  filled  again.  The
vampire  glanced  down  at  his  engorged  flesh,  a  smile  that  could  only  be  called  self-satisfied  on  his
lips.
He dropped his head to Casey’s chest and the massage took a decidedly sensual turn. Caspian ran his
tongue  over  first  one  nipple,  then  the  other,  skimming  his  fingertips  along  Casey’s  ribs.  The  soft
touches and open-mouthed sucking kisses sent tingles of pleasure dancing across his skin. He gasped,
shifting restlessly, not knowing if he needed more pressure or less.
But Caspian seemed to know. He wrapped his longfingered hands around Casey’s waist and moved
slowly  down  his  body,  sucking  and  licking  as  he  went.  He  swirled  his  tongue  into  Casey’s  belly
button, causing a fresh wave of goose-bumps to erupt over his body.
Much to Casey’s consternation, the vampire carefully maneuvered his way around his twitching cock.
Instead, he spread Casey’s legs wide, and gently nibbled and sucked the sensitive crease where groin
met hip.
Casey always thought he’d feel vulnerable, or embarrassed, when he finally ended up in this position,
but he didn’t. Needing to see his mate, he cracked open his eyelids to half-mast. He caught Caspian’s
intense  gaze  and  his  heart  nearly  froze  in  his  chest.  The  heat  in  Caspian’s  eyes  as  he  looked  up  at
Casey  through  thick,  black  lashes  nearly  scorched  him  alive,  and  all  he  felt  was  lust  and  need  and
even  a  little  sexy.  Caspian  made  certain  Casey  knew  exactly  how  much  he  wanted  him  with  every
look and touch he gave him.
Once  Caspian  got  to  his  hip,  Casey  thought  he’d  move  back  to  his  cock,  but  he  didn’t.  Instead,  he

cupped his ass with his large hands and lifted him so he could delve his tongue along his crack. Casey
shuddered at the feel of that wet muscle scraping from anus to balls.“Caspian!”
The man in question lifted his head and grinned, not bothering to hide his teeth.“I love it when you say
my name in the heat of passion, adorato.” He lowered his head again and began working his tongue
over the sensitive wrinkled flesh. He speared his tongue in gently, loosening him slowly.
The erotic assault on his senses had Casey panting and moaning, unable to control the sounds of need
escaping from his mouth. The more he cried out, the more Caspian worked him, which only made him
cry out all the more.“A—amazing, wonderful, incredible,” he babbled, trying to express how his mate
made him feel.
The click of a tube and then cold gel on his hole had him gasping. The cool slick combined with the
sudden  feeling  of  Caspian  taking  his  testicles  into  his  mouth  nearly  had  him  shooting  right  then.  He
tried to reach for his cock, but Caspian popped off his balls and swatted his hand away.“No, adorato.
Let me give this to you. Let me please you.”
His whole body shuddered from the naked need in Caspian’s tone. Casey, his ability to speak gone,
could only nod his head. Moving his hand back to the sheet, he tangled his fingers in the fabric and
tried to hold on as Caspian’s mouth returned to his balls.
It  wasn’t  until  Caspian  slipped  a  second  finger  into  his  rectum  that  Casey  realized  he  even  had
anything  in  his  hole.  The  stretch  and  mild  burn,  combined  with  the  sucking  heat  and  vibration  as
Caspian hummed around his testicles, nearly sent him over the edge.
“C—C—Clo—Clo,” he couldn’t get the word out, but Caspian seemed to understand.
The  vampire  released  his  balls,  slid  a  third  finger  into  his  ass,  scraped  across  his  prostate,  and
swallowed his cock to the root all in one swift movement. His hips bucked, his balls pulled tight. A
flash of pain, followed by the most intense ecstasy, erupted through his shaft and the strong, sucking
pulls  created  by  his  mate’s  mouth  sent  him  spiraling  out  of  control.  Cum  burst  from  his  twitching
cock, flooding Caspian’s mouth with shot after shot of his seed.
Caspian swallowed him down, even managing to keep the suction, as if to coax every last drop from
him. Once he was spent, Caspian licked at his dick as he gently pulled his fingers from his ass. He
moved  up  his  Casey’s  body,  levering  over  him,  the  tip  of  his  hard  shaft  nudging  Casey’s  stretched
hole.
“My adorato,” he purred, pushing forward.
It amazed Casey how his body opened to his mate, easily swallowing his cock until he felt Caspian’s
balls  nestled  firmly  against  his  ass.  He  reached  up  and  swiped  a  spot  of  red  from  the  corner  of
Caspian’s lip and realized he felt more than sated. He felt complete, content, connected, for the first
time in his life.
His eyes widened in shock. “You claimed me,” Casey whispered, unable to disguise his wonder.
Caspian smiled down at him and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “I will never want another, my sweet
beloved. We are one.”
And  then  the  vampire  started  to  move.  He  slowly  slid  his  cock  halfway  out,  then  pushed  back  into
him. The head of his dick scraped across Casey’s gland, making him shudder. His dick began to fill
again.  He  wanted  to  wrap  his  legs  around  his  mate’s  back,  rock  with  him,  encourage  him,  but  his
fatigued muscles wouldn’t cooperate.
Sensing  his  struggle,  Caspian  lifted  his  legs  for  him  and  carefully  settled  them  in  the  crooks  of  his
arms.  The  move  lifted  his  hips  and  changed  the  angle  of  the  vampire’s  thrusts.  Casey  gasped  then
groaned as the head of the bigger man’s dick nailed his prostate headon over and over.
“You are mine, Casey,” Caspian demanded.

“Yes, oh gods, yes,” he cried out, unable to do anything but agree with the amazing man above him.
A soft growl rolled through Caspian’s chest and up his throat. The green of his eyes disappeared as
red bled through the glowing orbs. So close to orgasm again, Casey tilted his neck in submission and
invitation.
Caspian froze above him, his chest heaving with exertion as he stared down at Casey.“Are you sure?
I’ve already claimed you. I don’t need to bite your neck if it bothers you.”
“Take me, my mate. Nothing ever felt so good as you sucking me.”
A wicked glint entered Caspian’s eyes and the vampire chuckled.“Oh, my sweet adorato. I will suck
you any time you want.”
It  took  a  second,  but  then  Casey  realized  what  he’d  actually  said.  It  was  too  late  to  blush,  though.
Caspian  snapped  his  head  forward  and  sank  his  fangs  into  Casey’s  exposed  neck.  Just  like  on  his
dick, there was a flash of pain followed by the most exquisite pleasure known to man. It didn’t take a
genius to realize why humans who discovered vampires became eager donors.
Heat and sparks shot through his system. Casey’s balls pulled tight, his dick jerked, and then an even
more  intense  orgasm  rolled  through  him  as  Caspian  pegged  his  prostate  again  and  again.  His  chute
clamped down on the dick invading his ass and the vampire moaned against Casey’s neck.
The big man froze for two seconds, then his body jerked. He pulled his fangs from Casey’s neck and
he roared as his hot release splashed the walls of his rectum.
Just before the dark spots flashing behind his eyes converged, the hope that no one would complain
about the noise flickered through his brain.

Casey ’s butt was deliciously sore, taking his attention away from his aching hip as the miles

rolled beneath the SUV’s tires. When he shifted in his seat for the third time in five minutes, Caspian
looked at him with concern.“You okay, adorato?”

Casey blushed, he just knew it. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks. “Yeah. I’m fine,” he

whispered.

Caspian smiled, reached across the vehicle, and slid a tender finger down his jawline.“Ah, I

understand. We’ll make frequent stops, and we should still be there by early afternoon.”

Nodding, he started to return his focus to the window, when Dobs asked,“I understand you didn’t

leave on the best of terms with your herd. Will they let you back into their territory to see your mother
and sisters?”

“ Oh, um, I didn’t actually think of that,” he muttered. And why hadn’t he? His father had told him

not to come back unless he changed his mind about mating with Shelly. That had been over a year ago
now.

