Accepting His Human

Crypto  Zoologist  Drake  Whitton  works  as  a  genetics
professor at Colin City College while he figures out how to
remove  the  eccentric  label  from  his  name,  given  to  him  by
his peer’s response to his last paper on the existence of the
chupacabra. He thinks he’s found the opportunity he needs
when a private firm asks him to dissect and analyze a new
DNA  strand,  and  he  discovers  it  contains  both  human  and
reptilian characteristics. His plans are derailed when his car
gets hijacked by a detective on the run, his home gets broken
into by people from the corporation he’s been doing research
for, and  he gets seduced by the  doctor assigned to care for
the hijacker.

Doctor Ailean Carmichael never expects to find a mate, let

alone a human one, but he’s willing to take what Fate gives
him. After all, not all humans are like his late foster parents,
right? And an orphaned, exiled black jaguar living in a wolf
shifter’s territory doesn’t have too many options. He decides
seducing the naïve professor will be delicious fun for both of
them, until Ailean realizes he needs to protect his little mate
from  those  bent  on  experimenting  on  and  eradicating
shifters. But when Ailean discovers Drake actually works for
the  scientists  trying  to  destroy  him  and  his  friends,  will  he
take  the  time  to  listen  to  Drake’s  explanation?  Or  will  he
decide all humans really are the same?

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

Accepting His Human

ISBN: 978-1-77111-034-1

Cover art by Martine Jardin

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reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part
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Published by eXtasy Books

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Chapter One

rake Whitton strode out of the building, fighting back the
urge to run. Man, those guys give me the heebie jeebies. If he

didn’t need the grant money so bad, he would have told
them no after the first meeting. But it was tough to find
anyone willing to front money to a crypto zoologist, and one
thought to be eccentric at that.

Maybe he should walk away. It wasn’t like he needed to

do  research  to  survive.  He’d  fallen  back  on  his  teaching
degree last year after  the critics tore apart his paper on the
existence  of  the  chupacabra.  He  should  have  known  better
than to publish something so controversial.

Drake rubbed a hand over his lean face, realizing he’d lost

weight  since  taking  this  grant  from  the  Crystal  Lake
Corporation.  Their  schedule  for  results  was  pretty
aggressive, and Drake often found it difficult to find time, if
he  even  remembered,  to  eat.  And  getting  enough  sleep  at
night? Forget it. He was lucky if he managed four hours.

Letting out a sigh, he lifted the key fob and pressed a

button. The lights to his hatchback Ford Focus blinked, and
he heard a muted click, the noise that meant he was pushing
the button to unlock an already unlocked car. Odd. He felt
certain he’d locked it.

Drake glanced around warily but saw nothing amiss. He

was the only one in the parking lot. Rolling his shoulders, he
tried to relieve the tension. He continued to sweep his gaze
over the area as he climbed into his car. After putting the

Accepting His Animal

keys in the ignition, Drake fastened his seatbelt and started
the vehicle. He put the car in reverse and looked in the rear
view mirror, checking for traffic that he knew wasn’t there.

His eyes widened as he focused on the gun.
“Drive,” the man lying across his tiny backseat ordered.
Drake’s jaw dropped open, and he struggled to breathe.
“Just drive and you won’t get hurt.” The rasping order of

the gunman came again.

Nodding quickly, he headed out of the parking lot. “W-

where do I need to take you, sir?” Drake managed to squeak
out after several moments of tense silence. Yeah, that
sounded so un-manly, but he was a college professor and
scientist, not a courageous man.

“Grady,” his armed hitchhiker wheezed.
It was then that Drake noticed the metallic scent of blood

filling the small car. Another look in the mirror showed the
bruising covering the man’s face and the dark, dried blood
caking his arms. His eyes widened even more. What had
happened to this man? “Is your name Grady?”

For a second the man just stared at him, and Drake

worried he’d managed to anger him.

The man shook his head slowly and said, “Need to get to

Detective Grady Stryker.”

The man’s words were slow and deliberate, as if each

word was an effort. “Detective Grady Stryker?” At the man’s
slow nod, Drake couldn’t stop a smile, or the nervous laugh.
That’s odd. Why would a kidnapper want to get to a cop?
Hopefully this Grady fellow wasn’t crooked. “Okay,” Drake
said softly. “Just relax. I’ll find Detective Stryker for you.”

His words seemed to soothe the man because he eased

back onto the seat and let out a sigh. Drake worried his lip,
eyeing his uninvited, and evidently severely injured,
passenger. What on earth happened to him? Should I take him to
my condo? If he were to find this detective, he’d need to get

Charlie Richards

online and do a search, and it wasn’t safe to use his phone
and drive. Hopefully, this guy wouldn’t be too far away. Or
maybe…

“Do you know Detective Stryker’s phone number?”
His inquiry received no response. On a straight stretch of

road, he took a long look in his mirror and realized the man
had passed out, either from exhaustion or from his injuries,
Drake didn’t know. Okay. My condo it is.

Fifteen minutes later had him driving through the gate of

his  secured  community.  He  hurriedly  parked  his  Focus  in
his  garage  and  hit  the  button  to  close  the  garage  door,
locking them inside the cavernous room. If he could get the
gun away from the man and then get online, maybe he could
locate the detective and get some answers, or he could drive
back  out  of  the  garage  and  to  the  nearest  police  station.
Another look in the mirror at the severely injured man had
Drake  opening  the  door  and  shoving  his  seat  forward.  He
sucked  in  a  breath  as  he  got  his  first  good  look  at  the
stranger. Short dark hair was matted with blood, and dark,
square facial features were obscured by bruises, scabs, and a
bushy beard. Even in sleep, the man clutched a rough, gray,
military  style  blanket  around  his  body.  The  arm  he  could
see,  the  one  holding  the  handgun,  was  pale,  a  chafing  line
around the wrist indicating confinement, and needle marks.
Crap! Is he a druggie?

Having no way of knowing, he carefully eased the

weapon out of the unresponsive man’s fingers. Not knowing
anything about guns, he set it on the floor and used a foot to
push it under his car. Then he reached forward and pressed
his fingers to the man’s neck. Relief filled him when he
found a pulse, weak, but it was there.

Drake pulled out his blackberry and started a search. He

found a Detective Grady Stryker who was a homicide officer
commissioned out of Stone Ridge, a town a little over an

Accepting His Animal

hour from Colin City, where Drake lived and worked.
Noting the number, he entered it into his phone and pushed
send.

He crossed his fingers for luck, praying the man would

answer. A glance at his watch showed him it was already
nearing ten-thirty at night. Cringing at having to call anyone
this late, Drake worried his lip and eyed the prone form still
in his car.

A deep voice answered on the fourth ring. “Stryker here.”
“Detective Grady Stryker?” Drake asked warily.
“Hello? Anyone there?”
Drake frowned. “Is this Detective Grady Stryker?” he

asked, a little louder.

“Fuck, I can’t hear anyone. Piece of shit.”
He heard the deep voice growl into the phone.
“Give me that,” another man said, his voice faint enough

that Drake realized he must have been standing right next to
the detective. “Hold on,” the second man said, his voice
much clearer.

Drake knew the stranger now spoke into the phone, to

him.

“You gotta stop playing with the buttons, stud. You

screwed with the volume again.”

Drake’s brows shot up. Stud? What on earth? Seconds

later, he heard the tenor again.

“You still there?”
“Yes,” Drake managed to answer, thoroughly confused.
“Good. Hang on.”
“Stryker here.” The deep bass voice sounded into the

phone again, this time with a hint of irritation.

“Are you…are you Detective Grady Stryker?” Drake

asked, suddenly hesitant.

There was a short silence, before, “Yeah. Who is this?”
“My name is Professor Drake Whitton. I picked up

Charlie Richards

someone who says he’s looking for you.” Drake stared at the
injured man as he spoke, willing the man to wake up. He
didn’t.

“Who?”
Well, that was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? How

to answer… “Um. I don’t know his name. He
kinda…well…I gave him a ride, and he passed out in the
back. He’s injured. There’s bruising on his face and blood on
his arms.”

“Shit!” the detective snarled. Hushed voices murmured in

the background, this time too quiet for the sensitive phone to
pick up and pass on. Finally, he heard, “Does he have dark
hair and eyes? Stands about six foot?”

“Uh…” Drake swept his gaze over the man. “He has dark

hair. I didn’t notice his eyes, and he’s lying down, so I don’t
know his height.” Before the detective could say anything
else, Drake said, “Look. He’s pretty beat up. I think I should
take him to a hospital. Maybe you could meet me there.”

The next long pause made him twitch nervously. What if

the detective thought he was the one who beat the guy up?
Of  course,  one  look  at  him,  and  the  guy  would  know  that
wasn’t  even  a  remote  possibility.  Drake  was  five-foot-nine
with  light  chocolate  skin,  thanks  to  his  half  African
American,  half  Swedish  father,  wore  glasses,  and  was
skinny,  not  lithe  or  tone  or  any  of  those  flattering  ways  of
saying  someone  was  thin.  He  had  to  work  to  weigh  more
than  one  hundred  twenty  pounds,  and  women  were  more
interested in getting some meat on his bones than dating him,
which  was  good,  since  Drake  was  gay,  very,  very  gay.  He
couldn’t imagine what he’d do with a woman if she ended
up interested.

“Are you near Colin City or Sugar Creek?” The deep

voice interrupted his stray musings.

“Yes. Colin City.”

Accepting His Animal

“Take him to Colin City Hospital. Know where that is?”
“Yes.”
“Ask for Doctor Carmichael. I’m going to call and tell the

doc he’s coming. Can you do that?”

“Yes.” Oops! Now I feel like a broken record, better say

something else. “I’m not too far from there. I’ll have your
friend there in about ten minutes or so.”

“Good. I’ll see you there, Professor.”
After popping his head into the condo and yelling to his

brother that he needed to run out again, Drake climbed back
into his car and started it up. Hitting the garage door opener,
he eased out of the enclosure and back onto the street. After
closing the garage door, he glanced in the rear view mirror
again, more to assure himself that the man was still
unconscious than anything else.

* * * *

Doctor Ailean Carmichael let out a low growl as he set the
phone down. Some idiot human was bringing in an injured
man, possibly Detective Sullivan. The big cat shifter figured
he should be grateful for the good Samaritan, since they’d
been looking for the missing man for two weeks, but it sure
made his job more difficult. All his rooms were full, which
meant he’d have to transfer a patient to Doctor Lansey, who
would raise a fuss and demand all kinds of explanations. The
prick.

He strode to the emergency room admissions desk and

smiled at Bernice. “I need to free up one of my rooms. Can
you transfer Mr. Sanders from room three into one of Doctor
Lansey’s rooms, please?”

The woman grimaced, but nodded. “Yes, Doctor.” Still

typing, she glanced up at him. “You know he’s not going to
be happy.”

Charlie Richards

“I know, Bernice.” He tapped his clipboard on the desk in

agitation. “If he gives you any trouble, tell him the order
came from me.”

“You’ll probably be seeing him in exactly…six minutes,”

she said after glancing at the clock.

Ailean nodded, knowing she was probably right. A

couple moments later, just coming out of the room of one of
his patients, he found a glaring Doctor Lansey. He glanced
at his watch and lifted a brow. Damn. Six minutes. Is Bernice
psychic? More probable was the fact that the older woman
had been working at the hospital for two decades.

“Why did you transfer your patient to me? Don’t you

think I have enough of my own?” the other doctor snarled
angrily.

Doctor Lansey did a damn fine impersonation of a cat,

Ailean thought, staring at the man. “I received a call from
Detective Stryker notifying me that an injured man was on
his way. He asked that I take a look at him,” he said,
crossing his arms over his white coat.

“And you couldn’t just give that patient to me?” Doctor

Lansey scoffed.

“No,” he replied. He’d be damned if he explained himself

to this human.

“Why not?”
“Doctor Carmichael, please report to the emergency room

desk,” Bernice’s voice came over the intercom.

Ailean turned on his heel and walked down the hall,

dismissing the irritating man behind him. As he neared the
reception area, a sweet musky scent hit his senses, making
his cock perk up and take notice. What the hell? Trying to
ignore the sudden onslaught of lust, Ailean crossed the room
while taking in the occupants.

Half a dozen patients occupied chairs. An orderly walked

past him, taking another patient through the doors behind

Accepting His Animal

him to a room. Bernice sat at her desk, keying information
into her computer. And a cute man stood nervously in front
of her desk, twisting his long slender fingers in agitation.

He couldn’t help but give the human a once over as he

walked  toward  him.  Light  chocolate  skin  and  short,  dark
brown  hair  spoke  of  a  mixed  heritage.  The  stranger  stood
around five nine and had a lean body, a little too lean in fact.
The  poor  human  looked  like  a  stiff  wind  would  blow  him
over.  A  strange  desire  to  hold  the  man  and  ease  whatever
stress caused the man’s obvious tension swept over Ailean.

Frowning at the ridiculous notion, he made his way over

and stopped next to the desk. The small human stared up at
him, and his deep brown eyes widened as he swept his gaze
over Ailean’s body. He smirked, keeping his eyes on the
human as he said, “You called for me, Bernice?”

“Yes, Doctor,” she replied, her gaze glancing from one

man to the other. “This gentleman says Detective Stryker
sent him to see you.”

“Thank you, Bernice,” he said. “Come this way.” He

rested a hand on the man’s shoulder and a bolt of desire shot
through  his  body,  making  his  dick  tighten  and  jerk  in  his
scrubs.  Mate!  Ailean  snatched  his  hand  away  as  if  burned
and  sucked  in  a  breath.  No.  It  can’t  be!  My  mate  can’t  be
human!  But  the  intoxicating  scent  that  surrounded  them  as
the man followed where Ailean led to a quiet corner of the
reception room didn’t lie. Fuck!

Glaring, he snapped, “Where’s Lyle?”
The man’s brows shot up. “Lyle? Oh, my hitchhiker!” He

wrapped his arms around his midsection and dropped his
gaze to the floor. “He’s in my car. I couldn’t get him out.
He’s too big.”

And, well hell, now he felt bad for growling at the

human, and Ailean wanted to wrap his arms around him
and soothe him. Letting out a frustrated breath, he said, “Let

Charlie Richards

me get a stretcher and then you can lead the way.”

The man nodded quickly, still not looking at him.

Running a hand through his thick black hair, Ailean headed
toward  the  back  to  get  what  he  needed.  He  was  back  a
moment later. The man glanced up quickly before  averting
his  eyes.  Shit!  Ailean  didn’t  want  the  man  scared  of  him.
How  the  hell  was  he  supposed  to  seduce  him  that  way?
Even if he was human, a shifter only received one mate.

Then another thought struck. What if the human wasn’t

gay? That put a whole new spin on the situation. He’d have
to find out. But first… “Where’s your car?”

“This way,” came the soft, breathy reply that had Ailean’s

balls aching.

Swallowing his desire, so glad the coat he wore reached

mid-thigh and hid his erection, he followed out the door.
The man glanced over his shoulder at him. “Don’t you need
an orderly to help or something?”

“Nope,” Ailean said. His shifter strength would be more

than enough to get Detective Sullivan, or whoever it turned
out to be, out of the car. At least he thought so until he saw
the  tiny  hatchback’s  lights  flash  in  response  to  his  mate
hitting a key fob.  He may need the little  human’s help just
due to the awkward confines of the vehicle. He pulled open
the  car  door  and  got  a  good  look  at  the  detective.  “Fuck,
Lyle. What’d they do to you?” he growled.

Blood covered the human’s arms, face, and neck, and

Ailean  knew  some  of  the  discolorations  were  masses  of
bruises.  He  mentally  cringed  at  what  he’d  find  under  the
blanket. He turned to the good Samaritan and motioned him
over.  “Okay.  I’m  going  to  need  you  to  keep  the  stretcher
steady as I pull him out and get him on it.”

The man nodded and wrapped long fingers around the

metal bars of the stretcher. For a second, Ailean stared at
those fingers, wondering what their length would feel like

Accepting His Animal

around  his  dick.  Shit!  Giving  himself  a  mental  slap,  he
turned  back  to  Lyle.  The  man  needed  help,  and  here  he
stood  lusting  over  his  mate,  one  that  didn’t  look  like  he
returned Ailean’s desire.

Gritting his teeth, Ailean placed one foot in the car and

maneuvered his big body into the back seat of the little
vehicle. He wrapped his arms under Lyle and carefully lifted
him. Lyle groaned, his eyes fluttering. The fingers of his
right hand seemed to clench convulsively on empty air, then
the detectives eyes snapped open. He started to struggle.

“Easy, Lyle,” he muttered to the thrashing man. “It’s

Doctor Carmichael. Ailean Carmichael. You’re going to be
okay.” Damn, he hoped he wasn’t lying to the man.

Finally, Lyle stilled. Focusing dilated eyes on him, he

whispered, “Ailean?”

“Yup. I’m gonna get you fixed up, Detective,” he purred

soothingly.  Sometimes  it  was  good  to  be  a  cat.  For  some
reason, purring soothed even the most upset human. Out of
the  corner  of  his  eye,  he  saw  the  little  man  shiver  and
discreetly  adjust  his  dick.  Ailean  hid  a  smile,  pleased  the
man wasn’t completely immune to him.

“Grady?” Lyle whispered.
“He’s on his way. Just relax. I’m taking you into the

hospital, so we can get you fixed up.”

“No. No hospital,” Lyle muttered, beginning to wriggle

again.

Tightening his hold as his back started to burn from

holding the awkward position, Ailean purred again. “Easy.
It’ll be off the record. No one knows you’re here except me,
Grady, Gordon, and the one who found you. You’ll be fine.”

Lyle opened his mouth again, probably to protest, but the

words died in his throat as he passed back out. That was
definitely a blessing, for both of them. Moving again, Ailean
pulled Lyle from the car as gently as possible. His mate was

Charlie Richards

there  instantly  with  the  stretcher.  “Hold  it  steady,  little
mate,”  he  commanded  as  he  set  Lyle  down.  The  man
nodded  absently  as  he  held  the  rolling  cot’s  frame.  Ailean
quickly strapped Lyle down, so he wouldn’t fall off during
his quick trip across the parking lot.

A dozen feet toward the door, he paused, realizing his

mate wasn’t following. Ailean turned and saw the man once
again twisting his fingers nervously as he stared at his car.
The man looked like he was ready to bolt, and that just
wouldn’t do.