“ Hey, don’t sweat it, man,” Sebastian cut in.“As soon as the alpha finds out there are vampires

floating around the area, he’ll invite us in to see what we’re doing around here.” He winked and
added,“Then we have access to his land for twenty-four hours.”

“ We will?” Casey had never heard that before. “Yup. It’s a treaty the Vampire Council made

with the Shifter Council centuries ago,” Sebastian clarified. “Even if the Shifter Council doesn’t keep
as close an eye on shifter packs as the Vampire Council does on covens, the law is still valid. As
long as a vampire doesn’t attack a shifter, or endanger a shifter’s safety, he has twenty-four hours to
complete whatever business he needs to in shifter territory.” His smile reached his eyes as he
added,“And since you’re bonded with a vampire now, that same rule applies to you.”

Relief flooded Casey that at least someone had a plan.

Caspian reached over and squeezed his shoulder. “Now you see why I invited him?”
He sent a teasing wink over his shoulder at his friend and Sebastian crossed his arms over his chest.

Lifting a brow imperiously, he stated,“If you weren’t driving the damn car I’d punch you right now.”
Caspian just laughed and returned his focus to the front.
Watching  the  scenery  change  from  forest  to  desert,  Casey’s  excitement  and  tension  mounted.  Just  a
few  days  before,  he’d  been  an  exiled  virgin.  Now,  he  had  his  very  own  vampire  mate  and  he  was
headed home to see his family. He hoped, he prayed, everything would work out. Casey just wanted
to tell his mom that he was all right, that he was happy. He smiled at Caspian, somehow knowing he
would be with this man.
“When we’re done here, where do you want to live?” Caspian asked suddenly.“Keep in mind, some
of  our  time  will  be  spent  traveling,  since  I  work  for  the  Council,”  he  added,“but  when  we’re  not
traveling, where would you like to call home?”
“Anywhere?” Casey whispered.
Caspian flashed a smile his way.“Within reason, of course. It wouldn’t do for me to live in Africa or
something,” he teased.
“I—I’d like to stay near my friends,” he admitted. “Do you think that’s possible?”
A smile curved Caspian’s full lips. He glanced over and nodded once.“I kind of figured that would be
the case. We’ll need to get permission from Declan, but if he’s agreeable to a vampire occasionally
in his territory, we can work out a system to split our time between Stone Ridge and Atlanta.”
Casey grinned.“Thank you.”
Reaching a hand across the middle, Caspian grabbed his hand and settled their clasped fingers on the
center console.“Anything for you, adorato.”
“Why?” Casey suddenly asked.
Caspian squeezed his hand once.“Why what?”
“Why would you do anything for me?”
A brow lifted and Casey could actually feel his mate’s surprise. That must be the link thingy at work,
he decided. Every once in a while, he’d feel like he knew something he shouldn’t actually know about
what Caspian was thinking. He’d have to remember to ask Caspian about the link the next time they
were alone.
“Well, I’ve been alone a long time, Casey. Now that I’ve found you, I want you to be happy with me,”
he said.“I can’t promise that it will all be roses,” he added dryly,“but we can at least try.”
Casey chuckled, accepting that answer.“We’ll be sure to plant some at both our homes.”
His vampire laughed.“Sounds like a plan.”

Chapter Nine

aspian turned right onto a gravel road, following Casey’s directions. A glance in his rearview

mirror told him that Carson and Jared were following close behind. The road wound between low
hills covered in mesquite and cholla to reveal what looked like a small community, complete with
general store and gas pumps.

Children were playing on a playground in the middle of a ring of over a dozen houses. Women

stood nearby, chatting as they watched the cubs. Several larger buildings were behind them. What
they were, Caspian couldn’t guess. And beyond those stood carefully irrigated fields of crops.

He felt like he ’d just driven into a private religious community, and truth be told, Caspian thought

it was a little creepy. At the sound of their vehicle, the women turned and regarded them with
suspicion. Several doors opened and men came out of a number of the homes.

A gasp from the passenger seat had Caspian glancing at his lover. Casey’s gaze was fixated on

two men who’d appeared from a large home on the left. “Everything okay, adorato?” he murmured,
drawing his beloved’s attention, not liking Casey’s wide-eyed look.
“That’s my father, Devon, and younger brother,

Robert, ” he whispered, pointing toward the pair. “What about your mom?” he asked.“Are one of

these women or any of the cubs your family, too?” “No, but that woman there was once my
betrothed.” Caspian’s brows shot up and he followed Casey’s
line of sight. He spotted a short, slender brunette, who
was watching the children play. She, like many others,
had stopped to stare at the approaching vehicles. If
Casey had used any kind of inflection in his voice,
Caspian might have felt jealous, but his man didn’t
seem to care one way or the other about the woman.
He’d just simply stated a fact.
Parking the car, he paused for a moment and took in
the dark hair and brown eyes of Casey’s father and
brother who’d joined with four other men at the field. It
was obvious they were keeping themselves between the
cubs and the cars. Caspian didn’t see a resemblance, at
all. Both men were taller, maybe five foot eight and five
foot nine and broader in the shoulders. Casey was lean
with a runner’s build, but these two were built heavier,
thicker.
He couldn’t help but ask,“Do you take after your
mother, Case?”
When Casey didn’t immediately respond to his quiet
question, he turned and found his beloved blushing
fiercely. He touched Casey’s cheek and said,“I don’t
know what I said to upset you, but I didn’t mean to
embarrass you.”
“I’m an anomaly,” Casey whispered.“The others are
jackrabbit shifters. I’m not.”

“Ah,” Caspian murmured, searching his mind for a
way to banish the unease rolling through their everstrengthening link. He leaned over the console and
pulled Casey into a quick but heated kiss. Leaning
back, he growled,“Well, I think you’re sexy as fuck,
and you’re mine.”
Pleasure not only shown through Casey’s expressive
pink eyes, but flooded through their bond as well, and
Caspian heaved a mental sigh of relief that he’d found
the right thing to say. He pressed another quick kiss to
Casey’s lips before pulling away and saying,“Let’s go
introduce ourselves to the alpha, hmm?”
Casey nodded and reached for the door handle.
Caspian did the same, his friends following their
example. Gripping Casey’s hand, he headed toward the
welcoming committee. Jared and Carson joined them
from the car behind them and, as a united front they
strode toward the group of men.
“By the gods! It’s Casey!” The shouted words came
from one of the women, the one Casey had identified as
his once intended. She started toward them, but then
glanced toward the group of men and stopped when she
received a warning look from a slender blond man. The glare cast over the shoulder of the man Casey
identified as his brother surprised Caspian. Huh. Just
what are the dynamics here?
To everyone’s surprise, it was the father that spoke
first.“What are you doing here, Casey? It’s too late to
mate with Shelly. She’s already chosen someone else.” “I’m not here to mate with Shelly, Devon,”
Casey
replied bluntly.“I already have a mate. I’m here to
warn you about wolf shifters selling our kind to
scientists to do experiments on us.”
“Your kind,” Robert sneered with such venom that
Caspian wanted to tear the guy’s tongue out for talking
to his beloved that way.“There aren’t any of your kind
here, Casey. Queers with freaky genetics. Just take your
fucking fag friends and get the hell out of here.” “That’s enough,” snapped a broad-shouldered
brunet. The man frowned at Casey’s brother, then his
father. “If you cannot control your son, send him
inside.”
Caspian had to keep his lips from twitching. The
alpha obviously didn’t share Robert’s bigotry, or if he
did, he knew how to hide it for diplomacy’s sake.
Devon scowled at Robert, and the other shifter quickly
dropped his gaze, expressing his submission with
action.

“Who are you, and why are you in my territory?” Caspian did smile now, the closed-lipped smile of a
diplomat.“I am Caspian Carpathian of the Vampire
Council. These are my aides, Sebastian and Vincent.
Obviously, some of you have already met my mate,
Casey Streusel.”
“Streusel,” the shifter muttered. He glanced over at
Devon.“Relation?”
“Son,” Devon admitted begrudgingly.
The alpha’s brows shot up. He returned his focus to
Casey, then swept it over Caspian and his friends. He
stepped forward and held out a hand. “I’m Ryan
Abramson. My betas, Emmanuel and Devon. My
enforcers, Walter and Carlton.” He cocked his head and
then returned his gaze to Casey.“I didn’t realize Devon
had a second son. You are, of course, welcome here for the customary four days to visit family. From
the bond I scent, you are indeed mated with Caspian. Do you
confirm it?”
Caspian could feel the shock radiating through the
link and knew this was not the welcome Casey thought
he’d receive. It was very clear that this man was not the
alpha when Casey left.
“Yes, sir,” Casey quickly whispered.
Ryan nodded.“Then your vampire is also welcome.”
He swung his hand toward Jared and Carson.“Who are
the human and the wolf?”
A slamming door followed by a squeal of delight
caught everyone’s attention. A female form came
streaking across the lawn toward the group, her arms
outstretched, a grin lighting her blue eyes.“Casey! Oh,
by the gods, it is you!”
She was only an inch taller than Casey, but due to
his bad hip, when she launched into his arms it nearly
toppled him. Caspian was there instantly, steadying the
little shifter. The woman seemed to take no notice of
him, instead kissing Casey’s forehead, cupping his
cheeks, and telling him how good it was to see him. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that this was
Casey’s mother, and she was very happy to see him.
And from the warm emotions coming through his bond
with the shifter, Casey was just as happy to see his
mother.
To Caspian’s never-ending gratitude, Carson stepped
forward and remembered to answer the alpha’s
question. “My name is Carson Angeni. I’m the enforcer
of the Stone Ridge wolf pack in Colorado. We rescued
Casey from human scientists that are doing experiments on shifters. Because he’s from this area, and

was captured by rogue wolves selling shifters to these scientists, we wanted to pass the information
along so
you can be on alert.”
Caspian took the opportunity to lead Casey and his
mother further away. Seb stayed with Jared and Carson,
and he knew he’d get a full report later from his friend.
Dobs joined them at a picnic table, although he kept a
discreet distance not only to give them privacy, but to
keep an eye out for trouble.
It was nice, watching Casey catch up with his
mother, Noreen. She seemed happy to meet Caspian,
even happier that someone was taking care of her baby.
It didn’t seem to matter that Casey was the eldest
child— she still doted on him, probably because of his
size and coloring.
The woman who Casey had at one time been
betrothed to came and greeted him. From Devon’s
comment, Caspian remembered her name was Shelly,
and she seemed genuinely happy for Casey’s mating.
After a brief conversation, she headed back to her duty
of tending the playing cubs.
Eventually, Carson and Jared left, the other shifters
went on about their business, and Seb and Ryan joined
them at the table.
“Will you be staying with us? Or have you other
lodging?” Ryan asked Caspian, although his focus was
on the conversation between mother and son.
Caspian knew it was customary for a shifter to stay
within the territory of the herd he was visiting, but he
knew his friends would need to feed this evening, and
that would most definitely be frowned upon by the alpha. Smiling, he replied,“Your offer is generous,
but
we plan to find lodging closer to town.”
The alpha smirked knowingly.“As you wish, but I
would prefer your mate visit his family here until I have
the opportunity to look into this problem of the rogue
wolves.”
“Understandable,” Caspian replied. Cocking his
head, he pinned his focus on the alpha and asked,
“Casey didn’t recognize you. Have you been alpha of
this herd long?”
Ryan shook his head.“Just over four months.” No other information was forthcoming, and Caspian
knew it wasn’t his business. Changing the subject, he
said,“Thank you for the warm welcome. It means
much to my beloved.”

Nodding curtly, Ryan replied,“I never want to come
between family members if I can help it.” Turning, he
took a step away from the group before adding,“Stay
as long as you wish tonight, and I’m sure I’ll be seeing
you again.”
Caspian nodded his thanks and watched the alpha
stride toward the large, centrally placed home the rabbit
shifter had exited when they’d first arrived. He noticed
the two betas had disappeared, but the two enforcers
stuck around at a discreet distance.
A moment later, a stream of girls poured from the
same home as Casey’s mother. The four girls, ranging
from eight to sixteen, carried a variety of foods and
drinks, including tea, coffee, and juice, cheese,
crackers, and salamis.
Casey greeted each of them by name, giving them
hugs and kisses, and Caspian quickly realized that they were his beloved’s sisters. He was introduced
to each, though Caspian would be hard pressed to remember who was who later. He took that
opportunity to take a step back and stand with his friends, letting his beloved
reunite with his family.
“How are things progressing with you and Casey?”
Sebastian asked quietly.
He thought of their activities last night, feeling his
sweet beloved’s hot ass wrapped around his cock, the
way he shuddered and shook at his touch, the wild
abandoned shout as he came, and the blissed-out
expression on his face. The memories caused heated
desire to roll through his body, and his shaft filled in his
jeans. Casey paused mid-sentence and looked at him, a
surprised look on his face that quickly morphed into
burning need. The shifter swallowed hard before once
again focusing on his family.
Caspian grinned.“Everything is great. Our bond is
developing very well,” he answered.
“Have you explained the bonding process to him?”
Dobs asked, lifting a brow.“How you’ll eventually be
able to share thoughts telepathically?”
He shook his head and pulled his gaze away from
Casey to look between his friends. “It’s been
mentioned, but I haven’t explained the mechanics or
how to open the mind when he wishes to speak with
me. I will this evening, though,” he assured them. Two sets of worried eyes met his gaze and his
friends nodded in unison.
It was fully dark by the time they piled back into
their SUV. Carson had texted Caspian over an hour

earlier to let him know which motel they were at. Carefully maneuvering back down the gravel road
in
the dark, Caspian asked Casey his thoughts.
“I knew my father and brother wouldn’t be happy to
see me,” he admitted, then a smile broke out across his
face.“But I sure loved spending time with my mother
and sisters. It was so nice to see them all again!” “That’s wonderful, adorato,” he whispered. He
turned the vehicle onto black top and let go of the
tension in his shoulders. He’d been so worried Casey’s
mother wouldn’t be allowed to see him, but everything
had worked out beautifully for his beloved.
It took Caspian nearly thirty minutes—and two
wrong turns—to arrive at the motel.“Oh, you finally
found it,” Seb teased, pretending to rouse from a great
sleep.
“Right. Next time, you drive,” Caspian snapped.
“That way I can make out in the back seat with my
beloved.”
That had his two friends laughing and Casey
blushing. All that pale pink skin had his mind drifting
to other pursuits, and he grabbed the shifter’s arm,
holding him still as his friends left the car. Once alone,
he whispered,“You felt what I did when we were at the
picnic. I know you did.”
Casey nodded and swallowed.“Yeah.”
He watched in satisfaction when Casey swallowed
hard, knowing he could feel the beginning stirrings of
arousal that flooded Caspian’s body. “A vampire
bonding is a little different than a mating between
shifters,” he whispered.
Casey’s brows creased, but Caspian knew it wasn’t
from fear or confusion, but from curiosity.“Different
how?”
“A vampire can drink the blood of any donor, even
after mating, but in order to stay sane, they must drink
the blood of their bonded one often,” he admitted. “Wow, how often?” Casey whispered.
Caspian shrugged.“It differs, depending on who
they bond with and how old the vampire is. The older
the vampire is, the longer between feedings. Also, if
you were human, I would need to drink from you more
often, but if you were an angel, less often. See?” “So, it’s all a play by play?”
He nodded.“Yeah. If I had to guess, because I’m
almost two hundred years old and you’re a shifter, I
probably need to make sure I ingest your blood at least
once a month.”

Chapter Ten

is first instinct was to panic. He ’d woken up in this predicament before, more than once, in fact.

But that was before, when he’d been alone in the world. Now Casey knew he had a mate and friends
that would be missing him—which made him wonder, what had happened to Caspian?