Ailean moved back to him and wrapped an arm around

the  skittish  human’s  waist.  “Come  along,  little  mate,”  he
purred.  The  man  sagged  against  him,  fitting  perfectly
against  his  bigger  six-foot  frame.  Heat  seared  through  his
veins at the contact.

“Maybe I could just go?” the man said softly.
Pushing the stretcher with one hand, he kept the other

firmly around his mate. “I’m afraid not. Detective Stryker
will need to speak with you,” he said. When the man tensed,
he squeezed the bony shoulders he held. “Don’t worry.
Everything will be fine.”

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Two

rake expected the doctor to release him once they walked
back into the hospital, but to his surprise, and pleasure,

he didn’t. He kept his arm wrapped around his shoulders,
nodded at Bernice as he called, “I’ll be back with info on this
one.”

The woman lifted a brow in obvious curiosity, but she

waved a hand in acknowledgement and went back to her
typing. Doctor Carmichael pushed the stretcher into a large
room. “Have a seat, little mate,” he said. “Grady lives in
Stone Ridge, but I’m sure he’ll hurry.”

He nodded, watching the bigger man for several minutes

as his mind whirled with questions, like what he’d landed in
the middle of, because he couldn’t imagine this was normal
procedure. The man, Lyle the doctor had called him, hadn’t
even been checked in, and the doctor didn’t call for nurses or
anyone else to help him. Instead, he shut the door and
started cleaning up the man and hooking up IVs himself.
Was that normal?

“You called him Lyle. Do you know him?” He figured

that was a safe question.

Doctor Carmichael glanced at him before returning to his

work. “Yes. I’ve met him a couple times.”

“Who is he?”
This time the doctor’s honey-brown eyes stayed on him

Charlie Richards

for a bit longer. He seemed to be assessing Drake, and he
flushed under the man’s scrutiny. His skin still tingled from
where he’d pressed him close to his side. He wanted to shift
in his chair and find a more comfortable position for his
cock, which had gone hard from the contact. Drake couldn’t
remember the last time someone had turned him on so much
so fast. But he knew that would be inappropriate and a dead
giveaway to his orientation, and he didn’t want to offend the
nice doctor.

“His name is Detective Lyle Sullivan.”
Well, one thing could be said for Doctor Carmichael, he

sure didn’t volunteer information. “What happened to
him?”

“He went missing two weeks ago. From the looks of

things, someone held him captive and tortured him,” he
replied bluntly.

Drake sucked in a breath, his eyes widening in his head.

“That’s terrible,” he whispered.

Doctor Carmichael lifted his head and nodded. “Yes, little

mate, it is.”

He frowned, wondering why the man kept calling him

that.  He’d  used  that  term  several  times  now,  and  he
wondered what meaning it held. He knew he was little, but
they  weren’t  friends,  not  that  he  didn’t  want  to  be.  But  he
couldn’t  imagine  the  doctor  wanting  to  be  friends  with
someone like him, an eccentric, poor, skinny professor.

Before he could ask, a light knock sounded on the door.

Doctor Carmichael paused and took a deep breath, before
saying, “Come in, Grady.”

Weird. How did he know?
A large muscle-bound blond man strode into the room

followed by a shorter, slightly heavy man with long, steel-
gray hair. The bigger man frowned and muttered an
explicative under his breath.

Accepting His Animal

The doctor smirked. “Yeah. That’s what I said upon first

sight.”

He watched the shorter man rest a hand on the blond’s

shoulder and whisper, “Easy, Grady.”

To Drake’s surprise, Grady, the detective, wrapped his

own hand around the other man’s, holding it in place. Huh,

are they a couple? Impossible. The detective oozed testosterone!
Family, then? If so, Drake couldn’t make out any parental
markers between their features.

“Is he going to make it?” the detective asked.
Doctor Carmichael grimaced. “I’m not sure yet. He seems

stable, but I still need to run some tests. Check for internal
bleeding, concussion, broken bones, blood work, that sort of
thing. You got here awful quick, so I haven’t had time yet.”

Grady turned toward Drake, and he wanted to cringe.

This man’s calculating gaze made him feel like prey in the
presence of a hungry lion.

“Are you Professor Drake Whitton?”
Drake nodded.
Grady looked back at the doctor. “Think you can run your

tests while I chat with the professor, Ailean?”

The doctor, Ailean, nodded. What an exotic name. He

wanted to ask it’s origin when the man spoke.

“Sure.” Ailean’s gaze fixed on him, removing the chill

he’d gotten from Grady’s stare. “You’ll be fine with Grady,
little mate. He just needs to ask you some questions.”

How did Ailean know he’d been nervous? Drake looked

down and realized his twisting fingers must have given him
away. His head snapped back up. “Why do you keep calling
me little mate?”

Ailean left the bed and headed toward him, his body

moving with sensual grace. “I didn’t know your name,” he
said, stopping in front of him. “Would you prefer I call you
handsome? Maybe sweet baby?”

Charlie Richards

Okay, so the doctor did seem to swing his way, but why

would he be interested in him? He wasn’t attractive by any
means.

Trying to control his erratic reactions to the man, he

frowned. “My name is Drake.”

Ailean used a finger under Drake’s chin to lift his gaze. “I

still prefer little mate, Drake. Don’t go anywhere until I
return. I want to ask for your phone number.”

Then to his utter shock, Ailean brushed his lips lightly

over Drake’s in the gentlest, most sensual caress. Before he
even realized it was happening, it ended. His first real kiss
and he’d been too stunned to reciprocate. But Ailean didn’t
seem to mind. He straightened and turned to a stunned
looking Grady. “I’ll be back.”

“Little mate, huh?” Grady murmured, concern etched on

his features.

The doctor lifted a brow as if daring the larger man to

contradict him. “Yes.”

Silent messages seemed to pass between the two men, but

before Drake could even begin to guess at what it meant,
Ailean wheeled Lyle out of the room and disappeared. The
door clicking shut sounded so ominous to Drake’s ears that
he tensed.

Grady eased onto the hard plastic chair next to him and

sighed. “Relax,” he said. “I just have some questions.”

Drake nodded, suddenly feeling more at ease. It was like

all the aggression had gone out of the man and left behind
was a bone weary friend. “I’ll help any way I can,” he
assured. He really did want to help. No one deserved to be
beaten.

“Where did you pick up Lyle?” Grady asked.
“It was outside the Fitzgerald Building on third and

ninth. I had just left a meeting with my contractor, the
Crystal Creek Corporation, and when I climbed into my car

Accepting His Animal

he was in the back,” he stated.

“In the back? He was already there?”
The man’s tone made it apparent that he didn’t believe

him, and Drake frowned. “Yes.” He rose, agitation making it
hard to keep still. “I thought I’d locked the car, but when I
hit  the  unlock  button,  it  made  that  click  noise  like  it  was
already  open.  I  looked  around,  but  didn’t  see  anyone,  so  I
climbed into the car.” Drake crossed his arms over his chest
and  glared  at  the  detective.  “When  I  looked  into  the
rearview  mirror,  there  he  was,  and…”  He  worried  his  lip,
suddenly uncertain. He knew Ailean wouldn’t hurt him, he
wasn’t sure how he knew, but he was certain of it. He wasn’t
so sure about these two though, and the doctor was gone.

“And what?” Grady asked gently.
Knowing he couldn’t hide the information, he shared,

“And he was holding a gun on me.”

Grady nodded slowly, his throat working as he

swallowed hard. “Did he say anything to you?”

Drake nodded. “Yes. He told me to drive and I wouldn’t

get hurt.”

“And?”
He let out a huff. “What do you mean and? I drove!” he

yelled. Fatigue, pressure, and hunger made his fuse
suddenly too short, and he wanted Ailean to come back. He
found something about that man soothing, and he liked
knowing the man liked him.

“Please calm down, Professor,” the man in the corner

finally  spoke.  “We  know  this  situation  is  trying,  to  have
someone pull a gun on you and highjack your car. Being out
of  control  is  never  easy.  Please,  Lyle  is  a  good  man  and
would  never  have  done  this  under  normal  circumstances.
He’d  never  have  pulled  a  stranger  into  his  problems  if  it
wasn’t absolutely necessary.”

Drake nodded slowly, mulling over the other man’s

Charlie Richards

words. They rang true. “Who are you? Are you a detective,
too?”

The man smiled, his black eyes belying the warmth in his

face. “I’m sorry. I’m Doctor Gordon Digby. I’m Grady’s
partner.”

Partner? “I thought Doctor Carmichael said Lyle is

Grady’s partner?”

Gordon chuckled, sharing a smile with Grady. “Not that

kind of partner, Drake.”

“Oh.” Well, that answered that question. The big men

really  were  gay!  To  have  the  two  men  so  openly  confirm
their  relationship  shocked  and  confused  him.  He  wasn’t  in
the closet by any means, not really, but no one really asked
him what his preference was, and that’s the way he liked it.
He  wasn’t  sure  he  could  keep  his  teaching  position
otherwise.

“Now,” Grady said, rising smoothly from his chair. “You

were saying that Lyle was in your car when you left the
Fitzgerald building, and you started to drive. What else did
he say? How did you know to call me?” the man asked as he
put a hand on Drake’s shoulder and steered him back to his
chair.

He went willingly, mainly because he knew there was no

way he could overpower the big detective. Closing his eyes,
he  brought  up  the  scene  in  his  mind.  Due  to  years  of
scientific research, he’d trained his mind to remember even
minute  details.  That  skill  paid  off  now.  “Okay.  Lyle  said
Drive. And when I sat there in terror, he said  Just drive and
you won’t get hurt. I obeyed pretty quickly that time. After I
pulled out of the parking lot, I stuttered out W-where would
you like me to take you, sir? Thinking it’d be a good idea to be
polite to the man with the gun. His answer confused me. He
said Grady.”

Drake opened his eyes. “Now I know he meant he wanted

Accepting His Animal

me to take him to you, but I didn’t know that at the time. I
asked him Is that your name? It took him a while to answer,
but he finally replied, Need to get to Detective Grady Stryker. I
thought that was weird, too. A hijacker wanting to be taken
to  a  detective,  and  then  the  thought  occurred  to  me  that
maybe  you  were  a  dirty  cop.  You  aren’t,  are  you?”  He
paused expectantly, praying the man wasn’t.

Realizing he expected an answer, Grady lifted a brow and

shook his head. “No.”

Letting out a breath of relief, Drake nodded. “Oh, good.”

He paused. Where did I leave off? Oh yes. “Anyway, I noticed
the  bruises  and  blood  on  his  face  and  arms  and  realized
something  bad  had  happened  to  him.  So  I  confirmed  your
name,  but  when  I  asked  Lyle  if  he  knew  your  phone
number,  he  didn’t  answer.  He’d  passed  out  by  then,  you
see,” he added.

He glanced between Grady and Gordon, trying to

ascertain  if  they  were  following.  He  knew  that  once  he  got
going with  a lecture, he could  sometimes lose his students.
He  figured  this  couldn’t  be  too  much  different.  After  both
men nodded, and Grady waved a hand as if to say go on, he
did.  “I  didn’t  know  who  you  were,  Detective,  so  I  went
home and…”

“You took him to your home?” Grady cut in.
Drake cocked his head. “Yeah. I didn’t take him into the

house. I just closed us into the garage. I needed a safe place
to connect to the internet and find out who you were. That’s
where I called you from, my garage.”

He watched Grady and Gordon again exchange looks he

couldn’t  decipher.  Well,  that’s  just  frustrating.  What  is  going
on? He sighed, suddenly sure he didn’t want to know. If it
involved  people  hurting  other  people  like  they  did  to
Detective  Sullivan,  then  Drake  didn’t  want  anything  to  do
with  it.  “After  talking  to  you,  I  brought  Lyle  here.”  He

Charlie Richards

shrugged.

Grady nodded. “Okay. What happened to the gun? Is it

still in your car?”

“Oh, no,” he said, biting his lip. “I took it away and

kicked it under the car. I didn’t pick it back up, so it’s still in
the garage. Do you want to follow me home to get it?” Then
he hoped he could go to sleep, but he still had research to do
and an early class tomorrow. He fought back a sigh.
Bummer, he wasn’t going to get much sleep tonight.

The detective leaned against the bed. “I will need to do

that, yes. I’d also like you to take me to where your car was
parked when you picked Lyle up, but it needs to be in the
daylight. Are you available tomorrow?”

Rubbing his brow, he thought about everything he

needed to do the next day. Slowly he nodded. “I have a
break in classes between eleven-thirty and one. I can meet
you at the corner of sixth and ninth at eleven-forty-five. That
should give me enough time to show you were it is and be
back for my next class.”

“Will that give you enough time to eat?”
Drake whirled at the growling voice, a flood of warmth

he’d never felt before hit him when he saw Ailean in the
doorway. Uh, oh. He shouldn’t like the man this much this
fast, especially since he didn’t know anything about him. He
chewed his bottom lip in consternation.

* * * *

Ailean couldn’t believe he’d just said that, but the man
obviously didn’t take care of himself. The nibbling on his lip
and abashed look just confirmed it. It also made him so
fucking cute Ailean’s teeth ached. And so did his shaft. He
wanted to order everyone else out of the room and taste that
plump bottom lip that Drake worried.

Accepting His Animal

Instead, he rolled the stretcher into the room and

motioned for Grady to help him lift the still unconscious
Lyle onto the bed. Once done, he moved the stretcher into
the hall. He closed the door and crossed the room to stand in
front of Drake.

The skinny human’s mouth opened and closed like a fish,

and Ailean couldn’t stop the grin. “Now, does that leave you
time for lunch, little mate?”

“Uh, no,” he whispered.
“Then that won’t work, will it?” He brushed Drake’s jaw

with the tips of his fingers to soften his words. “I don’t work
tomorrow until three in the afternoon. How about I pick you
up at the campus with lunch? That way you can eat while I
drive?” he offered.

He continued to stroke his little mate’s soft skin,

marveling at how right it felt to touch the human. How could
Fate give me a human? He’d never had any good experiences
with them. Fuck, he hoped this would be different. He
frowned at the thought. Of course it would be different. This
is my mate!

Drake gave a quick nod. “Okay. I’d like that,” he

murmured, ducking his head.

Ailean wondered if it was shyness or something else.

Inexperience? He’d have to see. “Good,” Ailean replied.
“Now, give me your phone number, little mate,” he ordered
softly, handing the man a pen and his clipboard.

He watched Drake glance between him and the other two

men in the room. From the corner of his eye, Ailean watched
Gordon give his little mate a wink and an encouraging nod.
Drake  gave  a  slight  smile  and  scribbled  an  almost  illegible
string of figures across the page. He’d have to remember to
find  a  way  to  thank  the  elephant  shifter.  Whatever  had
happened  while  he  was  gone,  Drake  seemed  to  value
Gordon’s opinion. He owed the man.

Charlie Richards

“And people say a doctor’s signature is bad,” he teased,

taking the clipboard back. Drake opened his mouth, starting
to  stutter  something,  but  Ailean  rested  an  index  finger
against  the  soft  lips  he  so  desperately  wanted  to  taste
properly.  The  little  peck  from  earlier  hadn’t  been  nearly
enough.  “Relax,”  he  assured.  “I’m  just  teasing.  Go  with
Grady, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Drake murmured, his eyes slightly dilated.
What a fucking sexy look. Ailean couldn’t stop himself from

pulling  the  shorter  man  to  his  feet,  cupping  his  jaw,  and
claiming his lips. Surprise shot through Ailean when Drake
froze  in  his  arms  for  several  seconds.  But  he  patiently
brushed  the  man’s  lips  again  and  again  and  soon  Drake
melted  into  Ailean’s  embrace.  Inexperience.  Definitely
inexperience. He flicked his tongue out, tracing Drake’s lips,
tasting lightly. When he didn’t automatically open, he gently
nipped his mate’s full bottom lip.

A sharp inhalation had Drake opening slightly, allowing

Ailean the access he wanted. He took advantage. As he slid
his tongue into the narrow gap between Drake’s teeth, he
wrapped his arms around his mate’s slender waist and
pulled him flush to his body.

Holy shit! Ailean’s dick shot rock hard and leaking. It

jerked  and  pulsed  against  his  mate’s  stomach.  Moaning
softly,  he  plundered  Drake’s  mouth,  mapping  the  man’s
teeth,  gums,  and  tongue.  Finally,  needing  air,  Ailean
lamented having to ease the kiss to an end.

Blinking, he took a deep breath, watching his mate’s

cheeks flame underneath his bronze coloring. Ailean looked
from  the  corner  of  his  eye  and  gave  Gordon  and  Grady  a
slight  smile  at  their  attempt  at  giving  them  some  sense  of
privacy  in  the  small  room.  Both  had  their  backs  to  the
couple.

“Hey, none of that now,” Ailean whispered, drawing

Accepting His Animal

Drake’s attention. “We aren’t doing anything wrong, and
we’re certainly not bothering my friends. You should see
them when they get going,” he teased, winking largely.

That just caused Drake’s blush to deepen. Yup. Definitely

inexperience. He’d have to remember that. He kissed his mate
lightly one more time before pulling away. “It’s late, and
from what you’ve said, it sounds like you have an early
class. Get going and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” his mate replied breathily. “I’ll, uh…” Drake

cleared his throat. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Most definitely,” Ailean promised.
He watched the three men file out of the room. Grady

gave him a nod, telling him without words that he’d find a
way  to  keep  an  eye  on  Drake  when  Ailean  wasn’t  around.
He  didn’t  know  if  it  was  the  detective’s  way  of  saying
thanks for helping his mate heal from a broken arm a couple
weeks  ago,  or  if  it  was  because  Drake  was  essential  for
finding those who’d hurt Lyle. Either way, he appreciated it.

He was busy checking vitals when a knock sounded on

the door five minutes later. Opening it, he found Bernice.
“No one brought the chart for this man yet. Is it ready,” she
asked.

Ailean sighed and held up his clipboard. “The detective

just left. I’m almost done filling out the paperwork, and I’ll
have it to you in fifteen minutes,” he promised.

Bernice nodded and turned away, although she did shake

her head as she walked down the hall. Sliding a needle into
the IV port, he injected Lyle with several CCs of morphine.
The man needed to stay asleep for at least a day. He had so
many bruises and lacerations, Ailean had great respect for
the human, just for the fact that the man had managed to
move, let alone escape!