That question more than anything else had Casey cracking his eyes open to survey his

surroundings. A small room with a cot and one plywood covered window. Nothing gave him any
indication of where he was.

He was alone, which Casey felt was a blessing and a curse. Good that there wasn’t anyone

beating the crap out of him—all they’d done was tie him up and leave him on a musty-smelling cot.
Bad because he still didn’t know if they were holding his mate in another room.

Casey took several slow breaths, remembering Caspian’s words about how their bond would

keep strengthening. Already, he could sometimes feel emotions from the other man, a stray thought in
an unguarded moment. And from the occasional look he received from Caspian, he knew it went both
ways. He hadn’t asked Caspian how it worked yet, but maybe he could figure out how to intentionally
communicate with the vampire. It was worth a shot, and a better idea than just lying there wondering
when his captors would come for him.

Relaxing as much as possible with his hands tied behind his back, Casey tried to feel his mate’s

emotions. Chances were, since they were separated like this, he’d be just as upset as Casey. That
meant if he was nearby, he should be able to feel something, right? It was a good idea, in theory, but
Casey couldn’t feel a thing. Maybe Caspian hadn’t been taken. He didn’t even want to entertain the
possibility that they were holding him somewhere else. Casey knew he would have felt it in his soul
if his mate was dead.

The sound of footsteps filtering through the door caught his attention, and he strained to make out

the words of the two men passing his door.“…we sticking our neck out for him again? Pissing off a
vampire is just fucking stupid. If he and his buddies come looking for his lover, we’re so screwed.”

“ Because since he’s back, we obviously didn’t get rid of Casey properly the first time,” the

second man snapped.
“Why can’t we just kill him?” the first whined.

He heard the unmistakable sound of flesh hitting flesh followed by a grunt of pain.“Because then it

might be traced back to my brother and his damn herd, you idiot.”

If the other man responded, they ’d moved too far away for Casey to hear. Okay, so it didn’t sound

like they’d taken Caspian, too, just him. And it had something to do with the second guy’s brother. So
who the hell was that and why did the brother want him out of the way?

Unable to even hazard a guess, Casey wriggled a bit, testing the strength of the rope. It had a little

give. Maybe it was enough to work with. He’d been exhausted, beaten, and malnourished from six
months of living alone on the streets when the wolves had captured him and sold him to the scientists
the first time. Not so, now. His friends had worked hard to bring him back from the brink of despair.

Gritting his teeth, he began to work the ropes, twisting his wrists, tugging steadily. He had a

reason to live this time, people to get back to, a very sexy vampire that needed him just as much as
Casey needed him. He hadn’t told the man he loved him yet, and Casey would be damned if he died
before getting that chance.

Another shimmy of his body and Casey had the ropes just loose enough to wriggle his ass through

the loop his arms made, so he could bring them to the front. His shoulders screamed at the new

position, but Casey ignored the feeling as best he could. Sitting up, he forced his quickly numbing
fingers to work the knots on the rope around his wrists. It was tedious and awkward, but due to the
space he’d given himself, he got it done.

The blood rushing back to his fingers had tears flooding his eyes and he had to take several

shuddering breaths before he could move his hands enough to work the knots holding his legs. Once
his feet were free, he climbed to his feet and stumbled to the covered window.

He inspected it carefully, tugging the board gently in different places, trying to find a weak spot.

Finally, he found one, but it was near the top. Due to his short stature, he tried to decide if he’d have
enough time to rip the plywood away, shift, and get through the hole before his captors investigated
the noise.

Looking around the room, he searched for something that would give him a little more leverage.

Or maybe if I’m taller, he thought, when his gaze fell on the cot. Walking over to it, he grabbed one
side with each hand, relieved with how narrow it was, and lifted. Never had he been more grateful
that a shifter’s increased strength was much greater than an average human’s, otherwise he didn’t
think he’d be able to move this without making tons of noise.

He carefully set it down under the window, ignoring his screaming joints and throbbing hip. He

could worry about injuries after he got out of here. Stepping onto the bed, his new position gave him
an extra foot of height. Just enough to be able to yank off the board, shift into his bunny, and leap
through the window.

As he pulled off his clothes in preparation, he prayed his thigh muscles were up to the task.

Taking a deep breath, he gripped the edge of the loose top corner and slowly pulled, hoping to keep
the noise level down. But the splintering crack of breaking wood filled the room, dashing his hopes
and filling him with panic. Casey tugged hard, tearing off a large piece. He gripped the piece below it
and pulled off a bit more.
Then he initiated his shift. The world around him expanded as his body shrank. Tendons popped and
bones cracked. His ears grew, fur sprouted, and his body realigned. The scrape of a key in the door’s
lock sounded loud to his now sensitive ears, telling Casey his time was up. He put everything he had
into his leap and lunged for the hole.
He  managed  to  get  his  front  legs  over  the  lip,  but  his  back  legs  scrabbled  for  purchase.  The  door
slammed  against  the  wall,  followed  by  the  shouts  of  at  least  three  men,  and  he  struggled  to  get  his
back legs through the window. Pitching forward, he flopped the rest of the way through the hole, the
broken wood scraping his legs, splinters embedding deep.
Twisting his body as he fell through the air, Casey managed to land on his back and not his head. For
several seconds, he couldn’t breathe, and he feared that he’d done serious damage. His lungs heaved
in  a  deep  breath,  filling  him  with  much  needed  oxygen.  He  looked  up  and  saw  two  faces  peering
down at him, and he realized he’d seen them before. The dark haired man was one of the wolves that
had caught him and beaten him the first time around. He knew he’d seen the blond guy before, too, but
Casey just wasn’t completely certain where or when.
Dismissing his thoughts, he clambered to his feet and sprang forward. He scampered down the alley
and veered into another, all the time using his heightened hearing to listen for pursuit. It wasn’t a long
time in coming. At least three of the shifters he’d scented on the other side of the door were wolves,
which meant they could probably track much better than he could. And since his hip and thigh were
already screaming at him, Casey needed to find a place to hole up.
The grate of a gutter beckoned, and he dove toward it. He had to wriggle and lie flat, his powerful
legs stretched out behind him, but he managed to get through the hole and drop into the bowels of the

sewer. His shoulder took a hard hit on cement, and he almost slid into water, barely managing to hang
onto  the  sixinch  wide  lip.  The  smell  of  refuse,  feces,  and  stagnant  water  assaulted  his  senses  and
burned his eyes. Casey knew that if he’d been in human form, he would have puked.
Again he tried to reach out to his mate, mentally calling desperately for Caspian. Nothing.
Unwilling to give up hope, Casey struggled through the mire. He carefully hopped forward, mindful of
the debris, the slick stones, the pooling water, and the fact that he couldn’t really swim very well in
this form. In the distance he heard water splashing. He sat up on his back legs and lifted his ears. It
took a few seconds to realize the sounds were feet sloshing through the water.
Since he couldn’t feel his mate, Casey turned and hopped swiftly along the embankment. The stench
made it impossible to know the identity of those coming, but that also meant they wouldn’t be able to
scent Casey. He rushed on, slipping and sliding in the muck. He spotted a chipped hole in the rock
wall ahead and raced toward it, praying it would be deep enough to hide his little furry body.
It wasn’t nearly as deep as Casey had hoped, and he paused, wondering if he should keep going or try
it anyway. The sloshing steps were growing louder, and his window of opportunity to decide closed.
He dove into the tiny space and wriggled around so his good hip was facing out in case he needed to
strike out with his powerful hind leg. Just as he settled, he spotted the bloated carcass of a raccoon
floating nearby.
Making a snap decision, he crawled forward, grabbed the sopping hide in his mouth and dragged it to
the opening of his tiny hide-a-hole. He gagged at the feel of the slimy fur sinking between his teeth,
but managed to fight the bile back down. To his relief, the bloated body easily covered the crevice he
hid in, and as long as he breathed through his mouth, he could fight down his desire to gag.
He  remained  tense  and  silent  in  his  niche  as  he  listened  to  several  men  move  past  him,  their  boots
slogging and squelching through muck, cursing the stench and Casey’s hide.
A shout from his left had Casey straining to hear. “Over here! This way!” Tension coiled through his
body, and he almost sprang from his hole in a desperate attempt to get away.
He forced himself to stay. Over the course of the next several minutes, he heard roaring, screaming, a
sickening crack, and the thud of flesh on flesh and flesh on cement. A crunch echoed over the sound of
the angry shouts. Casey bit his lip, trying to figure out what was going on out there.
A cold, distinctive snarl had his heart rate spiking. “I’d kill them again, if I could.”
“You  were  supposed  to  leave  one  alive,  Jared.  We  needed  answers,  not  bodies,”  Carson’s  deep
voice chided.
Shock shot through Casey, followed by more joy than he thought possible when he heard Caspian’s
sexy  voice  rumble,“He’s  close.”  The  idea  that  it  might  be  a  trick  flashed  through  his  still  terrified
mind, but then Caspian called out, “Casey! Where are you, my adorato!”
The words bounced and echoed off the walls. Casey couldn’t be certain how close his friends were,
but he knew they couldn’t be that far away. Caspian!
His joints flared with pain as he used his head to push the dead raccoon out of his way. Peeking his
head out, Casey looked first one way, then the other. He nearly panicked again when he saw that his
friends were almost to the end of the tunnel. Swinging around, Casey pushed his head into the dirty,
stinky  carcass  and  shoved.  It  fell  into  the  water  with  a  satisfying  plop  then  he  started  moving  as
swiftly as he could toward his mate.
Everyone  paused  at  the  sound  of  the  splash,  trying  to  pinpoint  direction.  Carson  cocked  his  head,
reminiscent of the wolf he shared his spirit with. Caspian, turn around! Casey screamed for Caspian
in his mind, desperate for contact with his mate.
Casey!

Caspian’s voice slid through his mind as the vampire spun around. His sharp eyes swept the darkness.
At  first,  his  gaze  slid  over  Casey’s  small  form,  then  he  snapped  his  head  back  around  and  his  eyes
widened. “Casey!” he cried, slogging through the knee-deep water toward him.
To his immense relief, his mate didn’t show any hesitation at sweeping his grimy, wet, furry body into
his arms. Caspian buried his face in the back of Casey’s neck, holding him close. “Ah, my adorato,”
he murmured.“I was so worried.”
Missed  you,  he  tried  to  mentally  project  as  he  rubbed  his  head  against  the  underside  of  Caspian’s
chin, expressing his relief and pleasure at the vampire’s arrival.
“Take my car and get Case out of here,” Carson ordered, handing the keys to Caspian.
“Seb and I will take care of the bodies,” Dobs assured from behind Caspian.“You take care of your
beloved.”
It was then that he noticed the three bodies floating nearby, a fourth laid half on and half off the tiny
ledge Casey had been using to  remain  out  of  the  water.  He  recognized  the  two  wolf  shifters  who’d
peered at him from the window. The other two men might or might not have been part of the group that
had caught him not quite a year earlier.
“Let’s get you someplace safe, Casey,” Caspian murmured as he started moving. He handed his keys
to  Dobs  as  he  passed  the  vampire,  then  continued  slogging  through  the  sewer.  “Get  you  cleaned  up
and comfortable.” His words turned a low growl as he added.“Then I plan to kiss every inch of your
body.”
Casey thought that sounded like an excellent idea, relieved beyond belief that his mate was alive and
well.

Chapter Eleven

aspian settled his beloved on his lap, loath to part with him even to drive. Resting one hand on

Casey’s dirty, wet back, he stroked his fingers through the fur, wondering what it felt like when clean
and dry. He’d have to find out at some point, he decided absently. Right now, all he cared was that
his shifter was with him, in his arms, and seemed to be unharmed. It had worried him for just a
moment that Casey hadn’t shifted back yet. Then he’d remembered the little fact that shifters removed
their clothes to change, and they were in the middle of a city. A naked man would be hard to explain.

He pulled into the parking lot of a large hotel in a popular chain and parked the car. His hand

tightened ever so slightly on the wheel as he realized he was going to have to leave his precious
beloved behind in order to secure a room, and damn if he didn’t want the biggest, most comfortable
suite he could get.

“ Can you fit under the seat, adorato?” he whispered. “I need to know you’re safe while I’m

gone.”
Casey  lifted  his  furred  face,  his  whiskers  twitched,  then  he  slipped  from  Caspian’s  lap  and
disappeared under the driver’s seat. Relief flooded him, and he knew it wasn’t all his own. As quick
as possible without raising eyebrows, Caspian hurried from the vehicle and procured a two-bedroom
suite. After what had just happened, he wanted his friends close and his adorato closer.
He sent off a text to Seb, letting him know where they were staying. He quickly returned to the car,
tucked  Casey  under  his  coat,  and  made  it  up  to  his  room.  He  swept  his  gaze  over  the  furnishings,
taking in the lay of the suite rather than the comfortable décor.
Caspian strode through the rooms, knowing most hotel layouts were similar. He found the bathroom
easily enough, lowered the lid of the toilet, and sat on it. Holding his beloved on his lap, he asked,
“Are you ready to shift for me, my sweet?”
A moment later, Caspian found himself with a lap full of naked male. He wasted no time capturing the
small  man’s  mouth  in  a  deep,  tongue-probing  kiss.  The  scent  and  taste  of  Casey  reassured  him,
settling his nerves as few things could. Only being buried balls deep in the man would be better, but
that would have to wait.
He  stood,  easily  lifting  Casey,  pleased  as  he  instinctively  wrapped  his  legs  around  his  waist.
Unconcerned about the clothes he still wore, Caspian stepped into the shower and started the water,
quickly finding the right temperature.
Casey slid down his body as Caspian lowered him to the tile floor of the large shower. His lover’s
fingers went to the buttons of Caspian’s shirt, his pink eyes questioning, gazing up at him from under
nearly white lashes. Caspian’s breath shuddered in his chest, his body tightening in anticipation. His
fangs ached with the need to reaffirm their bond.
“Please,” Casey whispered.
He  realized  he  wasn’t  the  only  one  who  needed  to  feel  connected  and  growled,  “Yes,”  low  in  his
throat.  The  sound  had  a  flush  working  up  Casey’s  chest,  neck  and  cheeks,  and  the  shifter  quickly
started  removing  the  soaked  fabric.  Caspian  helped  Casey  peel  the  shirt  from  him.  His  beloved’s
fingers hovered for a second over Caspian’s belt before reaching out and opening the buckle, then the
button, then sliding down his zipper.
A groan escaped him as his hard shaft was freed from its confinement. Casey wrapped an eager fist
around it and pumped once. Need, blazing and undeniable, roared through Caspian’s body.
He gripped his beloved’s waist and pinned his back to the tile. Casey gasped, but their link radiated