He was just finishing the made up file when another

knock sounded at the door. A growl of frustration escaped

Charlie Richards

him. “I told you I’d have it to you soon,” he snarled as he
yanked open the door.

Declan McIntire smirked back at him. “Oh, really? Weel,

forgive me for fogettin’ yer words,” he replied, deepening
his Irish lilt just to give him crap.

Ailean shook his head. “What is this? Grand Central

Station tonight?”

He pulled the door open further and motioned the alpha

of  the  Stone  Ridge  pack  into  the  room.  Declan  sniffed  the
room  openly  before  eyeing  Lyle’s  unconscious  form  and
settling  into  one  of  the  hard  patient  chairs.  Following  the
large  African  American  was  a  second  man,  a  short  brunet,
who  he  remembered  as  Todd  something  or  other,  having
met  him  once  at  a  BBQ.  He  was  a  wolf  shifter  who’d  been
held captive by the same scientists who’d held Lyle.

Todd hurried to Lyle’s side, immediately grasping the

hand  that  didn’t  have  a  tube  attached.  He  settled  into  the
chair  by  the  bed  and  nuzzled  Lyle’s  cheek  with  his  own,
whispering  words  even  Ailean’s  sensitive  shifter  hearing
couldn’t catch. He turned to Declan and lifted both brows in
silent question.

The wolf alpha grimaced. “Ailean, ye remember Todd

Abernathy.  Lyle  is  his  mate.”  When  Ailean  opened  his
mouth  to  express  his  confusion,  Declan  held  up  a  hand.
“They’ve  never  actually  met,  but  Todd  recognized  him  the
night he was rescued from the scientists. Lyle’s scent is the
reason Todd convinced his brother Phillip to stay here with
him  and  join  me  pack.”  The  alpha  rose  and  rubbed  both
palms  over  his  shaved  scalp.  “He  needs  to  be  here,”  he
murmured  to  the  ceiling.  Turning  to  face  Ailean,  Declan
grimaced.  “Even  though  they’re  not  mated  yet,  just  his
presence  will  calm  Lyle,”  he  said,  entreating  with  his  dark
brown eyes. “Please don’t make him go.”

Ailean let out a long sigh before grabbing his clipboard.

Accepting His Animal

“One  Todd  Abernathy,”  he  said  as  he  wrote.  “Significant
Other  to  Detective  Lyle  Sullivan,”  he  added  out  loud,  his
gaze shifting between both men. After a shake of his head,
Ailean  added,  “Soft  crooning  from  Todd  relaxes  volatile
patient. Open visitation for Todd allowed.”

He huffed a sigh. “You do realize that if anyone finds out,

they’ll be sure to have my…”

Declan rested a hand on his shoulder. “Yer aide to the

pack will not go forgotten,” he said. “Nor will yer friendship
to me.” The wolf sighed. “I may not like yer prejudices
against humans, but ye’re still me friend. If ye ever need
anything, just ask. I have sway with other people.” He gave
Ailean a long look. “Aye. Even human others.”

Ailean couldn’t stop the surprised grunt. “Thank you,

Declan. I never meant any offense.”

Declan winked. “I know. It’s just yer way. Sometimes ye

just need a reminder that ye have friends.”

Nodding deeply, Ailean grinned. “And for that, I’m truly

grateful.”

He watched Todd softly whisper nonsense words to Lyle

for several moments before he turned back to the wolf alpha.
“You know, I just met my mate, and he’s human,” he
revealed softly.

Declan grinned. “No kidding! Congratulations!”

Charlie Richards

Chapter Three

e couldn’t wrap his mind around what had happened at
the hospital. Not only did Drake get a date, he’d gotten

the hottest kiss ever. Not that he really had anything to
compare it to, but his dick was still hard from the contact.
And he had been able to feel how hard the other man’s cock
was, too. That had to mean something, right?

Opening the gate, he watched the detective’s car follow

him  into  the  community  and  to  his  house.  He  opened  his
garage  and  pulled  inside.  Grady’s  car  parked  in  the  short
driveway behind him. Ducking down, he searched the floor
of  the  garage.  He  remembered  distinctly  kicking  the  gun
under his car. Maybe he should have parked in the driveway
until he’d found it.

“You all right?” Gordon’s confused tone had Drake

jerking his head up.

“Yeah. I’m just trying to find the gun. I know I kicked it

under here. Maybe I should move my car.” He frowned, his
gaze sweeping the ground.

Grady pulled a small flashlight out of his pocket and

swept the beam under Drake’s car. “Sorry, man. It doesn’t
look like it’s here. You sure about where you kicked it?”

Drake huffed. “I know what I did,” he snapped, letting

fatigue again sharpen his tone.

“Sorry, Drake. I didn’t mean anything by it.” The big man

Accepting His Animal

stood and sniffed the air. “Do you live alone?”

Frowning, Drake shook his head. “No. I live with my

brother, Dagus.”

“Do you think he may have picked it up?”
“The chances are extremely slim,” he replied. “Maybe I

kicked it farther across the garage than I thought,” he
mused, walking around the car and searching the other side.
With how organized and clean his garage was, there wasn’t
anywhere it could be hiding. It just isn’t here.

“Is your brother home, Drake?” Grady pressed. “Maybe

we should ask him.”

“Very well,” he said, sighing in resignation. He turned to

the two men and nibbled his lip. “Look, my brother is blind
and can be a little sensitive about it. Don’t…” He lifted a
hand, uncertain how to request that the men be polite.

“Hey, relax,” Gordon soothed. “We’re not about to make

any derogatory comments.”

Drake cocked his head. “How do you always know

what’s bothering me?”

The slightly heavy-set man chuckled. “I’m a psychiatrist.

I’m good at reading people,” he added with a shrug.

“Oh.” Drake unlocked the door and led the way into the

condo. He paused just inside the kitchen when he saw
Grady sniff again and then exchange looks with Gordon.
What was going on? “I’ll see if Dagus is up,” he said.

“Drake, is that you?”
That answered that question. Drake crossed into the

dining room, surprised to find his brother at the table. His
gaze swept the room. The laptop was off, and the man had
no brail papers spread across the table. “Yeah. It’s me.
What’s wrong?”

Surprise filled him when Dagus rose from the table and

moved straight into his arms. Drake wrapped up his brother,
tucking the taller man’s head into the crook of his neck.

Charlie Richards

“Shhh,” he murmured. “What’s wrong?” he crooned. “What
happened?”

“Someone was here,” Dagus whispered.
“Someone was here?” he asked in surprise. “What do you

mean?”

It was then that his brother’s trembling registered. He

shifted his hands to either side of Dagus’s head and pulled
his head back. Staring into his brother’s vacant green eyes,
he ordered, “Tell me what happened.” A shudder worked its
way through Dagus’s body, alarming Drake further. What on
earth?

“Someone else was here,” Grady growled. “Weren’t

they?”

Dagus jerked away. “Who the hell are you?”
Reaching for his brother’s tense form, Drake wrapped his

arms around the man’s waist to reassure him. “Easy, Dagus.
This is Detective Grady Stryker.”

“Shit, Drake. Why didn’t you tell me you were running

back out so you could bring a date home?” his brother
murmured, twisting in his arms to face him.

Drake shook his head, knowing the faint breeze it caused

would alert Dagus to his movement. “It’s not like that.
Grady is a…a friend,” he finished after a second.

Dagus caught his slip. He cocked his head for a second

before turning and looking right at Gordon. “Who are you?”

Gordon’s brows shot up, but the man answered smoothly,

“My name is Doctor Gordon Digby. We were on a date
when your brother called Grady.”

A frown marred Dagus’s dark face for a second, but then

his focus switched from Gordon to where Grady had stood
directly next to them. “You’re a couple?”

Grady chuckled softly from halfway inside the living

room. “Yes. Gordon is what you’d call my partner.” The big
man watched his brother swing around. He could almost

Accepting His Animal

hear Dagus’s silent, surprised exclamation. “Yeah. I’m over
here. Don’t worry. I haven’t met anyone yet who can hear
me move when I don’t want them to.”

“What’s going on?” Dagus whispered.
Drake wrapped an arm around his brother’s waist as

much to support Dagus as needing the contact himself. “I
had a problem on the way home from the Fitzgerald
building today,” he admitted. “A man hijacked my car.”

“Your car!”
“Yeah. He had just escaped from people torturing him

and needed help. He asked me to find Detective Stryker,
which I did, but not before I made a stop at home to access
the internet.” Drake explained. “I dropped the man’s gun in
my garage before calling the detective and then I took Lyle
to the hospital.”

“What happened?” Dagus asked.
Grady stepped close. “You said there was someone in

your house,” he interrupted. “How did you know?”

Dagus glared. “I’m blind, not deaf. I heard him!” he

roared indignantly.

“Easy, brother. He didn’t mean offense,” he crooned.

Drake turned his head and glared at the surprised detective.
Letting out a sigh, he said, “Look. Evidently, someone in the
area is doing something illegal. He’s already attacked one
detective, who happened to be Grady’s partner on the force,
and now he’s after us. I brought Lyle here, so they stopped
by to get the gun.” He grasped Dagus’s shoulders to get the
man’s attention. “Unless you’ve been in the garage?” he
questioned. “You haven’t been in the garage, have you?”

Dagus shook his head, his grip tightening on Drake. “No.

I haven’t been out there since last week.”

“Okay,” Drake replied, his tone asking his brother to

relax. Last week Dagus had gone on a date with an attorney.
One he’d met through his book dealings. The man had

Charlie Richards

wanted more than Dagus had wanted to give on a first date.
“I’m sorry to have caused such trouble at our place.”

Dagus frowned, reading his guilt through the tone of his

words. “What the hell is going on?” he murmured. “Why
would someone break into our condo?”

Letting out a sigh, Drake deflated. “I got into my car after

walking out of a meeting and realized Detective Sullivan
had crawled into my back seat,” he admitted.

“The detective who was abused crawled into your car?”

Dagus asked.

“Yeah,” Drake admitted. “He had a gun. He asked me to

drive away and find Detective Stryker. Before I did that, I
brought him here. Someone must have followed me,” Drake
admitted. “

“Wait,” Grady said, drawing their attention. “Why would

the guy come into your condo? If he found the gun in the
garage, what would draw him inside your place?”

Frowning, Drake took several slow deep breaths, trying to

remain calm and think. “Do you know which rooms they
searched?” he asked his brother.

Dagus remained silent for a moment, but Drake watched

his  brother’s  brows  scrunch.  He  knew  his  brother  was
thinking  back  over  the  sounds  he’d  heard.  He  saw  the
detective  open  his  mouth,  but  Drake  cut  him  off  with  a
motion of his hand.

Finally, Dagus whispered, “The office. He spent at least

ten minutes quietly ruffling through your school papers.”

“Ah,” Drake murmured. His gaze lifted and shifted

between  the  two  near  strangers  pacing  his  home,  one  of
them sniffing strangely. “I keep my college paperwork in the
office,  but  if  someone  didn’t  know  that,  they  may  think  it
had  to  do  with  my  scientific  research  for  the  Crystal  Lake
Corporation.”

He watched Grady’s jaw clench for several seconds and

Accepting His Animal

exchange a look with Doctor Digby. “Pack a bag. You’re
both coming with us. It’s not safe here anymore.”

“What? Why?” Drake squeaked.
“Because they know that you helped Detective Sullivan

escape. That means you’re on their radar,” Grady explained.

Drake frowned. “Who’s radar? What are you talking

about?”

“Look,” Grady said, softly. “I’ve been searching for

information on this company for the last month. Two weeks
ago, they kidnapped my partner. They run illegal drugs and
are housed right here in Colin City. You helped Lyle escape.
You confirmed the name of the corporation involved. You’re
now an enemy.”

As he looked between them, realization dawned.

Somehow, he’d allowed himself to be hired by drug dealers.
Just another example of how burying his nose under a
microscope made him naïve to the ways of the world. “I…I
didn’t know,” he whispered. He wrapped his arms back
around Dagus and pulled his brother close. “I’m so sorry.”

“Hey. Easy now,” Gordon soothed. “It’s not your fault.

You didn’t know.” He wrapped his hands around Drake’s
shoulders and kneaded them gently. “Let’s get you and your
brother to safety. We’ll all get some sleep, and then
tomorrow, we’ll go from there. Okay?”

He felt his breathing stutter, and a sudden desire to call

Ailean filled him. Shoot! Where did that come from? As if the
doctor wanted anything to do with his problems!

After taking a deep breath to relax his scattered senses,

Drake nodded. “Yeah. Let me pack a couple bags.” Another
thought occurred to him. “What about my classes
tomorrow?”

Grady shook his head. “Sorry, Drake. Give me a couple

days to figure out if you’re really at risk, then we’ll talk
about you going back to teaching.”

Charlie Richards

Drake wanted to scream. With one stupid mistake, giving

in to his desire to do research again, he’d turned his and his
brother’s  lives  upside  down.  He  hadn’t  needed  the  money,
and he hadn’t really had the time either, but he’d so wanted
the  chance  to  prove  that  his  theories  were  viable  to  the
scientific  community.  Why  couldn’t  I  just  leave  well  enough

alone?

Fighting back tears, he gently led Dagus back to the table

and settled him into a chair. “Stay here. I’ll be back in a
moment.”

He hurried into his bedroom, catching snippets of

Grady’s  conversation  to  someone  named  Declan  as  he
passed  through  the  living  room.  Ten  minutes  later,  he’d
called  in  to  work,  claiming  an  illness  his  queasy  stomach
actually justified, and now bundled Dagus into his coat and
settled him into the front seat of his car. He eased his vehicle
out of the driveway, making certain he shut the garage, and
then followed Grady and Gordon’s truck out of the complex
and then out of Colin City.

“Where are we going?” Dagus asked quietly.
Drake reached over and gripped his brother’s hand. “I’m

not certain, but don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to
you,” he promised.

Forty minutes later, he followed Grady down a long,

winding, gravel driveway and parked in front of a large
lodge. Two stories high with stone trim around the base and
windows, Drake couldn’t believe that something this
gorgeous was hidden this deep in the forest. The passenger
door squeaked, alerting Drake that Dagus was on the move.

“Where are we?”
“I’m not sure,” he admitted, rushing to his brother’s side.

“Here comes Detective Stryker. I’m sure he’ll let us know.”

Wrapping his arm around Dagus’s waist, he watched

Grady wave, motioning him to stay put for the time being as

Accepting His Animal

he headed toward the door. Gordon stopped close to them.
“Relax,” the doctor told him. “Declan told us he was at the
hospital and Lark was on his way home from work. We just
need to be certain one of them arrived home.”

“Oh. Who are they?” he asked as he watched Grady

knock heavily on the door.

Gordon smiled. “Declan is the local head of the park

rangers. Lark is a doctor at Cedar Creek Memorial. They’re
both good men. You’ll be safe here.”

Drake could hear the respect in Gordon’s voice, which

impressed him. It also surprised him that so many gay men
were in such open relationships. He wouldn’t have thought
that, considering the rural area. Maybe they were only open
about their relationship in front of other men they knew to
be gay.

The door opening caught his attention, the shaft of light

from  the  doorway  illuminating  the  face  of  a  short,  blond
man.  Drake  couldn’t  keep  his  brows  from  lifting  as  he
watched the man speak quietly with Grady. The blond had
short,  spiky  hair,  obviously  colored,  and  sported  a  lithe,
muscular frame. All in all, Drake would classify the man as
an  incredibly  cute  twink.  Of  course,  he’d  never  say  that  to
his host’s face. He may not be too good in social situations,
but  he  knew  it  wouldn’t  be  polite  to  say  that  for  fear  of
insult.

Seconds later, Grady gave a shout, drawing their

attention and motioning them forward. His arm still around
his brother, Drake encouraged Dagus forward while telling
him there were three steps. Once within the circle of light, he
got his first good look at one of his hosts, and there was no
mistaking the man’s sexuality. The man screamed gay from
every pore of his eye-linered and lip-glossed face. But he
pulled the look off well!

The man reached a hand out. Drake took it automatically

Charlie Richards

and returned the man’s surprisingly firm grip. “Hey. I’m
Lark. I understand you’ve had some trouble with Grady’s
scientists. Come on in and make yourself at home.”

“Thank you. This is my brother, Dagus. He’s blind, so if

you could show us to our rooms, I’d like to take a few
minutes to give him the layout. Then I’ll get our things and
settle him for the night.”

He wasn’t usually so forward, but he had to think of his

brother’s comfort.

Lark’s eyes widened slightly, before he motioned them

inside the lodge. “Of course. Look around. Take your time.
Count out steps if you need to. Whatever’s necessary.”

Drake nodded. “Thank you.” It surprised him that the

man seemed to understand his brother’s needs, but he didn’t
question it. He followed Lark through the house to a
staircase. He told his brother that there were sixteen stairs,
and then Lark pointed at the doors.

“The first door on the right is mine and Declan’s

daughter’s room, Sara. She’s a heavy sleeper, but please still
try  to  keep  it  down,”  he  murmured.  “Your  rooms  are  the
first  and  second  on  the  left.”  His  blue  eyes  warmed  as  he
smiled  at  them.  “Take  your  time  deciding.  I’ll  have  Grady
bring  your  things  to  the  top  of  the  stairs.”  He  pointed  at
another door. “The second door on the right is a bathroom.
I’m afraid you’ll have to share it with Sara, but it’s the school
season,  so  she’ll  be  done  with  it  by  seven  most  mornings.
She  has  to  be  at  school  by  eight-ten  and  Declan  normally
drives her.” He patted Drake’s shoulder gently. “Take your
time.  We’ll  be  in  the  front  room.  Just  join  us  when  you’re
ready, okay?”

Drake nodded, though he didn’t know why he agreed. It

was already after midnight, and all he really wanted to do
was go to sleep.

Fifteen minutes later, both he and Dagus wore sleep pants

Accepting His Animal

and t-shirts. Drake had explained the layout of the top floor,
stairway, kitchen, and dining room to his brother, and now
the other man slept, he hoped peacefully. Drake paused in
the doorway, verifying that his brother’s breaths came slow
and even, before he headed down toward the front room.

He stopped in the doorway, listening to a stranger’s Irish

lilt mutter, “Ah, love. Of course I won’t give them a hard
time. I only want to…”

He held his breath as the man stopped talking.
A soft murmur of voices he couldn’t make out sounded

before the Irish accented voice called, “Come in, Drake. I
know ye’re in the doorway, so ye’d best come into the
room.”

Hearing the amusement in the man’s voice did far more

to set Drake’s mind at ease than the man’s earlier words. He
stepped  into  the  room  and  tried  to  hide  his  shock.  Lark’s
small  frame  was  curled  up  on  the  lap  of  a  massive  black
man, his skin far darker than Drake’s own brown skin. The
man’s broad shoulders and muscular arms held Lark close to
his  chest.  Drake  wondered  what  that  would  feel  like,  to  be
held,  but  he  imagined  lightly  bronzed  arms,  honey-brown
eyes, and thick black hair.

Deep brown eyes pinned him in place for several long

seconds before a smile curved the African American’s lips.
“Come in, Drake. I won’t keep ye long. It’s late, and we all
should be to bed soon. I just wanted to introduce meself and
let ye know mine and Lark’s schedules.”

Drake nodded, easing into a large leather chair that

quickly swallowed his skinny frame. He curled his feet
under him and tried not to pick at a loose thread on his
pants. “Thank you for taking us in on such short notice,” he
murmured.

“Yer welcome. Now why don’t ye tell me how we can

make ye and Dagus’s stay more comfortable? Does yer

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Four

ilean turned his Audi A6 into the heavily wooded
driveway, his headlights bouncing as he carefully

navigated the potholes caused by last winter’s snow. He
managed to avoid most of them, remembering their location
after a BBQ he’d attended nearly three weeks ago.

It hadn’t been long after that that Lyle had been

kidnapped.  He  thought  of  his  patient,  still  sleeping  in  the
hospital. He’d given him a mild sedative to keep him asleep
while  healing,  letting  Todd  know  that  it’d  be  at  least  three
days before he’d allow Lyle to wake. With all the chemicals
floating  in  the  man’s  blood,  it’d  be  far  easier  for  him  to  go
through detox while unconscious.

He felt for the small wolf shifter. He couldn’t imagine the

pain Todd went through, even though technically the man
hadn’t met Lyle yet. If Ailean had stumbled across Drake’s
prone form in the hospital, he’d do exactly as Todd did.
He’d camp out in his mate’s room until he woke. As it was,
that was pretty much exactly what he planned. Knowing his
mate was in danger, Ailean couldn’t stay away from him.

After parking the car, he grabbed his overnight bag and

hurried to the door. The bell wasn’t even halfway through
its chimes when someone pulled it open. He grimaced up at
Declan. “Hey,” he murmured. “How is he?”

The big man motioned him inside, not speaking until the

Charlie Richards

door clicked shut behind Ailean. “Yer mate is fine,” Declan
assured. “They’re upstairs, the first and second door on the
left. I’m not sure which room Drake is in,” he admitted,
shrugging. “When I spoke to him, it’s not like I could ask
which room he’d put his brother in, aye?”

“His brother?” Ailean hadn’t known anyone else had

joined Drake at Declan’s home.

“Aye,” Declan replied, sounding amused. “Although I’ve

not met him, Lark told me that Drake’s brother, Dagus, is
upstairs as well. He’s a blind author, from what Drake says.”
The alpha gave him a cheeky grin. “Be careful when ye enter
a room, I wouldn’t want to have to slice ye open for hittin’
on Sara.”

Ailean chuckled softly, following Declan toward the

stairs. “Don’t worry. I’ll be sure to sniff the room before I
enter,” he assured. Sobering, he leveled an even stare at the
alpha wolf. “Thank you for taking in my mate. I know you
didn’t have to.”

Declan shook his head, rolling his eyes in the process.

“Ah, Ailean. Still ye don’t understand. Ye may not be pack,
but I still consider ye family. So if he’s yer mate, I’ll do
everything in me power to protect him.”

Nodding, he smiled warmly. “And for that I thank you.”
“What are friends for,” Declan stated, slapping him on the

shoulder.

The blow sent him forward a step, and he grunted in

amusement.  “Fair  enough.”  He  followed  the  big  man’s
pointed  finger  and  headed  up  the  stairs,  keeping  his  tread
light. He sniffed at the first door on the left, and although he
smelled  his  mate,  he  smelled  someone  else,  too.  A  darker,
muskier  scent  than  the  light  sweetness  he  recognized  as
Drake. Moving on, he inhaled deeply at the second door and
nearly  groaned.  My  mate  smells  so  damn  good!  The  idea  that
every  shifter  probably  felt  that  way  about  their  mate  made

Accepting His Animal

him grin.

He carefully slipped into the room, setting his bag down

on the floor near the foot of the bed. He allowed his eyes to
change  to  his  cat,  giving  him  nearly  perfect  vision  in  the
dark, and stared at Drake. His mate wore a white t-shirt that
contrasted  sharply  with  his  mocha  skin.  His  dark  hair  was
cropped  close  to  his  scalp  and  Ailean  barely  resisted  the
urge to rub his palm over it and feel if it was soft or rough.
Drake had kicked the covers off, displaying dark blue pants
and bare feet.

After changing into comfortable shorts and a t-shirt, he

settled  into  a  chair  to  stop  himself  from  crawling  into  bed
with  his  mate.  He  didn’t  know  how  the  other  man  would
react  to  that  since  they’d  just  met  and  didn’t  want  to  scare
the human.

He must have dozed off, for he was startled awake by a

squeak  and  a  whimper.  Frowning,  Ailean  looked  for  the
source of the sound and realized his mate appeared to be in
the  throes  of  a  rather  unpleasant  dream.  With  everything
that  had  happened  to  the  man  in  the  last  twelve  hours,  it
didn’t surprise him.

When Drake began to thrash, Ailean moved to the bed.

Sitting on the edge, he rested a hand on Drake’s arm and
gave him a gentle shake. “Wake up, little mate,” he crooned.
“It’s only a dream.”

Drake jerked from his grip, his eyes snapping open. He

glanced around the room in confusion for several seconds
before his focus returned to him. “Ailean? What are you
doing here?”

Ailean smiled at his confused mate. “Declan told me that

you and your brother were coming here for safety. I wanted
to make sure you were okay, so after my shift ended, I came
here.”

“But why?”

Charlie Richards

He stretched out on the bed and propped his head on his

hand, pleased when Drake didn’t put any additional space
between them. Now how to explain to a human? “I like you,
Drake. Your well-being is important to me. I want to get to
know you better.”

“In the middle of the night?” he asked, cocking his head

in confusion.

Chuckling, Ailean eased his free hand up to Drake’s face

and  cupped  his  jaw.  “Well,  I  knew  you  wouldn’t  be
available for lunch tomorrow, so I figured I’d just sleep here
and see you in the morning.” He leaned forward, noting the
hitch in his mate’s breathing as he slowly closed the distance
between  them.  “Waking  up  in  the  middle  of  the  night  was
just  a  bonus,”  he  whispered  against  Drake’s  lips  before
brushing them gently with his own.

Drake let out a soft whimper that heated Ailean’s blood.

The scent of his mate’s arousal spiked, and Ailean’s dick
became so hard so fast he groaned. He licked the seam of his
mate’s mouth, begging for entry. Drake granted it, opening
for him. Plunging his tongue inside, he tasted mint
toothpaste and the heady essence of Drake.

Using his hand to tilt Drake’s head, he deepened the kiss,

licking,  nipping,  and  sucking,  unable  to  get  enough  of  his
mate’s  taste.  Ailean  shifted  closer,  settling  Drake  back  into
the  pillows  and  half  sprawled  over  the  smaller  man.  He
inserted  a  knee  in  between  Drake’s  legs  and  pressed  his
thigh against his mate’s straining erection.

Drake bucked against him. Ailean caught the strangled

cry erupting from his mate’s throat as he stiffened, then
began to tremble. Wet heat spread against Ailean’s thigh and
the salty scent of seed filled his senses. Shock rocked him as
he realized his mate had just come.

Ailean eased the kiss to an end and lifted his head to stare

down at his flushed, trembling mate. The blitzed out

Accepting His Animal

expression  on  Drake’s  face  was  truly  the  sexiest  thing  he’d
ever  seen.  Suddenly,  as  if  realizing  what  he’d  just  done,
Drake  gasped,  clamped  his  eyes  shut  and  turned  his  head
away.

He tightened his grip on Drake’s neck, forcing him to turn

back to face him, but his mate kept his eyes tightly squeezed
shut.  “Hey,  now,”  he  murmured,  placing  a  gentle  kiss  on
each of Drake’s eyes. He tasted the salty wetness of tears and
worry  slammed  into  him.  How  could  he  have  missed  it?
He’d bet his home, his one and only sanctuary, that his mate
wasn’t  just  inexperienced,  he  must  have  no  experience
whatsoever.  He  kissed  Drake’s  lips.  “Look  at  me,  little
mate,”  he  ordered  softly.  “There’s  no  need  to  be
embarrassed.”

“I’m so sorry,” Drake groaned out. “I didn’t mean to

come like that. It just felt so good. I’ve never…”

And there was his confirmation, and damn, if that just

didn’t set Ailean’s blood on fire. He’d be his mate’s first and
only. “Shush, Drake,” he whispered. “I love that you
respond like that to my touch,” he admitted.

That finally got Drake to open his eyes and stare

hesitantly up at him. “You do?”

He grinned down at him. “Hell, yeah, baby. You’re the

sexiest fucking man I’ve ever seen.”

Disbelief flashed over his mate’s features and he frowned.

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are,” Ailean countered. When he saw Drake

open his mouth, he frowned. “Don’t argue, little mate. I say
you are, so you are.” Before the man could come up with a
reply, Ailean continued. “Now, let’s get you out of these
pants. I know from experience that dried cum is anything
but comfortable.”

A fresh tint of red colored his mate’s cheeks and neck, and

Ailean knew that it wasn’t from pleasure this time. Ailean

Charlie Richards

grinned.  His  little  mate  really  was  too  adorable.  Before
Drake  could  offer  a  protest,  Ailean  whipped  his  shirt  over
his  head  and  then  slithered  down  the  bed  and  worked  his
mate’s pants down his hips and legs, tossing the pants onto
the floor.

He took in the white cream clumping the black pubic hair

and  Drake’s  semi-erect  cock  lying  on  his  stomach,  also
glistening  with  the  evidence  of  his  release.  Drake’s  hands
moved to  cover himself, but Ailean grabbed his wrists and
pinned them to the bed on either side of his hips.  “Oh, no,
little mate. None of that with me.”

Settling between his mate’s legs, he swiped his tongue

along  Drake’s  shaft,  collecting  as  much  semen  as  possible.
He  hummed  in  appreciation  at  the  salty  taste  and  got  to
work  cleaning  up  his  mate,  enjoying  the  man’s  gasps  and
groans. By the time Ailean had finished, his mate’s cock once
again  stood  at  attention.  Grinning  at  his  mate’s  fantastic
recovery  time,  he  quickly  shimmied  out  of  his  own  clothes
and  crawled  up  Drake’s  body.  He  settled  his  straining
erection  against  his  human’s,  sliding  easily  against  each
other through his saliva.

Resting on his elbows, he looked down into Drake’s

dazed expression. “So sexy,” he murmured, thrusting his
hips, grinding them together.

Drake moaned and bucked against him, creating

wonderful friction that sent tingles of pleasure spreading
from Ailean’s dick, up his spine and down his legs.

“Never felt anything like this,” Drake whispered.
“It only gets better,” Ailean promised.
He reached down and wrapped one hand around both

their dicks, giving them a tight tunnel to push through as
they rutted against each other. Drake let out a ragged groan,
his head thrashing, his body almost vibrating beneath him. It
was the most erotic sight Ailean had ever seen and it almost

Accepting His Animal

made him come just watching his mate’s enjoyment.

Drake’s fingers dug into Ailean’s shoulders as he rocked

against him. He lowered his head and nibbled the sensitive
flesh behind one of the man’s ears. Feeling his mate’s body
tense  beneath  him,  he  turned  his  head  and  latched  onto
Drake’s lips, swallowing the man’s cry of ecstasy as he came
apart  beneath  him.  The  smell  and  feel  of  Drake’s  pulsing
shaft  against his own pushed  Ailean over the edge, and he
buried  his  face  in  the  crook  of  Drake’s  neck,  fighting  the
urge  to  sink  his  teeth  into  his  mate.  His  body  tensed  as
tingles raced down his spine and out of his cock, stream after
stream of seed mixing with Drake’s.

When he managed to regain a semblance of his breathing,

he reached over the side of the bed and snagged his t-shirt.
He cleaned the cum from himself and Drake before settling
next to the nearly comatose man. Pulling his mate’s back to
his chest, Ailean spooned around him, a contented smile
curving his features as he followed Drake into sleep.

Charlie Richards

Chapter Five

rake slowly swam to wakefulness, snuggling into the
heat behind him and stretching his toes. Feeling the arm

tightening around his waist and the lips gently kissing the
back of his neck, he tensed. What the heck?

“Easy, little mate,” a sleep roughened voice murmured.
The voice triggered memories of the night before,

reminding him of how the man had made him come with
almost no stimulation. He remembered how it’d felt for the
handsome doctor’s tongue to scrape across his dick and balls
and a shiver worked down his spine. Renewed heat settled
in his groin, making his cock quickly fill. Oh, no!

A low chuckle sounded behind him and the arm around

his waist moved. A big hand stroked across his stomach to
toy with the tight curls surrounding his shaft. Drake mewled
as sparks shot down his legs, making his toes tingle. He
shifted restlessly, unable to keep still.

But then he felt the hard dick against his butt, and that

made him freeze. Ailean growled softly into his ear and
rubbed against him again. Suddenly, an arm snaked under
his side and around his chest. The one that had been playing
with his pubes gripped his hips, and he found himself being
rolled backwards to lie on top of Ailean, his back still to the
bigger man’s chest.

Ailean hooked his ankles and spread Drake’s legs before

Accepting His Animal

inserting his knees between his legs and pulling them even
further apart, making them fall over the outsides of Ailean’s
legs. A hard shaft bumped against his balls, before sliding
along the underside of his own, and he gasped.

“What are you doing?” he whispered. With his legs

splayed and lying on top of the man with his shaft pointing
straight into the air, he’d never felt more exposed.

“Just taking care of you, my little mate,” Ailean growled

into his neck.

He felt sharp teeth scrape over his collar bone, sending

tingles up and down his spine. The hand left his hip and
gripped both their shafts in a tight fist. It felt similar to last
night, except better, because now the other man’s dick
rubbed against his balls every time he moved. “Oh, Ailean,”
he groaned, pushing his butt down against the other man’s
pelvis.

“That’s it, Drake,” Ailean crooned. “Take what you

need.”

With one hand, Drake gripped the large arm around his

chest  and  then  used  the  other  to  reach  back  and  grab
Ailean’s hip. He planted his feet on either side of the man’s
thighs  and  began  to  grind  as  hard  as  he  could  down  onto
Ailean’s cock, gasping when it slid between his cheeks and
the  smooth  flesh  rubbed  over  his  hole.  Before  he  could
assimilate  the  sensations,  Ailean  bucked  up  and  down
against him, sliding along his hole, balls, and shaft with each
stroke.

Drake’s head dropped back on Ailean’s shoulder, his

body instinctively pushing back against the other man. Heat
blossomed through his abdomen, chest, and thighs. His balls
pulled tight and tingles raced up and down his spine.
“Gonna…gonna…”

“Yes, little mate. Come for me.”
The words whispered against the back of his neck sent

Charlie Richards

shivers  of  air  across  the  hairs  there.  His  body  couldn’t
handle  any  more  stimulation  and  an  explosive  orgasm
wrenched  through  him.  Wave  after  wave  of  cum  exploded
from  his  cock,  landing  on  his  abs  and  chest,  as  his  body
bucked spastically, and Drake opened his mouth in a silent
scream.

The shuddering of the body beneath him a moment later

told Drake that his lover had gotten off as well. Lover? Oh,
wow! I have a lover! He smiled and sighed, as a fresh wave of
happiness rolled over him.

“Mmmm.” Ailean nuzzled his neck gently. “Very nice.”
He had no way to respond to that. He’d never woken

with another before now, well, except for his brother when
they were younger and Dagus had had nightmares.

“Just relax, little mate,” the man holding him said as he

shifted Drake off his chest and to the side. Ailean rolled over
until he was draped over him and gazed down at him with a
pleased look on his face. “There are so many things I’d like
to teach you.” His smile turned speculative. “And I have so
many things to share with you.”

Before he could think of a suitable way to respond, his

stomach  grumbled,  reminding  him  that  with  all  the
excitement  last  night,  he  hadn’t  eaten  since  noon  the  day
before.  Ailean  chuckled.  “Let’s  enjoy  a  shower,  and  then
we’ll find something to eat.”

“Okay,” Drake whispered, finally finding his voice. He

started to rise, but then it occurred to him that he was naked,
and except for doctor visits, he’d never allowed anyone to
see him naked before. Well, again except his brother, but he
didn’t count because he couldn’t actually see him, right?

Ailean had no such hang-up. He rolled out of bed and

crossed to his bag, pulling out a smaller case before turning
to look at him. Drake sucked in a breath. It was no wonder
the man wasn’t shy! He had lickable bronze-covered abs,

Accepting His Animal

nicely toned arms, muscular legs, and a sexy-fine smattering
of chest hair that tapered down to a treasure trail extending
to his half-hard dick. He realized the man didn’t have a tan
line on him, so it was either natural or the man sunbathed in
the nude.

He finally managed to get his gaze to rise back to Ailean’s

face.  He  gasped  at  the  heat  and  lust  glowing  in  the  bigger
man’s  brown  eyes.  Ailean  grinned.  “You  can’t  look  at  me
like  that  and  expect  me  not  to  act,”  he  growled,  prowling
forward.

Drake squealed when Ailean ripped the blanket from his

grip and picked him up in his arms. “Relax, my mate,” the
man laughed. “We’ll just shower this morning. I’m hungry,
too.”