desire and, gods above help him, love. His beloved loved him. “Mine!” Caspian couldn’t hold in his
cry of anguished delight before his slammed his mouth on Casey’s again.
Grabbing the bottle of hotel conditioner, he poured a liberal amount onto the fingers of one hand. He
dropped  the  still  open  container  and  grabbed  Casey’s  thigh  and  ass,  lifting  him.  Caspian  used  his
body  to  hold  Casey  against  the  tile,  his  thick  thighs  pressed  between  Casey’s,  holding  them  apart.
Caspian nibbled his way from his lover’s sensuous lips, up his jaw, to his ear. He moved one hand
between Casey’s legs, easily finding his beloved’s fluttering hole.
From the gasping pants coming from Casey as well as the excitement and anticipation washing over
him  through  their  link,  Caspian  knew  he  wasn’t  the  only  one  eager  for  their  coupling.  He  slid  one
finger into Casey’s rectum, loving the feel of the man’s hole swallowing his digit, loving the sound of
his breathy mewls of pleasure.
“More,” Casey begged.“Please, Caspian.”
His  throbbing  shaft  jerked  between  his  legs,  the  engorged  flesh  encouraging  him  to  give  in  to  the
shifter’s pleas and move things along. Seeing no reason not to comply, Caspian obeyed. He quickly
worked his mate open, catching the sweet sounds of pleasure as they escaped Casey’s mouth.
Finally, unable to deny either of them what they both so desperately needed, he lined up the tip of his
oozing  dick  and  pressed  forward  and  up.  The  tight  press  of  contracting  muscles  swallowed  his
erection, sending concentrated tingles over his sensitive flesh to his balls, up his spine, to spark at the
base of his neck, finally settling in his fangs.
Buried  balls  deep  in  his  beloved,  Caspian  froze.  His  panting  breaths  ghosting  over  Casey’s  lips
mirrored  his  lover’s.  Casey’s  arms  and  legs  clutched  him,  leaving  no  space  between  them.  His
adorato’s  dick  twitched  against  Caspian’s  abs.  Trapped  between  their  bodies,  it  oozed  warm  pre-
cum along his already heated flesh.
“My  adorato,”  he  purred.“So  sweet,  so  fresh.  I  will  never  allow  danger  to  touch  you  again.”  He
didn’t know how he’d manage it, but somehow he’d make his promise come true.
Casey lifted a hand from his shoulder to touch his face, tracing his thumb over his lip.“I knew you’d
come for me. I called out in my mind but I didn’t know if you’d heard me. I didn’t know how far the
connection stretched.”
“I  heard  you,  my  beloved.  Soon,  I  will  teach  you  to  communicate  with  me  properly  through  our
connection. With you being a shifter, it may take some work, but we’ll do it.”
“I’d like that,” Casey whispered back.
His  thumb  brushed  over  Caspian’s  fang  and  the  touch  went  straight  to  his  balls.  The  sensitive  orbs
pulled tight and a feral growl escaped Caspian as his vision bled red. Caspian couldn’t stop himself
from  sliding  his  cock  halfway  out  and  slamming  back  in.  A  soft  moan  escaped  Casey,  and  his
beloved’s head dropped against the tile.
Stroking in and out of his lover’s hole, feeling the squeeze and slide of Casey’s muscles on his prick,
Caspian  stared  at  his  beloved  in  spine-tingling  anticipation  as  he  moved  faster  and  faster.  Casey
moaned, his white hair plastered to his skull, his head rolling back and forth on the tile. Every move
of his adorato’s neck tendons drew Caspian’s focus ever tighter to the thread of blood pulsing in the
vein just under the skin.
Caspian’s balls pulled impossibly tighter. Fire licked up and down his spine. He knew he wouldn’t
last much longer. As if sensing his need, Casey stopped rolling his head and presented his neck. His
gaze skipped up to his adorato’s face, and he saw the naked desire in Casey’s eyes.
Please!
The one word, not spoken out loud but sent through their link, told Caspian it would be easy to teach

his beloved to communicate with him. And it was all the permission he needed. He pulled back his
lips  in  a  feral  snarl  and  sank  his  fangs  deep  into  the  pulsing  vein.  Casey’s  blood  flowed  over  his
tongue,  tasting  like  the  bitter  nectar  of  the  gods.  His  lips  wrapped  around  Casey’s  neck,  he  sucked
strongly, pulling more of his adorato’s life force into himself.
Casey jerked in his arms, his back bowed against the tile, and he screamed as his cock pulsed, forcing
out  stream  after  stream  of  seed  in  time  with  Caspian’s  sucks.  Casey’s  chute  clamped  down  on
Caspian’s cock, and he pulled away from his beloved’s neck as he lost the battle with his body and
soaked Casey’s rectum with his seed.
Wave  after  wave  of  ecstasy  rocked  through  his  body,  sweeping  over  him.  He  let  it  consume  him,
black  spots  flashing  behind  his  red-hazed  vision,  as  the  pleasure  of  loving  Casey  sent  him  soaring.
Caspian sighed as he came back from that place where only his beloved could send him. Licking the
bite mark closed, he nuzzled Casey’s neck.
When his cock softened and slipped from Casey’s channel, he carefully lowered the man to the floor,
keeping his hands on his hips to make certain he had his feet under him. Casey smiled shyly up at him,
blowing  Caspian’s  mind  that  after  what  they’d  just  done  together  the  shifter  could  still  look  so
innocent.  It  was  one  of  the  reasons  he  loved  this  man. And  he  did  love  him,  Caspian  realized  with
some satisfaction.
“Let’s get cleaned up and then we’ll rest,” he murmured against Casey’s scalp as he rubbed his lips
over the much shorter man’s hair.
“Okay,” Casey replied, then started working Caspian’s forgotten jeans down his legs.
Caspian had to help him once he reached his boots. He nearly fell over, and both men were chortling
madly  by  the  time  Caspian  found  himself  divested  of  all  his  clothes,  one  big  hand  on  the  wall  to
support  him.  He  planted  a  quick  kiss  to  Casey’s  lips,  then  made  quick  work  of  getting  them  both
clean. Now that his baser instincts were assuaged, he could see the fatigue in his beloved’s eyes.
It didn’t take too much longer to dry his beloved with one of the large, thick bath towels and carry him
to bed. Laying him down, Caspian followed him beneath the sheets and pulled him close. He leaned
up on an elbow and cupped his beloved’s jaw, loving the way Casey gazed up at him.“I love you,” he
murmured.“I know you can feel it.”
Casey’s eyes lit up, the pink lightening with pleasure.“Yeah, I can feel it,” he said.“I love you, too.”
Caspian grinned.“I know,” he whispered, stealing another kiss.

He woke to the soft sound of the suite ’s electronic door lock giving way. He turned his head,

listening, not ready to disturb his beloved’s slumber if it wasn’t necessary. Hearing Seb and Dobs
banter had him lowering his head, and Caspian waited. He knew one of them would make their way
to his bedroom eventually.

Caspian didn ’t have to wait long. Seb poked his head in and swept his gaze over them.“How’s he

doing?” he asked softly.

“ Okay. We’ll question him when he wakes,” Caspian replied.

Seb nodded and stepped into the room, carrying a couple bags that Caspian recognized as his own
and Casey’s. He set them at the foot of the bed. “I’m ordering room service. What do you want me to
get him?”
“Chicken Caesar salad,” Casey’s sleepy voice slurred.
Caspian smiled down at Casey, all tucked against his chest, and rubbed a hand through his hair. He
smirked at Sebastian, who lifted his hand and nodded. Caspian knew that his friend wouldn’t need to
ask for his order. After over a century of friendship, the man knew what he liked.
Caspian snuggled Casey for another forty minutes. He knew from the sound of the shifter’s breathing

that  he  dozed  off  and  on.  Eventually,  Dobs  slipped  into  the  room  and  waved  to  get  his  attention.
Caspian  nodded,  and  after  the  other  vampire  had  retreated,  he  gently  roused  his  beloved  with  soft
kisses and light touches.
After a minute, Casey rolled over and peered up at him.“Hey,” he whispered.
“Dinner’s here,” Caspian told him, leaning down for a kiss.“You must be hungry.”
A  rumble  from  Casey’s  stomach  had  them  both  chuckling.  His  little  shifter  nodded.“I  haven’t  eaten
since before getting kidnapped.” His brows furrowed. “Thank you for coming after me,” he said.
“Although  I  pray  nothing  like  that  ever  happens  again,  I’ll  always  come  after  you,”  he  whispered.
After one more peck, he released Casey and rolled to his feet. “Come. Let’s go eat.” He set Casey’s
bag on the bed and smiled.“Compliments of Jared and Carson,” he said with a wink.
Casey smiled as he pulled out fresh briefs, jeans, and a t-shirt.“They are good men. Well, in their own
way,” he added with a snort.
Caspian  chuckled,  too.  After  spending  a  couple  days  in  the  wolf  enforcer  and  his  human  mate’s
company, he could understand that comment.“They are devoted to you.” Even as he said the words, he
wasn’t certain how he felt about that. He paused, his brows drawing down in concern.“Will they give
me much trouble when we’re done here?”
“Trouble?” Casey paused from pulling the light colored blue jeans on, one leg in and one leg out, bent
over at an awkward angle.“What do you mean?”
He  smiled  at  the  endearing  picture,  working  hard  to  keep  his  thoughts  on  the  conversation.“When
we’re done visiting your family and I take you home with me?” he said bluntly.
“Oh.” Casey finished pulling his jeans on and straightened.“I thought we’d agreed that we’ll have a
house here and there?”
“We did,” Caspian immediately confirmed.
Casey  shrugged.“Then  there  shouldn’t  be.  Just  think  of  themas…older  brothers,”  he  said.  He
smiled.“They just want to make certain I’m being well taken care of.”
Caspian pulled his sweet little mate into his arms. “Once we solve this little issue you have of getting
kidnapped  all  the  time,”  he  said,  punctuating  his  words  with  kisses,“we  won’t  have  any  problems
whatsoever.”
He  received  a  smile  that  stirred  his  cock,  and  Caspian  groaned.  “Food,  conversation,  then  more
fucking,” he growled, leading a giggling Casey from the room.
Jared handed Casey a large bowl, giving him a wink. “Enjoy, buddy.”
Casey grinned and dug in.
Carson handed Caspian a plate with bacon, eggs, hash browns, and toast.“Thanks,” he said, taking the
food gratefully. Like Casey, he hadn’t eaten since yesterday at the bunny shifter compound.
When Caspian woke from the hard knock on his head the previous night to find that Casey had been
kidnapped,  he’d  nearly  gone  insane  with  rage.  It  had  taken  both  his  friends  and  the  wolf  to  get  him
into his room. Jared had appeared an hour later telling him that Casey had been taken to a warehouse
district. How the human had managed to track them so quickly, Caspian didn’t know, but at least now
he understood Declan’s faith in the man.
As they ate, Casey told them what he could, including the conversation he’d overheard about it having
to do something with his old herd. He added that he’d recognized at least one of the wolves from the
last attack, as well as one that he couldn’t quite place but knew he’d seen outside that pack before.
“In the morning, we’ll visit them again,” Caspian said.“We’ll see if we can figure out what the hell is
going on.”
He made slow sweet love to his beloved that night, and when morning came, he did it all over again.

Chapter Twelve

asey once again found himself sitting in the passenger seat of the SUV heading toward his old

herd’s community. He liked the idea of seeing his mother and sisters again, but the occasion
concerned him. How was he supposed to pick out the contact, the brother who’d been part of the
wolves?

As if sensing his concern, Caspian reached across the console and gripped his hand. He gave it a

squeeze. “Relax. We’ll figure it out.”

He smiled, then lapsed into silence. No one bothered speaking again until they reached the

compound.“How do you think they’ll react?” Casey finally voiced his concerns.“Will they want
retribution?”

Dobs scoffed. “For what? Killing a group of rogues who were capturing and selling shifters? That

won’t fly, no matter what council they go to,” he stated adamantly.

After pulling open his door, Caspian slid out and said over his shoulder,“Dobs is right, adorato.

They cannot touch us for what happened.” Pausing at the open door, his smile turned cold.“I, on the
other hand, will see to it that whoever hired them to get you will never be given the opportunity
again.”

It didn ’t take the ever-strengthening link between them to tell Casey that his mate desired the

death of whoever the mysterious contact was. He could see it in the flash of red that masked the green
of the vampire’s eyes and then was gone.

Hearing doors slamming as once more the alpha, his betas, and his enforcers came to greet them,

Casey slid from the vehicle. He limped around the front and joined his mate and the other men.

“ When you didn’t come yesterday, we thought perhaps you weren’t coming back,” Ryan stated.

The man’s arms hung loose at his sides, but it wouldn’t take much for them to be lifted in defense or
for his tightly coiled body to spring forward in attack.“Are you here to visit family again, Casey?”

The question was in his tone, and Carson answered. “Casey was kidnapped night before last by

some of the same wolves who caught him the first time.”

Ryan ’s gaze flickered over him and then back to Carson.“He seems well enough.”

“Casey  is  smart  and  nimble,”  Caspian  stated.“We  intercepted  his  attackers  while  he  was  fleeing
them.”  His  grin  showed  plenty  of  fang  as  he  added,“We’ve  brought  you  the  bodies  to  see  if  you
recognize any of the rogues.”
Without preamble, Sebastian and Dobs set a dark green tarp on the ground. Casey’s throat tightened.
He hadn’t even seen them disappear, but a glance over his shoulder showed the open rear door of the
SUV. The two vampires flipped back the edges revealing the bodies of four men.
A  shocked  gasp  erupted,  followed  by  a by the gods  sounded  from  nearby.  Shelly  ran  toward  them.
Casey’s  eyes  widened  as  he  watched  the  woman  his  father  had  intended  him  to  marry  drop  to  her
knees next to the man who Casey hadn’t been able to place.“You know him?” he whispered, shocked.
She touched the man’s brow gently and replied, “He is my mate’s brother.”
The man in question was running toward them from the direction of the fields, probably drawn to the
group by the sound of Shelly’s outburst. Edward landed on his knees next to Shelly and pulled her to
his chest. Every line of his body showed the love he felt for the woman in his arms. His gaze finally
landed on his brother and a hoarse cry escaped his throat.“Haden!” He looked up at the men standing
around him. “What happened to him?”
Then his eyes widened when he spotted Casey and muttered,“What are you doing here?”

“Well,  I  guess  that  answers  the  question  of  the  contact  in  your  herd,  Alpha,”  Jared  remarked
sarcastically.
A low growl rumbled through Caspian’s throat.
Edward  swung  his  head  around,  evidently  just  taking  in  the  countenances  of  the  men  around  them,
some  serious,  some  shocked,  some  angry.“What’s  going  on?  What  happened  to  my  brother?”  he
asked, returning to his original queries.
“Did you know that your brother was a kidnapper in league with human scientists experimenting on
shifters?” Ryan asked bluntly.
The direct question left no room for evasiveness, which meant if Edward lied, they’d all be able to
smell it. The man’s eyes widened.“No!”
Truth.
“Then why were you amazed that Casey is here?” Jared asked, his eyes narrowing.
Casey didn’t know how the wiry human knew the man had told the truth, but for some reason, Jared
didn’t need scent to establish someone’s honesty.
“Well, my brother told me—I mean—” His eyes widened.“Oh, shit!”
Caspian growled again. Wrapping a strong hand around Edward’s forearm, he yanked the other man
to his feet, startling a cry out of Shelly.“You’re part of this, wolf. Your brother kidnapped my beloved
and sold him to scientists.” His eyes flashed red and he wrapped his suddenly clawed hand around
Edward’s throat. “And you knew!”
“No,” he gasped.“I didn’t. I swear.”
Not wanting more bloodshed, Casey wrapped a hand lightly around Caspian’s arm, resting the other
on his chest. He pressed close to his mate. “Please, Caspian. No more. He didn’t know.”
He  watched  the  muscles  in  Caspian’s  arms  slowly  lose  some  of  their  tension  as  he  released  the
shifter. The vampire let out a long, slow breath before ordering, “Explain yourself.”
Edward pulled his mate into his arms and held her at arm’s length.“You are so beautiful. Even though
you aren’t my true mate, I fell in love with you the moment I saw you,” he whispered.“You may not
have  been  a  wolf,  but  I  knew  I  had  to  have  you.”  He  grimaced,  glancing  at  Casey.“But  you  were
promised to another.”
“But he left,” Shelly whispered, her brows wrinkled in confusion.
Nodding,  Edward  looked  at  Casey’s  father.“But  I  heard  that  Devon  was  trying  to  convince  him  to
return. Even though we were dating, I was so afraid he would come back and you’d leave me.” The
anguish  in  Edward’s  eyes  almost  touched  Casey.   Almost.  The  wolf  continued.“I  was  drunk  one
evening, and told my fears to my brother. I don’t remember much of the night, just that he said he’d
look into it.” He smiled bitterly.“My older brother was always trying to fix things for me, probably
feeling guilty for getting us kicked out of our pack.”
Casey  knew  there  was  a  story  there.  A  story  Shelly  must  know  if  the  way  she  rested  a  hand  on
Edward’s chest and gave him an understanding smile was any indicator.
Edward  continued.“A  couple  weeks  later,  Haden  came  back  to  me  and  told  me  I  wouldn’t  need  to
worry about Casey anymore. He said he’d taken care of it.”
Swallowing hard, Edward gave Casey an apologetic look.“I didn’t ask him what he meant. I didn’t
want to know,” he admitted with a blush.“I loved my brother, but I knew he had a devious streak in
him. And I was so happy because Shelly’s herd had finally agreed to our mating. I just took it as Fate
giving us her blessing, you know?” Letting out a shuddering breath, he released his mate and turned to
Casey  and  Caspian.“I’m  sorry  for  what  my  brother  did  to  you.  If  you  want  retribution,  I  willfully
submit.”