Ailean made sure the hall was empty, and seconds later,

Drake  found  himself  showering  with  a  man  other  than  his
brother for the first time in his life. So many firsts with Ailean!
What  else  can  I  expect?  It  was  a  good  thing  he  had  mocha
skin,  otherwise  the  blush  burning  just  under  the  surface
would turn his face into a furnace. Fortunately, Ailean kept
the  shower  quick  and  utilitarian,  even  with  the  occasional
kiss as he cleaned him.

Ailean stepped out of the shower, grabbed a towel, and

held it up for Drake. “Come on, baby,” he encouraged.

Drake screwed up his courage and stepped out from

behind the opaque glass. A pleased smile creased his lover’s
face. He knew Ailean must have realized his innocence last
night. How could he not? So the fact that he’d managed to
please the man, even a little, put a shy smile on Drake’s face.

“Ah, now that is a gorgeous sight,” Ailean murmured,

pulling Drake’s towel-wrapped form into his arms. Gently,
he sealed their lips together. When Ailean’s tongue slipped
out and brushed against his lips, Drake happily opened for
him. The man tasted of dark masculine flavors and

Charlie Richards

sensuality, if sensuality had a taste, Drake decided. Either
way, he couldn’t get enough.

He moaned softly, pressing his body against the other

man and wrapping his arms around Ailean’s neck. The
friction against the soft towel combined with the kissing had
his shaft quickly filling.

Ailean’s hands gripped Drake’s butt and squeezed gently.

The man plundered his mouth. There could be no other way
to say it. The growl surprised him almost as much as the
world spinning. Suddenly, Drake found himself sitting on
the sink, the towel thrust aside, and Ailean settled between
his legs.

“Oh, fuck, you are such a sexy little piece,” Ailean

groaned, pulling back for just a second to look down their
bodies. “I can’t get enough of your taste.”

The drops still clinging to Ailean plastered them together

and provided a bit of slickness for their aligned dicks.
“Ailean,” Drake moaned.

“Mmm, my name on your lips is the sweetest damn

sound,” he whispered against his lips. “I want to sink my
cock into you, little mate. I want to feel you squeeze me. I’ll
fill you so full of my seed you’ll know that you belong to
me.”

The man’s possessive words and actions sent a wave of

heady desire through Drake. Why the man wanted a skinny
geek like him, he didn’t know, but he planned to enjoy the
handsome man for as long as possible. He didn’t delude
himself into thinking that the man could fall in love with
him, but there was certainly plenty he could learn from him.

“Ah, you’re thinking too much, sweetie,” Ailean crooned.

“Don’t worry. When I take you, I’ll make certain you’re
more than ready.”

Drake’s gaze snapped to find Ailean staring at him with

quiet compassion, and he realized he should have said

Accepting His Animal

something. He lifted his hand to Ailean’s face, tracing the
man’s features. “I look forward to it,” he whispered.

Ailean smiled. “Good.” He carefully wrapped the towel

back around him. “Let’s get dressed, and we’ll head
downstairs. I’m ready for breakfast,” he murmured, pressing
another quick kiss to Drake’s lips.

He felt a bit disappointed, and Drake must have done

something to alert the man, but he wasn’t sure what. Ailean
cupped his cheek and smiled. “Soon, my little mate,” he
promised.

That contact alone made Drake want to shiver. He forced

the reaction back, instead nuzzling into the man’s palm for a
moment, impressed with how he could smell Ailean’s skin,
masculine and musky, even through the soap of the shower.
Breaking the contact, he slipped off the sink and peeked into
the hall before heading into the bedroom. He glanced over
his shoulder and said, “Come on. I’m starved, and I need to
make certain Dagus made it downstairs all right.”

Thoughts of his brother made him blush. What if Dagus

had heard them last night? He couldn’t remember if they’d
been quiet.

“Yes, I look forward to meeting your family. Is it just you

and your brother?” Ailean asked.

He wants to meet my family? Why? We’ve just met. Keeping

his  focus  on  dressing,  he  replied,  “No.  I  have  a  sister,
Doriah, who lives in Denver.” He saw the amusement light
the  man’s  eyes  and  blushed.  “Yeah,  my  father  had  a  thing
for D names. I never understood it,” he muttered. “Anyway,
my mother is in a nursing home in Denver. She suffers from
Alzheimer’s.” He paused, holding his shirt to his chest like a
shield  as  he  thought  of  his  mother.  It  had  been  six  months
since  he’d  seen  her  between  semesters,  and  she  hadn’t
remembered him.

Arms wrapped his arms around him from behind, and he

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settled into Ailean’s comforting embrace as if they’d done it
a thousand times. “I’m sorry, little mate. I didn’t mean to
bring up a painful subject.”

Drake tilted his head, allowing his lover to nuzzle his

neck. “It is what it is. She’s so far gone now that she doesn’t
remember any of us. Doriah stays out of loyalty and because
her boyfriend is there.”

“Ah.”
They remained quiet, Ailean holding him for several

more minutes, until Drake’s stomach growled again. Ailean
chuckled. “Finish up,” he ordered gently, pressing one more
soft kiss to the side of Drake’s neck.

Drake bit back a sigh as he pulled his shirt over his head.

He could get used to Ailean’s affection way too quickly, and
that  probably  wasn’t  a  good  thing.  Pushing  the
unproductive thoughts from his mind, he allowed Ailean to
lead  him  from  the  room.  He  paused  in  the  hall,  knocking
gently on Dagus’s door. When he didn’t receive an answer,
he  opened  the  door  several  inches  and  poked  his  head  in.
The room was empty.

Guilt swamped him. He should have been there to help

his  brother  instead  of  allowing  a  virtual  stranger  to—  He
blushed.  When  had  he  become  such  a  slut?  Or  was  it  just
because no one had ever expressed such an interest in him?
He  decided  it  was  neither.  Ailean  made  him  feel  safe,
comfortable,  and  he  was  hot  as  Hades.  Okay,  so  maybe  a
combination  of  slut  and  the  situation,  he  decided,  giggling
internally.

Heading downstairs, Drake followed the enticing aromas

of food into the dining room. They found a cute, dark haired
girl seated at the table with Dagus, jabbering away at him as
they  ate  their  breakfast.  Drake  eyed  the  spread  of  food  on
the  table,  his  mouth  salivating  as  he  took  in  the  platters  of
scrambled  eggs,  fried  potatoes,  biscuits,  gravy,  sausage,

Accepting His Animal

bacon, and toast. His stomach growled again.

Dagus cocked his head and held up a hand to silence the

girl. “Good morning, Drake. Glad you could join us.”

Drake blushed. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d

slept in until seven in the morning, and to not actually get
moving until seven-thirty? Well, he blamed it on the man
behind him.

“This is Sara McIntire, Declan and Lark’s daughter.”

Dagus smirked knowingly. “Who’s that with you?”

“I’m Ailean Carmichael,” the doctor stated, stepping

forward. “It’s good to meet you, Dagus.” He turned to the
small teenager. “And it’s good to see you again, Sara. You’re
not getting into too much mischief, I trust?”

“No, Doctor Carmichael,” she replied, smiling impishly.

“I’m too busy with school and training to get into trouble.”

Drake grabbed a plate and began filling it. “What are you

training for?” He thought her a bit young to have chosen a
career, but what did he know about kids?

“My dad is helping me smooth out my shift transitions,”

she replied.

Drake glanced at his brother whose lifted brow told him

Dagus didn’t understand any better than he did. Ailean
squeezed his shoulder and whispered, “I’ll explain later. It’s
one of many things I’d like the opportunity to talk to you
about.”

Sara’s eyes widened in dismay. “Oh, no. I’m so sorry,

Doctor Carmichael. They’re staying with us, so I didn’t
realize.”

Ailean tapped the girl’s hand with a forefinger. “Think

nothing of it, sweetie. It’s just something I haven’t explained
to my little mate yet.”

She bit her lip and nodded, returning her attention to her

food in silence. Drake admitted his curiosity was peaked,
but from the looks that passed between the two, he knew he

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wouldn’t get more information at the moment. He’d just
have to ask Ailean another time.

“Little mate?” Dagus whispered, leaning close to Drake.

“What does that mean?” He waited expectantly, munching
on a piece of bacon.

Drake wondered who’d helped his brother with the food,

and more guilt flooded him. It was his job to help Dagus.

“Little mate is a term of endearment I use for your

brother, Dagus,” Ailean answered the question for him. “I’m
your brother’s boyfriend.”

“Since when?” Dagus snapped incredulously. “How long

have you known my brother? When did you start dating?”

Dagus pinned his senses on Ailean, his dark brows drawn

into a frown. Drake shook his head and grabbed Dagus’s
hand. Drake may be the younger brother and worked hard
to care for Dagus due to his differences, but that didn’t mean
Dagus couldn’t go all protective on him, like now.

“We met yesterday,” he admitted.
“And he spent the night—”
“Can we discuss this another time, Dagus?” Drake asked

sharply, cutting his brother off. “Maybe when we’re alone?”

Dagus frowned. “Fine,” he snapped. “But don’t think this

is over.”

To Drake’s immense relief, Dagus quieted, refocusing on

his food. Drake did the same. He scooped heaps of eggs onto
his toast, relishing their fluffiness mixed with the crunch of
the buttered bread. The potatoes had just the right amount
of crispiness. And the bacon, oh how wonderful! He moaned
his appreciation.

Ailean chuckled, drawing Drake’s attention to the heat in

the bigger man’s eyes. He fought back another blush and
focused back on his plate. A rough finger traced his jaw,
bringing his head up to meet Ailean’s look. “Just when was
the last time you ate breakfast, hmm?”

Accepting His Animal

Drake shrugged. “I don’t know. I never have time.”
“Twenty-seven days,” Dagus said dryly. “And that was

only because you were sick and I made it for you and
insisted you eat it.”

Drake jerked away from Ailean to look at his brother.

“How do you remember that?”

Dagus smirked. “How do you remember those

formulas?”

“Huh,” Drake conceded. “I see your point.”
“Well, either way, we’ll have to do something to change

that,” Ailean cut in with a smile. “I’m a doctor, and I remind
you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”

“Good luck,” Dagus snorted. “If it’s not related to a

cryptid or genetics, it’s not going to be a priority.”

“Hey! That’s not true,” Drake replied indignantly.
Ailean settled a hand on his thigh under the table. “Easy

now,” he all but purred into Drake’s ear. “No fighting at the
breakfast table. Later I want to hear all about your research,
but Detective Stryker will be here in fifteen minutes, so let’s
finish up, hmm?”

Declan walked into the room, stalling any more

conversation. “Good morning, gentlemen,” he said while
snagging a slice of bacon. “Are ye ready to go, Sara?”

“Almost, Papa,” she answered, pushing from the table

and taking her plate to the sink.

Charlie Richards

Chapter Six

ilean followed Drake and Grady out of the house. He
knew his mate felt guilty for leaving Dagus at a stranger’s,

but Lark had the morning off and promised to help him get
his computer and braille printer set up so he could spend
some time writing. Besides, there was little point taking the
brother with them when he could do little to help.

Guiding Drake to his Audi, Ailean settled him into the

seat and gave him a quick kiss before rounding to the
driver’s side. “We’ll lead the way,” he told Grady.

The big detective nodded. “The Fitzgerald building first, I

need to know where Drake picked up Lyle.”

He nodded, not liking the fact that his mate had to return

to that place one last time. He’d much rather keep Drake far
away from anyone with guns. Humans were so damn
fragile. Ailean climbed into his car and started it. He smiled
quickly at Drake, still struggling with the knowledge that
Fate saddled him with a human mate.

Sara had given him a fantastic opening to explain shifters

to  the  professor,  but  Ailean  hadn’t  been  able  to  do  it.  He
didn’t  know  enough  about  the  man  yet.  Trust  didn’t  come
easy  to  him,  and  no  matter  how  much  he  was  sexually
drawn to the man, he wasn’t ready to give it to Drake yet.

After receiving instructions to the area of Colin where the

business complex resided, they lapsed into a companionable

Accepting His Animal

silence. He rested his hand on Drake’s leg, enjoying the feel
of the muscles under his palm. Drake sighed and rested his
head against the headrest and stared out the window.

It took forty minutes, but eventually Drake snapped his

head up and looked around. “We’re close,” he whispered.

Ailean could scent the waves of tension and fear rolling

off his mate. He wanted to turn the vehicle around, take him
to his home, and tuck him away from anything dangerous.
But since he couldn’t, he said, “Easy, little mate. We only
need to stay a few minutes, just long enough to show Grady
where you found Lyle.”

Drake smiled, and the effect on Ailean’s cock was

immediate. It  filled swiftly, pushing against  the confines  of
his  slacks.  Getting  off  with  his  mate  had  been  nice,  but  it
didn’t  ease  the  ache  caused  by  his  desire  to  actually  claim
the  man.  He’d  heard  how  some  of  the  wolves  had  dated
their  human  mates  before  claiming  them.  Ailean  hoped  he
didn’t have to do that, because he didn’t know if he could be
patient.

“Here’s the turn,” Drake said, drawing his attention.
He turned the car onto a side street, checking the rearview

mirror to be sure the detective still followed. The tiger shifter
turned his truck behind them, following closely. “Which
one?” he asked, looking over the many office buildings.

“It’s that one.”
Nodding, his gaze swept over the structure his mate

pointed  at  for  a  few  seconds.  It  looked  like  a  standard,
modern  office  building  with  steel  and  glass  construction.
Ailean turned his car into the parking lot across from it. At
Drake’s  questioning  look,  he  smiled  grimly.  “Sorry,  little
mate. I don’t want you getting too close to them.”

Drake nodded. “Me neither.”
Grady parked next to them and climbed from his vehicle.

“This the place?” he asked, after they all stood together.

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“It’s that one,” Drake said, pointing. “That’s the building

where I meet my contractors and other scientists.”

Nodding, Grady surveyed the area, his hands on his hips.

“Well, considering the state you found him in, I can’t
imagine he came from very far.”

Ailean agreed. “What are you going to do?”
“Come back tonight with Carson.” He grinned coldly.

“He got back from Georgia yesterday, so we’ll see what we
can sniff out.”

“Who’s Carson,” Drake asked curiously.
Grady spared him a glance before refocusing on the

buildings around them. “A friend.”

“Another officer?”
Ailean chuckled. His little mate really was too curious for

his  own  good.  He  sobered  and  exchanged  a  glance  with
Grady.  He  had  to  tell  him  something  or  his  mate  wouldn’t
stop  asking  questions.  “Some  of  the  authorities  are
compromised,”  Ailean  revealed.  “Not  all  of  them  can  be
trusted,  that’s  why  Lyle  asked  specifically  for  Grady,  and
why  Grady  asked  you  to  bring  him  to  me.  Carson  is  a
military trained friend who is helping us figure out how bad
the situation really is.”

Drake’s brows lifted, his pretty brown eyes rounding.

“What can I do to help?”

“Nothing,” Ailean replied quickly. “You’ve done enough.

The detective will take it from here.” He turned to Grady.
“Do you need anything more from us?” His mate’s scent
was driving him nuts. He needed to get the man alone.

Grady’s gaze snapped to his, and he smirked. “Not for

now. Where can I find Drake should I need to question him
later?”

“I’m scheduled at the hospital at three this afternoon. I’ll

take him back to Declan’s before then.” He hated the idea of
leaving his mate at the wolf’s house, but he didn’t want

Accepting His Animal

Drake to be alone in Colin City until he knew he was safe.

Nodding, Grady turned and headed to his truck. “Got it.

See you later.”

“Get in,” he said, opening the door for his mate.
“Where are we going?” Drake asked.
He grabbed Drake’s arm before he could climb into his

car  and  pulled  him  close.  “My  place,”  Ailean  whispered
before  claiming his lips.  He delved his tongue into  Drake’s
mouth,  licking  his  gums  and  tangling  their  tongues.  His
mate’s mewls of pleasure and the way he pressed his body
close, as if trying to meld them together, enflamed Ailean’s
desire  to  a  near  fever  pitch.  When  the  need  for  air  became
paramount, he broke the kiss and grinned at Drake. “To do a
little more of that.”

“Okay,” Drake panted.
The chuckle behind him had Ailean releasing Drake and

ushering him into his seat. After closing the door, he glared
over his shoulder at Grady. The man stood with his hands
on his hips, not looking at him, so Ailean rounded the car.
Before he opened the door, Grady called, “It’s nice to see you
this…happy.”

“I’ll be happy after I claim him,” he snapped back.
“There’s a lot to talk about first. He is human, after all.”

Grady finally turned his head and looked him in the eye.
“Do you think you can handle that?”

He growled in irritation. “Of course I can. He’s my mate.”
Grady’s eyes narrowed slightly and the man frowned. “I

hope so.”

When he turned away and climbed into his truck, Ailean

growled low in his throat. So what if he’d kept clear of any
long term entanglements with humans for nearly eighty
years. This was his mate. Of course he’d make it work.
Ailean opened the door and climbed into the car.

Drake looked at him. “Everything okay?” he asked.

Charlie Richards

Forcing a smile, Ailean nodded. “Of course.” He leaned

over and gave Drake a quick peck. “Let’s get out of here.”

Another thirty minutes of driving, Ailean checking his

rearview  mirror  often  during  that  time,  and  he  pulled  into
his  home’s  driveway,  a  single  story,  three-bedroom  house
that  Ailean  used  for  his  sanctuary.  He  hadn’t  brought
anyone  here  since  he’d  moved  in  a  year  and  a  half  ago.
Whenever he’d wanted sex, he used back rooms and hotels.
It seemed fitting that the first man he took to his bed was his
mate. His cock jerked at that thought.

Smiling, he led Drake into his home. Passing through the

living room, he glanced toward his kitchen. “Would you like
a drink or anything?”

Drake paused, looking uncertain. That’s when Ailean

noticed  the  tension  in  the  man’s  shoulders.  “Hey,”  he
murmured,  wrapping  his  arms  around  his  nervous  mate.
“Let’s  curl  up  and  watch  a  movie,  okay?”  He  motioned
toward the sofa. “Have a seat. I’ll grab us a couple of sodas.”

“Okay,” Drake muttered. “Diet, if you have it.”
Ailean chuckled. “I think you could use the calories, little

mate.”

Drake blushed, hunching his shoulders. “Food just isn’t

always a priority.”

Cupping Drake’s cheek, Ailean stared down at the man.

“I’m a doctor, and although I’d love to give you a physical,”
he  added  with  a  lascivious  wink,  “it  wouldn’t  take  that  to
figure  out  that  you’re  under  weight.”  Drake  tried  to  pull
free,  but  Ailean  wouldn’t  let  him  get  away.  “I  happen  to
think you’re sexy just the way you are, Drake, but that’s not
going  to  stop  me  from  wanting  to  make  certain  you’re
healthy.”

“You think I’m sexy?” Drake whispered, his big brown

eyes widening with hope.

“Oh, yeah,” Ailean assured. He pulled Drake into his

Accepting His Animal

arms, tucking his smaller frame close against him. He
nuzzled his face into the crook of Drake’s neck, inhaling his
mate’s sweet scent. So good! “I really like the way you smell.”

“It’s said that scent from pheromones is a key component

to attraction,” Drake whispered, tilting his head to give
Ailean more room.

“Huh,” he muttered, nibbling on Drake’s neck. He

wondered briefly if his mate had any idea how right he was.
Scent  was  how  shifters  determined  their  mate.  And  right
now,  that’s  all  he  cared  about,  getting  inside  his  mate  and
easing  the  ache  in  his  dick.  His  cock  pressed  painfully
against  his  fly,  and  to  his  great  pleasure,  he  felt  his  mate’s
tension ease as Drake melted against him.

Lifting his head slightly, he captured Drake’s lips, speared

his tongue between his lips, and delved deep inside his
mouth. Sweet heaven! He wanted to stay there forever. He
nipped the man’s lower lip, capturing it and tugging gently
as he pulled away.

He grinned at Drake’s dazed expression and dilated eyes.

Gripping one small ass cheek in each hand, Ailean lifted his
mate, encouraging Drake to wrap his legs around his hips.
Drake’s moan was music to his ears as their erections
pressed together in a delicious wave of painful sensation.

He walked to the couch and dropped down onto it,

keeping his mate firmly on his lap. His lips captured Drake’s
again as he slid a hand up the man’s body and underneath
his t-shirt. His palms traced over warm skin, almost burning
him with the intensity of his need.

Growling softly, Ailean pushed the man’s shirt off his

head,  his  breath  catching  as  he  took  in  the  chocolate  skin
he’d  been  able  to  touch  only  briefly  in  the  shower  that
morning.  He  leaned  forward  and  his  lips  latched  onto
Drake’s pert nipple. Drake gasped as he sucked the hard nub
into  his  mouth,  his  mate’s  body  arching  in  desire  to  press

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more skin into Ailean’s mouth.

“What…what happened to watching a movie?” Drake

gasped.

After several more hard sucks, he released Drake’s nipple.

“Did you want me to stop and put on a movie instead?” he
asked between gentle nips and licks as he made his way to
Drake’s other hard nub.

When Drake mewled and thrust out his chest in

frustration,  Ailean  chuckled.  “That’s  what  I  thought,”  he
purred,  before  latching  onto  the  other  nipple.  After  several
seconds he let go and whispered, “I plan to make you feel so
good,  little  mate.”  He  just  prayed  he’d  be  able  to  last  long
enough to please Drake first. He wanted his mate relaxed to
a  near  boneless  state  so  he  could  sink  his  cock  deep  inside
him with as little pain as possible to the virgin human.

“Ailean,” Drake whimpered.
He smiled against Drake’s neck, loving the man’s thick

scent,  wriggling  body,  and  sexy  noises.  Gliding  a  hand
down  Drake’s  back,  he  slipped  it  beneath  the  man’s  slacks
and  cupped  his  skinny  cheek,  kneading  it  gently  while  he
took Drake’s lips in a hot kiss.

Gently, he dipped his middle finger into the man’s crack,

ghosting  over  his  hole.  To  his  surprise,  Drake  moaned  and
pushed  against  him,  questing  for  more  contact.  Ailean
slipped  his  finger  into  the  man  up  to  the  first  knuckle
relishing  the  tight  heat  and  pressure  that  immediately
surrounded  him.  He  couldn’t  wait  to  get  his  cock  in  there.
He slowly started working his finger in and out of his mate,
loosening him, learning him, and giving Drake pleasure.

“This isn’t the first time you’ve had something in here, is

it?” He purred his question.

Drake’s reply came between panting breathes, and his

cheeks flamed. “No. I bought toys online.”

“I’ll want to see you play with them sometime.” And he

Accepting His Animal

meant  it,  too.  Knowing  his  mate  already  knew  how  to
pleasure  himself,  this  would  be  so  much  easier.  Using  his
other hand, he unbuttoned Drake’s cargo shorts and fished
out  his  mate’s  dick.  Drake’s  slender  rod  already  leaked
copiously, and Ailean used his thumb to spread the pre-cum
around the head.

“That…that feels…”
Ailean grinned against the flesh he worked. Unabashedly

pleased that he’d reduced his mate to incoherent,
fragmented thoughts. Drake rocked between his hands, and
Ailean made no move to stop him. His dark, slender fingers
dug into Ailean’s shoulders as he thrust into his fist only to
rock back and fuck himself on Ailean’s fingers.

Back and forth he moved. Ailean nibbled the pulse point

on Drake’s neck, fighting his instinct to allow his canines to
descend and sink them into that delicious skin. When
Drake’s hips stuttered, indicating his impending release,
Ailean released his cock, wrapped his arm around the man’s
back, and flipped them on the sofa.

Drake’s shout of surprise ended in a long groan as Ailean

swallowed his mate’s cock deep into his mouth. He sucked
hard,  hollowing  his  cheeks,  before  plunging  back  down,
deep-throating Drake’s slender rod. Ailean’s throat muscles
worked  Drake’s  sensitive  head,  and  he  screamed  right
before  soaking  his  throat  with  streams  of  salty,  creamy
goodness.

Ailean growled his pleasure as he continued to suck on

his  mate’s  pretty  prick,  extending  Drake’s  orgasm  as  he
grabbed  the  tube  of  lube  from  under  the  couch  cushion.
Because  he  didn’t  bring  tricks  home,  he’d  become
accustomed to using his hand when the mood struck. Now
he  couldn’t  be  more  grateful  that  he  hadn’t  bothered  to
move to the bedroom the last time he’d jacked off.

As he lapped around his mate’s cock, making certain he

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didn’t miss a drop of Drake’s tasty essence, he poured lube
onto his fingers and worked a third one into Drake’s ass. The
man’s back arched, his head tossed from side to side, and the
skin of his chest, neck, and face flushed. It was the most
fucking beautiful thing Ailean had ever seen.

“Oh, Ailean. Full…so full…” Drake whined. “More.

Need…need…”

Mine! All mine.
The drive to claim ratcheted up several notches and

Drake slid his fingers from his mate’s ass. Drake cried out in
frustration.

“Easy, little mate. I know what you need,” he crooned as

he scrambled to get out of his clothes. He heard buttons
skitter across the floor and fabric shred, but couldn’t care
less. Clothes he could replace.

He used the excess lube on his fingers to stroke his aching

cock, biting back a moan. He had to clench the base of his
dick in a painful grip to stave off his orgasm. He needed
inside his mate. Now!

Carefully, he reached for Drake and brought him to his

knees  on  the  cushions,  turning  him  to  face  the  back  of  his
couch.  Drake  looked  over  his  shoulder  at  him,  confusion
clouding his big brown eyes. Ailean settled behind him and
kissed  those  plump  lips.  “It’ll  be  easier  this  way,”  he
assured. “I don’t want to hurt you, my pretty mate.”

Drake smiled, warmth filling his gaze. He tensed slightly

as  Ailean  pressed  the  tip  of  his  cock  to  his  hole.  Ailean
stroked Drake’s spine and purred, rubbing his cheek against
Drake’s.  Drake  immediately  calmed,  humming  his
excitement  as  he  tilted  his  hips  in  invitation.  “I  love  that
sound,” Drake whispered.

“Oh?” Ailean grunted, pushing forward firmly so the

crown of his dick popped past Drake’s ring of protective
muscle.

Accepting His Animal

Drake gasped, and Ailean paused, letting his little human

get used to his invasion. “Yes,” Drake hissed out. “I don’t
know how you do it, but it’s so sexy!”

Ailean grinned. “I’ll tell you all about it later,” he

promised. “But if you can still think about it, I must not be
doing something right.” Bracing his hands on either side of
Drake’s  on  the  back  of  the  sofa,  he  thrust  forward,  sinking
his  cock  all  the  way  into  Drake’s  tight  ass  in  one,  swift
stroke.  Heat  and  pressure  surrounded  Ailean,  but  upon
hearing his mate’s strangled moan, he froze.

He lay over Drake’s back and nibbled the nape of Drake’s

neck, enjoying the springy brown curls making up his hair.
Ailean’s breath came in heavy pants as he waited for his
mate to adjust.

“Move. Oh, please move.”
He growled at the sweet, begging words spilling from

Drake’s  mouth.  Ailean  withdrew  almost  all  the  way  out
before thrusting forward again. He sank into his mate again
and  again,  loving  the  way  Drake  squirmed  and  rocked
against  him,  as  if  trying  to  suck  Ailean  into  Drake’s  body
through his ass and make them one.

His mate’s whimpered words cut through his lusty fog,

and  he  almost  stopped,  fearing  he  hurt  him  in  his
exuberance.  Then  the  words  registered.  “So  good,  so  good,
so  good,”  Drake  panted  over  and  over  again  as  he  met
Ailean thrust for bone-jarring thrust.

Growling his delight, his canines descended and Ailean

struck. He bit deeply into the fleshy spot where Drake’s neck
met shoulder. Drake screamed and convulsed beneath him.
His  ass  muscles  tightened  into  a  near  strangle-hold  on
Ailean’s  dick  as  the  man  came,  and  Drake’s  tangy  blood
flowed  over  his  tongue.  Wrapping  his  arms  around  Drake
tightly  so  not  a  hint  of  space  was  left  between  them,  he
rocked  his  hips  into  the  man  twice  more  before  his  release

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overwhelmed him.

The bond with his mate locked into place as he spilled

into his mate. A sense of peace he hadn’t felt since a cub
swept through him. His hold on Drake loosened slightly as
his hands roamed the man’s slender chest, and he licked the
mark he’d left on his neck.

Drake moaned as his cock slipped from Drake’s body. He

purred, wrapped Drake in his arms, and carried him to his
bedroom. Ailean still had several hours before work and
planned to make the most of it by exploring his mate.

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Seven

he insistent ringing pulled Drake out of his sated doze. A
soft growl sounded in his ear and the arm around his

waist  lifted  as  Ailean  rolled  away.  Drake  immediately
missed  the  heat  of  his  lover’s  embrace,  but  reveled  in  the
memories  of  just  a  few  short  hours  ago  when  Ailean  had
carried  him  to  the  bed  and  made  sweet,  slow  love  to  him.
There  could  be  no  other  way  to  describe  the  way  the  man
kissed  and  nibbled  every  inch  of  his  body  except  worship.
And it had felt indescribable.

Ailean’s body settled back against him and lips pressed

against his spine. “I’m sorry, Drake,” he whispered. “There’s
an emergency with one of my patients. I need to go in early.”

“It’s okay. I’ll call a cab to take me to my place.” He hid

his disappointment, knowing he had plenty to do at home,
formulas to work with and DNA to research.

“No,” Ailean growled. “You’re not to go back there. It’s

not safe.”

“What?” He knew from the softening of the man’s

features, which usually signified amusement or concern in
most people, that he hadn’t kept the surprised squeak out of
his voice.

“They know where you live, little mate,” Ailean purred.
How on Earth did he do that?
“I  don’t  want  anything  to  happen  to  you.  I  won’t  allow

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you to be there until I know it’s safe.”

The unreadable look that fleetingly crossed the man’s face

made Drake think he wanted to add something, but stopped
himself.  He  wondered  what  it  was.  Having  no  way  of
knowing,  Drake  nodded  instead.  “Okay.  I  should  probably
get back to my brother.” He nibbled his lips as nervousness
flooded him before saying, “Do you have an extra car? Or do
you think cabs will travel all the way to Declan and Lark’s?
It  seems  a  little  far,  but  as  I’ve  never  had  to  take  a  cab
anywhere before, I don’t really know.”

Ailean’s finger over his lips made him stop the flood of

words. Yeah, Drake knew he tended to ramble when
nervous.

“You’ll come with me to the hospital for now. I’ll call

Detective Stryker on the way over there, and he’ll take you
to  Declan’s.”  He  pressed  a  quick  kiss  to  Drake’s  lips.  “As
much  as  I’d  like  to  linger  in  bed  with  you,  I  can’t.”  Ailean
kissed  him  again  before  drawing  away  with  a  groan  and
landing a stinging smack to Drake’s butt. “Get dressed.”

Drake froze in surprise at the unexpected smack. It sent

tingles  over  his  skin,  almost  as  nice  as  the  bite  that  Ailean
had  given  him  that  morning.  Drake  would  never  have
thought he would enjoy biting, but he had to admit that he’d
loved every second of it. There had only been one second of
searing  pain  before  absolute  pleasure  sluiced  through  his
bloodstream,  centering  in  his  dick  and  forcing  the  most
intense  orgasm  of  his  life  from  him.  The  memory  had  him
shuddering out a breath in anticipation of next time.

“If you don’t control yourself, I’m going to flip you on

your  stomach  and  slam  my  cock  into  your  ass,”  Ailean
growled.  His  leaned  over  him  and  gave  a  hard  nip  to
Drake’s  nipple.  “And  as  wonderful  as  that  sounds,  I  don’t
have time.”

After another kiss, this one slower and full of promise for

Accepting His Animal

later, Drake gathered the nerve to smile up at his lover.
“Then we’ll just have to keep this until later,” he whispered,
tracing a forefinger up Ailean’s scrub-covered, but obviously
hard cock.

“Yes,” Ailean grunted before he groaned and pulled

away. “Get up before I lose control of myself.”

Drake grinned at Ailean’s retreating backside. Wow! I’ve

never had this effect on anyone!

He jumped from the bed, still grinning from ear to ear as

he padded out to the living room and found his clothes.
Drake couldn’t believe how comfortable he felt with Ailean,
especially knowing the man watched his every move as he
poured them both a cup of coffee.

He pulled on his clothes and then went to the kitchen and

picked up the mug Ailean had poured for him. After taking
a sip, he crinkled his nose. “Sugar?”

Ailean’s brows lifted. “You didn’t add sugar at

breakfast,” he pointed out, though he still crossed to his
pantry and pulled out a jar.

“Thanks.” Drake added several teaspoons of sugar before

taking another sip. “Mmmm.” He grinned at Ailean’s
surprised look. “Part of early morning coffee’s waking
ability is its bitter, rather disgusting taste,” he admitted. “If
I’m going to enjoy it in the afternoon, it needs quite a bit of
sugar in it.”

Ailean chuckled, while herding him toward the door.

“Got  it.  I’ll  remember  that,  little  mate.”  Once  outside,  he
opened  his  car  door  and  helped  him  into  the  seat,  being
careful not to spill the hot beverage.  “Now, we need to get
moving.” Before shutting the door, Ailean gave him a quick
peck.

A contented smile curved Drake’s lips as he watched

Ailean hurry around the hood and climb into the car. It
didn’t take long to reach the hospital. Drake set the empty

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coffee cup onto the floorboard and followed Ailean into the
building. He fully expected to be told to stay in the waiting
room or at the very least, shown to a staff room. Instead,
Ailean had him follow him into his office, then his dressing
room, then along several corridors where a nurse met him.

“I’m so sorry to call you, but the chart said to contact you

about anything unusual with this patient,” she hurried to
explain. Her gaze flicked to Drake, but she didn’t say
anything about his presence while Ailean read the chart she
thrust under his nose.

Ailean hissed in irritation. “It’s Lyle,” he muttered by way

of explanation before he started down the hall in a ground
eating stride. Drake had to hurry to keep up. “Detective
Stryker will be here in a few minutes. Be sure to show him to
the patient’s room as soon as possible,” he ordered.

“Yes, Doctor,” the nurse said before hustling away.
Drake followed in silence while Ailean strode quickly

down  several  hallways.  He  stopped  just  inside  the  room,
surprised  to  find  a  muscular  man  sitting  beside  Lyle,
watching  anxiously  as  Ailean  inspected  Lyle  and  the
monitors connected to him. The doctor didn’t seem the least
bit surprised, so must know the man. Ailean muttered under
his breath, his words too low for Drake to make out.

A few moments later, Detective Stryker ambled through

the door. The big man crossed to his partner’s bed and
frowned at Ailean. “What’s going on?”

“Hell if I know,” Lyle snarled, preparing to draw blood.

He froze, the needle poised inches over the patient’s flesh.
“What the fuck?”

“Is that a rash?” Grady asked.
“It appeared about an hour ago,” the other man told

them, wringing his hands as his gaze darted between them.
“It was about ten minutes after that the monitors went off.”

Drake eased closer, wondering what the men were staring

Accepting His Animal

at.  He  gasped,  his  eyes  rounding  as  disbelief  coursed
through  him.  “No!”  he  whispered.  Regaining  himself,  he
rushed  forward  and  ran  his  fingers  over  a  dark  green,
bumpy patch of skin on the inside of Lyle’s forearm.

“What are you doing?” Ailean snapped, snatching his

hand away from Lyle. “It could be contagious.”

“It’s not,” he assured, his gaze shifting between the angry

doctor and the concerned detective.

Grady recovered first. “What do you mean? Do you know

what this is?”

Fighting back the panic, Drake nodded. “I told them it

wasn’t safe for experiments yet. Why didn’t they listen to
me? And to do it on a human? Oh, God. I’m so sorry!”

Ailean dropped his hand as if burned and took a step

back. “You did this?”

“Calm down, Ailean,” Grady commanded. “We don’t

know anything yet.” He turned to Drake, his blue eyes hard.
“Now tell us what you mean. Who did you tell what?”

Running a shaky hand through his short hair, he tried to

catch  Ailean’s  eye,  but  his  lover  refused  to  look  at  him.  “I
told you I was at the Fitzgerald building for a meeting. I was
contracted  by  Crystal  Lake  Corporation  to  break  down  a
DNA  string  they  provided,”  he  admitted.  “They  told  me
they thought it could be proof of the existence of the Ninki-
nanka. I teach molecular genetics at the college, but that was
my  minor.  I’m  really  a  crypto  zoologist,  but  I’ve  been
blacklisted from any serious grants due to my last paper on
the chupacabra. If I could prove the existence of the Ninki-
nanka, it’d restore my reputation.”