Shelly gasped from behind him, her hand lifting to cover her mouth, tears forming in her eyes.
Casey  could  feel  the  turmoil  rolling  through  his  mate,  and  knew  he  was  torn  with  his  need  for
retribution  and  his  sympathy  for  the  poor  besotted  fool.  Casey  took  the  opportunity  away  from
Caspian, not wanting his vampire to struggle.
“No retribution under one condition.”
“Anything. Anything at all,” he replied immediately. Edward’s eyes widened and he glanced back at
Shelly, “Except—”
Casey  lifted  a  hand,  waving  away  his  concern.“I’m  already  mated.  I’m  not  interested  in  Shelly.  No
offense,” he added with a wink at his old friend. Once the relieved look filled Edward’s expression,
he  said,“I  want  access  to  your  brother’s  home  and  any  information  you  can  give  me  about  friends,
business  contacts,  work,  or  anything  else  you  can  think  of  that  may  help  us  find  the  rest  of  his
accomplices.”
Edward nodded slowly, but his gaze strayed to the body of his brother and the other three men.“I think
the only ones you may have missed are Marshal and Bruno,” he said,“but I’ll help in any way I can.”
He flushed and dropped his gaze.“I’ll get the keys and write directions.”
After  receiving  a  nod  of  approval  from  his  alpha,  Edward  hurried  away,  leading  Shelly,  his  hand
gripping her fingers tightly, as if unwilling to let her go now that the truth of his folly was revealed.
Casey knew Edward had some serious apologizing to do. Even though they didn’t want to mate, he
and Shelly had been friends, and Shelly wouldn’t have wanted anything to happen to him.
Caspian  wrapped  an  arm  around  Casey’s  waist,  and  he  happily  burrowed  into  the  side  of  his
vampire. He watched Ryan order the two rabbit enforcers to remove the tarp, assuring them that he
would take care of the shifter’s bodies.
“I’m sorry this happened to you,” the alpha stated, sweeping a compassionate look over Casey.
Casey shrugged. “You weren’t around when it happened. You don’t need to apologize.” It occurred to
him that he’d been hanging out with Jared too long, considering his taciturn response to an obviously
powerful alpha. He never would have replied like that even six months ago.
To his relief, Ryan grinned.“If you and your mate decide you ever need a herd to call your own, look
me up. Your family is here. You’ll always be welcome.”
Surprised by the unexpected overture, Casey smiled. “That’s very kind of you.” He felt the concern
and  worry  coming  through  the  link  with  his  mate  and  patted  Caspian’s  back  reassuringly,  out  of
eyeshot of the others.“We’re honored by your offer, but I have a new pack now, and then a home with
the vampires and Caspian. But as you said, my family is here, so if I may have permission to visit on
occasion, I’d appreciate it.”
Ryan nodded, the amusement still reaching his hazel eyes.“Granted.”
Edward returned and handed them a key and a slip of paper. Casey saw an address, a phone number,
and an email address.“The address is Haden’s,” he said. “The phone number and email address are
mine. I’ll compile a list and, if you call me in a day to give me your address, I’ll send it to you.”
Caspian took the paper and handed it to Jared. The human grinned.“Fun.”
“Jared  or  Carson  will  call  you  tomorrow.  Coordinate  with  them.”  Casey  felt  Caspian’s  surprise
through their link, but was grateful the man didn’t comment.
Watching his friends say their goodbyes to the alpha and betas, he knew Jared was already drooling
at  the  prospect  of  going  through  another  person’s  home  and  computer.  The  guy  loved  hacking  and
generally  enjoyed  prying  into  other  people’s  lives.  Casey  returned  his  gaze  to  Edward  and
nodded.“I’m sorry about your brother.”
Edward  grimaced.“Me,  too.”  They  watched  him  walk  slowly  toward  the  fields,  Edward’s  gaze

drifting toward his home and his mate several times before he disappeared around a barn.
“You won’t do anything to him, will you?” he asked the alpha.
Ryan shook his head.“No. I will keep an eye on him though. See if his pairing needs counseling. What
happened wasn’t his doing, but he could probably have done something about it.”
Casey smiled.“I’m glad he didn’t.”
His brows drew down and Ryan’s eyes narrowed. “Why do you say that?”
Turning,  he  cuddled  closer  to  his  mate,  liking  how  Caspian’s  arms  tightened  around  him.  “Because
then I never would have been sold to the scientists. I never would have been taken to Colorado, or
rescued  by  Jared,  or  healed  by  Lark  or  been  welcomed  into  Declan’s  home.”  He  knew  the  others
were  staring  at  him  in  shock,  but  he  couldn’t  help  it.  He  really  was  grateful.  Cupping  his  mate’s
cheek, he brought the man’s head down for a soft kiss.“If none of those things had happened, I never
would have met Caspian. And meeting my mate was worth any price,” he whispered.
“Ah, my adorato.” Caspian cupped Casey’s jaw in one hand and wrapped his arm around his waist
tightly  with  the  other.  Casey  felt  himself  lifted  as  Caspian  latched  onto  his  mouth.  He  wrapped  his
legs and arms around the vampire, returning his kiss hungrily.
Dobs’ and Seb’s chuckles finally cut into their moment. They brought the kiss to an end and grinned at
each  other  before  turning  to  look  at  the  two  laughing  vampires.  A  look  past  them  told  Casey  that
everyone else had scattered and a deep heat flooded his cheeks and neck.
Caspian  chuckled  as  well,  before  returning  his  focus  to  Casey.  He  softly  pecked  one  more  kiss  on
Casey’s  lips  and  then  led  him  toward  the  SUV.“Are  you  certain  you  don’t  wish  to  help  Jared  and
Carson?” the vampire asked curiously.
Casey shook his head and smiled  up  at  him.“I  don’t  want  anything  to  do  with  the  investigation,”  he
said.“I just want to go home.”
Grinning, fangs flashing, Caspian’s joy came through their bond.“Then come on, adorato. It’s time to
make a home of our own.”
With Caspian’s help, Casey climbed into the vehicle. He watched his sexy vampire walk around the
hood and realized he was the luckiest bunny ever.

About the Author

Charlie lives on a mini ranchette in Utah with her handsome, supportive husband. She started

writing fantasy when she was eight, and after stumbling onto her first erotic romance at nineteen, she
realized her true calling. She now focuses on writing erotic romance, often of the paranormal variety,
with heroes and heroines of all kinds. You can often find her curled up with her laptop and a cup of
tea or glass of wine, creating her next story, which could pair a sexy hero with an adventurous
heroine… or maybe with another handsome hero. Charlie enjoys horseback riding, jump lessons with
Apache, watching movies with her husband, and listening to her muse tell her about her next project.
She can be reached at ch.richards2010@yahoo.com Or visit her at www.charlie-richards.com

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