Grady scowled, clearly unimpressed. “Okay, what the

hell’s a Ninki-nanka and what does that have to do with
this?” he asked, waving a hand at Lyle’s arm.

“The Ninki-nanka is a creature that supposedly lives in

the swamps of West Africa. It’s believed to be reclusive and

Charlie Richards

very  dangerous  and  those  who  see  it  often  end  up  dead
within a few weeks. It’s what we call a cryptid, because we
don’t  have  any  proof  it  really  exists.”  Before  Grady  could
interrupt with more questions, he hurried on, “When I broke
down the DNA, I realized it had both reptilian and human
components.”  His  gaze  swept  between  the  two  men,  but
they  didn’t  seem  surprised.  Okay,  so  they  probably  didn’t
understand  the  significance  of  that.  “It  means  this  creature
wasn’t either, and yet it was.” Still nothing came from either
man. “A changeling of some kind. A brand new species!”

Maybe they just didn’t believe him, because they still

didn’t  react.  Whatever.  “Anyway,  when  I  reported  my
findings, they wanted to know if a serum could be created to
share  this  creature’s  abilities  with  humans.  I  had  been
working on that for two weeks, giving them regular reports,
when  Lyle  appeared.”  He  saw  a  closed,  stormy  expression
descend  over  Ailean’s  face.  The  man  growled  low  in  his
throat and turned away. When Drake reached out and laid a
hand on the doctor’s arm, Ailean snarled at him and jerked
away. Drake yanked his hand back in shock. “I kept telling
them it wasn’t ready for trials, even on animals. I guess they
didn’t listen.” His voice trailed away.

Before the silence could lengthen for too long, Ailean met

Grady’s concerned gaze and growled. “Get him out of here.
Take him to Declan. I have work to do.”

“Are you coming by when you get off?” Grady asked,

sounding just a little too calm.

Ailean finally met Drake’s eyes, but he saw none of the

affection and desire that normally resided there. Instead, the
doctor stared at him with barely concealed loathing.

“No. I won’t be back.”
Pain like he’d never experienced ripped through Drake’s

chest, and he gasped. Ailean’s out of hand rejection
shouldn’t have hurt so much, since they’d only known each

Accepting His Animal

other a couple days, but for some reason it did.

“Ailean,” Grady growled. “Don’t make any rash

decisions.”

“I said get him out of here,” he all but roared.
Drake cringed away. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t

know.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Ailean snapped. “You humans are all

the  same.  Always  looking  out  for  number  one.  All  you
thought  about  was  your  career.  You  probably  didn’t  even
think  about  how  your  findings  would  affect  others.”  He
turned  his  back  on  Drake,  dismissing  them  both  as  he
stabbed  Lyle  with  the  needle  and  finished  drawing  blood.
Ignoring him, Ailean headed toward the door. “I’ll call you
when I figure out how to heal Lyle.”

For a second, he thought Ailean might be talking to him,

but then Grady sighed.

“Okay.”
Drake’s shoulders slumped as Grady’s big hands landed

on them.

“Come on, Drake. Let’s go.”
He allowed the detective to steer him out of the hospital.

Once in the man’s truck, Grady turned to him. “Give Ailean
time. He’ll come around.”

Staring morosely out the window, Drake shook his head.

“No,  he  won’t.  He’s  right.  I  didn’t  think  about  how  my
actions  would  affect  others.  What  good  could  come  of  a
serum  that  gives  humans  reptilian  traits?  I  mean  really?”
Drake rubbed his temples, amazed at how naïve he could be.
Biting  his  lip,  he  muttered,  “Besides,  he  got  what  he
wanted.”  He  huffed  out  an  irritated  sigh,  his  hands
clenching  into  fists.  “I  always  warn  my  brother  not  to  put
out  on  a  first  date,  but  did  I  follow  my  own  advice?”  he
snapped at himself. “Of course not. I am such a fool.”

To his surprise, Grady chuckled. “Yes, that’s good advice

Charlie Richards

under normal circumstances, but in this case, Ailean has just
had some tough experiences with humans. He really will
come around.”

The man sounded so certain, but why would he…Drake

frowned and looked at Grady, watching him steer the truck
for a few seconds before whispering, “What?”

“I said he’ll come around.”
“No,” Drake stated. “You said he’s had some tough

experiences with humans. And back in the room, Ailean
said, you humans are all the same. What are you guys
talking about?”

Grady glanced at him and frowned, but Drake wouldn’t

back down. He wanted to know what was going on.

Suddenly, Grady whipped the truck to the side of the

road and screeched to a halt. “Fucking hell!” he yelled. “He
mated with you and didn’t explain things to you?”

Drake straightened. “Mated? What do you mean? What

things?” His confusion began to cut through the strange
heartache plaguing him.

Growling under his breath, Grady slammed the truck into

gear and got them moving again. He yanked his phone out
and hit a button. “Declan,” he grunted into the phone.
“We’ve got a problem. Ailean mated Drake but he didn’t
explain…anything.”

He heard the frustration in the voice on the other end of

the phone, but couldn’t make out the words. Grady grunted
an acknowledgement then said, “We’re about fifteen
minutes out,” before snapping the phone shut.

They drove in silence for several minutes, Drake sneaking

glances at Grady. He could tell from the man’s tightly
clenched jaw and narrowed eyes that the man was upset. He
just couldn’t figure out why. Why would Ailean dumping me

make Grady so angry? It isn’t like it impacts him, right?

When it didn’t look like the detective was going to

Accepting His Animal

explain, Drake frowned, “Okay, what’s going on?”

Grady shook his head. “I’m sorry Ailean put you in this

situation,” he replied. “I never thought the doctor was that
selfish.”

Drake frowned, indignation stirring. “I’m sure he’s not

selfish. He has a lot going on, what with Lyle showing up
and then…” His words failed him, and he fought back a
sniffle. “I just met him,” he whispered. “Why do I miss him
so much?”

Sighing, Grady reached over and squeezed his shoulder.

“Just hang on for a few more minutes. Once we get to
Declan’s, we’ll explain everything.”

He nodded, his focus returning to the passing trees

outside the window. A niggling of concern ate at him. His
entire life was in upheaval and now the detective made it
sound like there was even more to deal with.

Part of him wished he could go back in time and never

take  that  contract.  Then  he’d  never  have  gone  to  that
meeting  the  other  night,  never  have  been  hijacked  by  Lyle,
and  he’d  never  have  met  Ailean.  But  then  Drake  never
would have experienced the most amazing sensations while
in the man’s arms, either. Or the broken heart he had now,
and his heart was breaking, because somehow, in the course
of  twenty-four  hours,  he’d  fallen  in  love  with  the  doctor.
And didn’t that just suck?

When he walked into the house, he heard Declan’s Irish

lilt growling from another room. “What do ye mean yer not
coming over after yer shift at the hospital ends tomorrow?
He’s yer mate, damn it! Ye can’t just…”

Drake’s steps faltered, the man’s words telling him

exactly who the Irishman spoke to, and he wrapped his arms
around his belly. A wash of bile rose up his throat and he
struggled to breathe. Why did he have to walk in right at

Charlie Richards

this moment? Wasn’t hearing it from the man himself
enough? Now he had to overhear others talking about their
whirlwind affair, too?

“Come on,” Grady muttered gruffly and led the way into

the room where Drake could still hear Declan arguing with
Ailean.

He followed slowly and discovered a growling Declan

holding  Lark,  who  was  trying  to  soothe  the  big  man.  His
brother  sat  stiffly  on  one  end  of  a  leather  couch.  His  head
cocked to the side and his shoulders tense as he listened to
the angry men around him. Drake hurried over to him and
settled  next  to  him,  rubbing  his  brother’s  arm  to  reassure
Dagus of his presence.

He blushed when Dagus leaned toward him and sniffed,

realizing his brother, whose senses were heightened, could
probably smell that he’d had sex. Dagus grinned and
bumped shoulders. “It’s about damn time,” he whispered.

“I guess,” he muttered back.
“You didn’t like it?” His brother cocked his head,

obviously trying to gauge the tone of his responses. “Did he
hurt you?”

“I don’t understand why everyone is making more of it

than it is,” he hissed back. “It was just a short fling. Ailean
got what he wanted, and I finally figured out the allure of
sex.”

“The bite on yer neck says otherwise, Drake.”
Surprise shot through him, and he lifted a hand to the still

tender mark not quite covered by his shirt. “It’s okay. I…I
liked it,” he managed to admit, his gaze drifting from a
solemn Declan to the floor.

“Damn that shifter,” Declan growled. “I canna believe he

did this to ye without explaining what it meant.” He knew
the question was written all over his face, especially since
Grady had said something similar in the truck. “Look, this

Accepting His Animal

may be a little hard to accept, but Ailean biting ye is not to
be taken lightly.”

“At the hospital, you told me how different the DNA was

than  anything  else  you’d  ever  seen,  right?”  Grady  said,
drawing  his  attention.  He  stared  in  shock  as  the  big  man
began  to  slowly  remove  his  shirt,  his  face  so  serious  that
Drake  didn’t  know  how  to  respond  except  to  nod  dumbly.
“Those  men  who  hired  you  found  out  about  something
we’ve successfully kept secret since the early third century.”
He grimaced, his shoulders lifting in a shrug. “Well, at least
until now.”

“What secret?” he asked. He wasn’t certain if he should

feel dread or expectation. Gripping Dagus’s hand tightly, he
leaned forward. “What’s going on?”

“There were human and reptilian components together

because it was DNA from a shape-shifter, Drake,” Grady
said solemnly. “Ailean is a shifter. So am I, and so is
Declan.”

His eyes widened and his body tensed for several long

seconds,  before  he  shook  his  head,  his  blood  chilling.  “I
know  Ailean  is  your  friend,  but  you  don’t  need  to
compound  the  humiliation  of  him  dumping  me  by  making
fun of my work, too.” He rose, pulling Dagus up after him.
“We’ll pack our things and go, thanks.”

He started to turn away, when he heard Declan say,

“We’re not playing with ye, Drake. We figured ye’d need
proof, being a scientist and all. Allow us to prove it.”

That peaked his curiosity, and he paused. “Okay. Prove

it,” he challenged. Did these men really believe they could shape
shift?

He watched with interest as Grady stripped the rest of his

clothes and dropped to the ground. At any other time, he
probably would have taken time to admire the impressive
lines of muscle on the big man, but as soon as the detective’s

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knees  hit  the  floor,  fur  grew  from  his  back.  Orange  and
white  stripes  appeared,  a  tail  sprouted,  limbs  shifted  and
popped, and his head contorted to accommodate a mouthful
of  incredibly  sharp  teeth.  The  change  only  took  maybe  ten
seconds,  but  when  all  was  said  and  done,  a  massive  tiger
sprawled across the hardwood floor.

“Oh my goodness,” he whispered, right before his eyes

rolled into the back of his head and the world tilted.

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Eight

rake? Are you awake?”

His brother’s voice cut through the fog as he

struggled to focus. “Yeah,” he grunted. His throat felt like
sandpaper and his head pounded. “What happened?”

“You fainted.” That was Lark’s voice.
Drake forced one eye open and stared at the slender

blond’s concerned face.

“Here. Drink this.”
Dagus’s hands slid under his shoulders, helping him to a

half-sitting position as Lark pressed a pill to his hand and
then helped him take a swig of orange juice to wash it down.
After he’d swallowed the pill, he sighed. “What was that,
Doc?”

Lark smiled. “Just a little something to help you relax.

They really should have prepared you a little better.
Watching someone shift for the first time is really quite
shocking.”

“I can’t believe I fainted,” Drake groaned. Could he be

any more wussy?

“Hey,” Lark whispered, regaining his attention. The

understanding look on the man’s face didn’t really reassure
him. “My first time, I was at a BBQ. Most of the people there
were wolf shifters, although I didn’t know that at the time. I
saw several kids shift a couple times while playing.” He

“D

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grinned ruefully, admitting, “I had a full blown panic attack.
It took my friends, Rainy and Cliff, several days to calm me
down. Imagine my shock to realize the guys I played poker
with every month were really wolves!”

“So not all of them are tigers?” Drake asked, still having a

hard time wrapping his mind around this turn of events.
“And Grady really turned into one?”

Dagus nodded, patting his shoulder awkwardly. “After

you passed out, I started to freak a bit. They ended up letting
me pet him, so I could understand what had happened.”

“Sorry about that,” Drake muttered, renewed

embarrassment creeping over him. “Where are they now?”

“We figured you’d need a couple minutes with just the

humans when you woke,” Lark smiled. “They really are no
different than us, other than the animal thing. They are fully
aware while in their animal form, and they’re not controlled
by the cycle of the moon. They’re just another species that
have been living right alongside humans, keeping their
abilities secret.”

“Why? People are smart. They could handle it,” Dagus

said almost belligerently.

Drake knew how he felt. This kind of cover up was huge!
Lark shook his head. “A person is smart. But people are

not,  get  a  few  of  them  together  and  they  turn  into  sheep.
Stupid, panicky, and quick to judge and cast the first stone at
anything  different,”  he  pointed  out.  “Shifters  need  their
secrecy  to  remain  safe.  Otherwise  they  run  into  problems
with humans like your employer. Humans who want to do
experiments on shifters for their own gain.”

Drake thought about that for a moment. It really did

make sense. His own research and contract with the Crystal
Lake Corporation was proof enough of that. There was still
one thing that didn’t make sense to him. “Okay, so these
guys are shifters. What does that have to do with me and

Accepting His Animal

Ailean? They act like it’s such a big deal that he dumped
me.”

“He dumped you?” Dagus growled. “Why?”
“It’s not like I didn’t expect it,” he said. Sitting up, he ran

a hand over his brother’s arm to let him know where he was.
“After all, I’m not much to look at. I’m short, skinny, and
nerdy. He probably pegged me for a virgin and wanted to
see if he could pop my cherry.” Okay, normally he’d never
speak this frankly, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. The
whole episode still felt surreal.

“That’s not why he did it,” Grady snarled, stalking back

into the room followed closely by Declan. “Didn’t you think
it odd that he immediately started calling you little mate?”

Seeing the obviously irritated big man, once again in

human form, Drake had to take a long deep breath to relax.
Then he shrugged. He really had no answer for the man.
He’d been too overwhelmed that Ailean seemed to like him.

“It’s because ye are his mate,” Declan told him. “Shifters

get  one  true  mate,  hand-picked  by  Fate.  That  person  will
complete  us.  Be  our  perfect  balance.  Ye  are  that  person  for
Ailean. He recognized ye immediately by yer scent.” After a
heartbeat, and a glance at the other men in the room, Declan
added bluntly, “By biting ye during sex, he bound the two of
ye  together.  Shifters  live  longer  than  humans,  so  by
entwining yer life forces, yer life will be extended to match
his.”

Drake’s breathing sped up the more Declan spoke until he

could barely pant. Dark spots danced across his vision. The
one man who was supposed to want him had rejected him.
Was he really that unlovable?

Sensing his distress, Lark gripped the back of his neck

and forced his head between his knees. “Take slow, deep
breaths, Drake. Just breathe,” he instructed.

He followed the small doctor’s advice, closing his eyes

Charlie Richards

and  forcing  his  brain  to  shut  down  for  a  few  precious
seconds  as  he  calmed  down.  He  felt  a  presence  in  front  of
him and looked up to see Declan crouching in front of him.
“He should not have done that without explaining what he
is  and  how  being  a  shifter’s  mate  would  affect  ye,  Drake.”
The  man  glanced  over  his  shoulder  at  Grady,  as  if
confirming that he should say his next words. When his gaze
returned  to  Drake,  Declan’s  gray  eyes  had  turned  flat.
“There is no way to break the bond, but in time, since ye’re a
human  ye  will  be  able  to  move  on.  Ailean,  on  the  other
hand, has sealed his fate with his actions.”

A fresh wave of uselessness swept over him. “Why

wouldn’t a shifter want his mate?” he whispered the
question, uncertain if he really wanted to know the answer.
Sensing his distress, Dagus wrapped an arm around his
shoulders and brought him into a tight embrace.

Declan sat back on his heels and sighed. “Ailean has some

issues that he needs to work through. He’s been hurt by
humans. Although I don’t know all the details, I can tell ye
that he was an orphan. Human parents adopted him.”

“Oh, gosh,” Drake whispered, his heart beating hard as

he guessed where this was going. “Did they kick him out
when they learned he was a shifter?”

“No. It would have been far better if they had,” Declan

replied grimly. “They thought he was possessed and tried to
have  priests  exorcise  the  demons.  They  caged  him.
Eventually  he  escaped,  but  the  damage  was  done.  The
humans  who  were  supposed  to  care  for  him  did  the
opposite.  He’s  trusted  few  people,  human  or  shifter,  since
then.”

Drake pulled his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms

around them, fighting back a shudder. Longing filled him, a
burning desire to care for the man, but he knew he’d never
be able to. Ailean wouldn’t allow it. Tears threatened at the

Accepting His Animal

corners of his eyes. “I created those formulas that hurt
someone else held captive. He thinks I’m the same as his
parents,” he realized sadly.

“He’ll come around,” Grady said, but from the looks that

passed between the other men, he knew none of them were
really certain if that was the case.

Sighing, he shoved the fruitless speculation away,

unfolded from the couch, and crossed his arms. Locking his
gaze on Lark, he asked, “Can you get me some of Lyle’s
blood?”

Lark shrugged. “Probably. Why?”
“Because I created this problem,” he held up a hand,

stopping  the  other’s  words  of  denial.  “It  may  have  been
indirectly,  but  my  research  allowed  those  scientists  to
experiment  on  Lyle.  I  have  a  lab  set  up  in  an  apartment  I
rent under Dagus’s name. If I get some of Lyle’s blood, I may
be  able  to  find  a  way  to  help  the  poor  man.”  Besides,  he
needed  something  to  occupy  his  time  while  his  heart
mourned.

* * * *

Ailean  growled  in  frustration,  running  both  hands  through
his  hair.  Nothing  worked.  He’d  tried  everything  he  could
think  of  to  isolate  the  chemicals  causing  the  changes  to
Lyle’s  DNA.  He  could  see  how  it  was  changed  and  could
monitor the speed of change. He could even anticipate what
would  change  next  and  ways  to  delay  it,  but  he  couldn’t
figure out how to reverse it or stop it! And if he didn’t figure
that out soon, Lyle would die. His body wouldn’t be able to
handle  the  stress  and  everything  would  shut  down,  one
organ at a time.

“How’s it going?”
Ailean spun his chair around and found Grady standing

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in the doorway. He didn’t need to wonder how the sneaky
cat managed to move around the hospital undetected. There
was a reason he made such a great special ops soldier before
becoming a detective. “Not good,” he said, rising and
heading toward the coffee machine near the door.

As he drew closer, he caught his mate’s scent clinging to

Grady’s own and his hackles lifted. He couldn’t contain a
soft growl as he froze and stared at the man. It had been four
days since he’d seen or spoken to his mate. And it had been
hell, even with the distraction of trying to help Lyle.

At the worst times, memories of Drake distracted him.

He’d remember the way Drake’s firm flesh felt pressed
against his, how it felt to hold him in his lap, to kiss him, to
open him up to take his cock, the tight squeeze of his mate’s
ass around him. That last one always left him hard, wanting,
and frustrated.

His shoulder leaning against the doorframe, his arms

crossed over his chest, Grady frowned. “You could just
apologize. Fate only knows why, but Drake likes you. He’d
take you back.”

Ailean snarled at the man, stalking forward to get that

coffee. “He’s just like the rest.”

“You don’t know that,” Grady countered. “He was doing

a job he’d been hired to do. Why don’t you give him a
chance? Get to know him?”

“I know exactly what I’ll find if I get to know him,” he

sneered,  letting  his  fears  of  getting  hurt  echo  through  his
voice  loud  and  clear.  “A  human  who  puts  his  own  wants
and desires ahead of everything and everyone else. Do you
know  what  he  said  to  me?”  His  heart  in  his  throat,  he
couldn’t stop his hand from trembling as he thought about
the  words  that  had  haunted  him  every  waking  moment.
Without waiting for Grady to reply, he plowed ahead,  “He
said  pheromones  were  mostly  responsible  for  attraction.

Accepting His Animal

Then I find out he’s a scientist for the very fucking company
we are trying to stop. How do I even know he’s my mate?
What if it was all a trick?”

“That’s bullshit and we both know it. You can’t fake a

mate attraction!” Grady countered.

“We don’t know that,” Ailean shot back, although in his

heart he knew the tiger was right. A shifter’s animal couldn’t
be fooled, even if a human’s nose could.

Grady heaved a sigh and stared at the ceiling, from the

tension in his neck and arms he was probably trying to rein
in his desire to do something physical to Ailean, like ring his
neck. “Look,” he said, his voice quieting. “Declan told Drake
a little about your past. Not a lot,” Grady added, holding up
a hand. “Just enough to explain why it would take you some
time to come to terms with how Drake was involved.” When
he didn’t respond right away, Grady stepped forward and
settled a hand on his shoulder. “Relax. He didn’t say
anything about what went on in the attic.”

Ailean’s eyes flew wide for a second before narrowing

into slits. He shook off Grady’s hand and glared at the
bigger cat. “But he evidently said something to you. So
much for trusting a friend to keep a secret.”

“No, he didn’t,” Grady growled back. “When I heard

another shifter was moving into the area, I checked out your
past.”

“You son-of-a-bitch! You had no right!” He trembled with

a mixture of rage and humiliation. “And you can tell Declan
thank you for allowing me to live in his territory, but it’s
probably best if I moved on again.” Saying the words sent a
stab of despair through him, but he kept his feelings
carefully masked.

“Fuck! You are such an asshole!”
Ailean snarled at the big detective. “I never claimed to be

anything else!”

Charlie Richards

“But you are a shifter,” Grady reminded him coldly. “We

don’t dump our mates just because they make a mistake. He
did research for the wrong people. So the hell what!”

“Get out,” he roared. The man’s words pricked at his

already bruised ego and extremely guilty conscience. He
knew he should have allowed Drake to explain, and now he
didn’t know how to bridge the gap.

Grady’s lip curled in disgust. “Fine. I’ll leave. For now.”

Instead of walking away, the detective crowded close. “But
know this, your mate is working around the clock to fix his
mistake. I don’t think he’s slept a full hour in the last three
days.” His eyes narrowed to slits. “What are you doing to
correct your shortcomings?”

Before Ailean could get past the fact that his mate wasn’t

taking  care  of  himself  and  formulate  an  answer,  Grady
snarled  at  him  again,  truly  exasperated,  and  left.  The
Styrofoam  cup  in  Ailean’s  hand  popped  from  his  too-tight
grip,  but  the  nearly  scalding  coffee  running  over  his  hand
remained unnoticed. His mate wasn’t sleeping? What about
eating?  Drake  didn’t  have  any  extra  weight  to  lose.  If  he
wasn’t eating, how could he gain weight?

His heart raced, his blood pounded in his veins, and his

guilt quadrupled.

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Nine

rake’s pulse rate increased exponentially the closer he
got to the hospital.

“Hey, relax, dude,” the man driving the car said.
He looked over at Phillip, trying to spot the resemblance

to his much smaller brother, Todd, whom he’d learned was
the man, shifter, standing vigil over Lyle. Drake didn’t see it.
“I can’t help it,” he replied. “What if—”

“He’s not there,” Phillip assured. “My brother said his

shift ended at ten this morning. We’ll go in, you’ll do your
thing, and then we’ll see what happens.” He reached over
and gripped Drake’s shoulder in a supportive man-squeeze.
“Lark told me a little about how Ailean freaked when he
found out you worked for that corporation, but Ailean’s not
that bad a guy. He’s had some time to chill, so even if we did
see him, I’m sure he wouldn’t kick you out again. Just relax.”

Nodding, he forced himself to take a deep breath, and

then a second one. “Okay. Yeah.” Drake still didn’t feel
ready to reenter the hospital he’d been kicked out of six days
ago, nor was he ready to face the owner of said domain. He
didn’t think he’d ever be able to face Ailean again, who gave
him the most pleasurable and the then the most painful
experiences of his life, all within a span of four hours.

Drake fought back a sob. This was why he focused on

work and didn’t get involved with people. The possibility of

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getting hurt was too high. He didn’t know how his brother
managed to do it. And then to find out the guy was
supposed to be a jaguar shifter and Drake was his mate, and
still Ailean didn’t want him. This time the sob escaped.

“Easy now,” Phillip muttered, sparing him a concerned

look. He grimaced. “Sorry, Drake, but you gotta hold it
together a little longer. Lyle’s life may depend on it.”

Nodding, he started deep breathing again. He felt

reasonably  calm  by  the  time  they  reached  the  hospital  and
Phillip parked the car. He climbed out and followed the wolf
shifter into the building, down several halls, up an elevator,
and into a room. Drake felt amazed at the ease with which
the  man  chatted  and  flirted  with  just  about  every  nurse  he
passed.  He’d  never been  at  ease  with  others  like  that.  Give
him his microscope, vials, and test tubes any day.

They found Todd dozing in his chair by the detective’s

bed. The guy jerked awake, rubbing a hand over his face for
a second, before smiling up at them. “How is he?” Phillip
asked, crossing to his brother and giving him a hug.

“The doctor has him sedated.”
Drake crossed to the blinking monitors and cocked his

head.  “Do  either  of  you  know  how  these  work?”  The
brothers  shook  their  heads,  and  Drake  turned  back  to  the
machines,  slowly  figuring  out  what  the  different  numbers
and beeps meant. “I need his heart rate a little higher for this
to really be effective.”

“How are we going to do that?” Todd asked.
“Higher heart rate, huh?” Phillip chuckled, his eyes

twinkling mischievously. “Oh, come on. He’s your mate. I’m
pretty sure you can get his heart rate up, even asleep.”

Todd stared at his brother for a long moment. “You’ve got

to be kidding.”

Drake glanced between the two men, not comprehending.

“How are you going to get his heart rate up?”

Accepting His Animal

Phillip smirked. “You’re an exhibitionist, Todd. We both

know it, but if you want, we’ll turn around and watch the
monitors.”

Understanding dawned, making Drake’s face flame. Was

he  really…  He  watched  in  shock  as  Todd  huffed  irritably
and  then  lifted  the  blankets  to  crawl  under  them.  Drake
heard  him  mutter  about  how  this  was  so  not  how  he’d
imagined his first time giving his mate a blowjob would be
before he disappeared under the blankets and settled into an
unrecognizable, slow moving lump near Lyle’s groin.

It didn’t take long to see results. The heart rate machine

began  to  beep  just  as  it  hit  the  specs  Drake  needed.  As  he
inserted  the  drugs  he’d  concocted  into  the  plunger,  he
glanced  down  and  blushed.  Lyle’s  face  was  flushed.  His
mouth had dropped open as he panted, soft moans coming
from his throat.

“Don’t get too close,” Phillip whispered, wrapping an

arm  around  Drake’s  waist  and  pulling  him  away.  “My
brother  doesn’t  mind  people  watching,  but  he’s  still  a
shifter.”  He  grinned  when  Drake  looked  at  him  with  a
confused  frown.  “We’re  territorial,”  he  whispered,  leaning
close.

“Oh,” he muttered. Maybe being territorial was a wolf

thing.

Suddenly, Lyle grunted in satisfaction and the smell of

cum filled Drake’s nose. To his surprise, his cock took an
interest, thickening in his jeans. Phillip chuckled, shifting his
grip to his shoulder and squeezing to get his attention.

“How long until you know if it works?” he asked, an

amused smirk covering his face.

He had to blink several times to focus. Before he could

answer, a low growl sounded from the doorway.

“What the fuck is going on in here?”
Drake shrank back from a snarling Ailean. The man’s

Charlie Richards

blazing eyes were glued to the hand Phillip still had on his
shoulder.  His  nostrils  flared  as  he  took  in  the  scents  filling
the  room.  With  barely  controlled  aggression,  Ailean  closed
the  door  and  turned  back  to  them.  From  the  corner  of  his
eye, Drake saw Todd slide out from under the blanket.

“What are you doing?” Ailean snarled.
Frustration sparked through Drake’s veins. He knew it

was childish, but he stamped his foot. “I know I screwed up
by giving those guys my research, but how was I supposed
to know that they’d do something like this with it?” he
screamed, pointing at Lyle’s prone form. “I’m trying to fix
what they did.”

When all Ailean did was glare at Drake, the bigger man’s

chest heaving and his eyes glowing in what Drake could
only call disgust, his shoulders slumped. It didn’t matter
what he said. His past was too big an obstacle for Ailean to
accept. He shouldn’t have allowed himself to hope.

Phillip wrapped an arm around Drake’s shoulders and

began  to  steer  him  toward  the  door.  The  dark-haired  wolf
whispered words Drake didn’t understand, his brain having
frozen  in  his  head.  A  loud  roar  echoed  through  the  small
room  and  a  heavy  body  slammed  into  the  pair,  separating
them.

Drake landed in a heap, his momentum making him slide

across the floor to stop against the machines. Loud growling
and  snarling  reached  his  ears.  Crawling  along  the  floor,  he
reached  the  foot  of  the  bed  and  peeked  around  the  side.  A
gasp  escaped  his  throat.  A  large  black  cat  crouched  over
Phillip’s  prone  form,  his  lips  peeled  back,  exposing  long
fangs as he growled.

He eased to his knees, his eyes rounding in shock. That

had to be his mate in jaguar form, but why did he shift?
“Ailean?” he whispered.

For a second, the big, black cat stopped snarling and

Accepting His Animal

turned his head toward Drake. He tensed when familiar
honey-brown eyes focused on him, but a movement caught
the shifter’s attention and he began to growl again. Drake
realized Todd must be over there, too.

He didn’t know what to do, how to help his friends. He

needed help. Slipping his phone from his pocket, he hit five
on his speed dial.

“Hey, Drake,” Declan’s deep voice sounded through the

device. “Did yer formula work?”

“I have no idea,” he whispered. “I’m in the room now,

and Ailean is here. He wasn’t supposed to be on duty right
now. And he got super angry, probably cause Todd had to
give Lyle a blow job to raise his pulse to where the formula
would work,” he continued urgently, his eyes still fixed on
the big cat on the other side of the room.

“Whoa, whoa, Drake,” the alpha’s voice cut through his

ramblings. “Slow down. What’s going on with Ailean?”

“He turned into a jaguar, and he’s holding Phillip and

Todd captive.”

His words met with a long pause, and at first he didn’t

think the alpha believed him. “Declan?”

“Answer me this, Drake,” Declan commanded, which had

Drake nodding, even though the other man couldn’t see it.
“Was either of them touching ye in any way when Ailean
walked into the room?”

Drake frowned. “Well, sure. Ailean started yelling and I

yelled back. When he just glared at me, Phillip tried to coax
me out of the room,” he admitted.

“Ah, then there’s yer problem.”
He couldn’t feel more confused. “What?”
“An unmated male tried to steal his mate.”
“But he doesn’t want me,” Drake denied.
“Aye, he does, Drake,” Declan assured. “He just has some

baggage. Ye need to get between him and the others. Coax

Charlie Richards

him back to human form.”

He could feel himself going pale. Get between them? Did

Declan seriously expect him to approach the cat? “But…but
he’s a cat.”

Declan sighed into the phone. “Ailean is still himself,

even in his cat form. He’s just running on instinct right now.
Instinct that says to keep his mate from single shifters who
may try to steal him.” He must have let out a squeak of
protest because Declan added, “He does still want ye, Drake.
But his human senses are warring with his shifter instincts.
Don’t let him do something he’ll regret. He won’t hurt you,”
Declan assured. “Ye’re his mate.”

Drake glared at his phone. “Not all hurt is physical,” he

muttered before putting the device back to his ear.

“I know,” Declan replied as if he’d spoken directly into

the piece.

He gritted his teeth when he realized the man’s sensitive

shifter hearing had allowed him to understand his muttered
words.

“I told ye why the man has issues with humans.

Just…have faith in the mating link.”

“Okay.” Holding back a sigh, Drake snapped the phone

shut and slowly rose to a crouch. He wasn’t a brave man, so
couldn’t  figure  out  why  he  followed  the  alpha’s  advice.
Maybe  it  was  because  he  liked  the  doctor  too  much  to  let
him  do  something  stupid.  And  he  certainly  didn’t  want
Ailean  to  get  caught  like  this  in  a  hospital  full  of  humans.
What a disaster that would be!

All too soon, he found himself within a foot of the large

cat. He forced in a slow, deep breath and whispered,
“Ailean. Mate? You need to let the wolf go.”

His words got the animal’s attention. Drake could tell by

the way the jaguar’s body tensed. He could see the animal
eye him as he cocked his head to look at him with one big

Accepting His Animal

brown eye, then the cat sidled sideways, pressing his body
against Drake and pinning him to the wall.

“You two need to get out of here,” Drake whispered. He

reached out tentatively and stroked his hands down Ailean’s
side. “Now. Make certain no one comes in,” he added.

The animal pushed into his hands and purred loudly. He

rubbed the animal’s side again, his mind practically reeling
in shock at how Ailean’s cat reacted to his touch.

Phillip lifted his head and eyed him. “Thought you’d

left,” the man whispered.

The words hadn’t finished leaving Phillip’s throat before

the  cat’s  gaze  snapped  to  the  man.  “Easy,”  Drake  crooned,
his  hands  moving  to  the  cat’s  back,  stroking  the  soft  hair.
“You  have  me,  Ailean,”  he  whispered.  “You  don’t  need
them.”

To his relief, the cat backed a step and pressed its body

against him again. Phillip took Todd’s hand and led his
brother slowly past the wary jaguar. It didn’t escape Drake’s
notice that the shifter kept himself between Drake and the
leaving brothers.

Phillip paused at the door. “You’ll be okay?”
Drake nodded, hoping he would be, but he kept his fears

off  his  face.  Phillip  gave  him  a  long  look,  but  then  nodded
and  slipped  out  the  door,  closing  it  firmly  behind  him.  As
soon as the man left, Ailean gave him a hard shove with his
big  head  and  Drake  found  himself  flat  on  his  back  on  the
floor.  He  peered  up  into  the  black  feline  face  as  the  jaguar
crouched over him. For several seconds, his heart tripped in
his  throat.  Then  the  cat  rubbed  his  head  against  him  and
purred. Drake realized after several seconds that Ailean’s cat
was marking him with his scent.

He brought his hands up and ran them over his shifter’s

face, head, and chest, stroking the fur within reach. It felt so
bizarre to be able to touch a wild cat like this, but then he

Charlie Richards

remembered this wasn’t really a wild cat, and Ailean was
horribly heavy.

“Hey,” he whispered. “I’m having trouble breathing. Do

you think you can get off?”

Suddenly, the fur receded, and bare skin slid under his

stroking  fingers.  “Sorry,  so  sorry,  Drake.  I’m  so  sorry.”
Kisses from human lips scraped along Drake’s jaw and neck.
The weight lifted slightly as Ailean levered himself onto one
arm, while burying that hand into Drake’s hair to hold him
still.  The  other  hand  slid  down  to  his  hip,  squeezing  and
stroking.  “Please,  please,  please,”  Ailean  crooned,  nibbling
and  sucking.  “Please  forgive  me.  I  didn’t  mean  it.  Missed
you so much.”

Drake brought his hands up and cupped Ailean’s face,

forcing him to stop the kisses and nibbles that were quickly
making him forget where he was and what events had led to
this. His breath caught as he stared into Ailean’s eyes. The
glowing need and tormented pain reflecting in them
touched something deep inside Drake’s soul.

“I do forgive you, Ailean,” he said softly, “but we still

have many things to discuss.”

A smile lit up the shifter’s face. “Thank you, thank you,”

he  whispered,  pecking  soft  kisses  on  Drake’s  lips  between
words.  “We’ll  talk.  I  promise.”  Drake  slid  his  hands  into
Ailean’s  hair  and  tilted  his  head,  asking  for  a  deeper  kiss.
Ailean  groaned  as  he  accommodated  him,  thrusting  his
tongue deep inside Drake’s mouth.

Drake sighed at the invasion, surprised at how much he’d

missed the man’s taste. Was that a mate thing, too? Would
the craving to touch and be touched by this man ever ease?
What if after their talk Ailean changed his mind again?

Uncertainty made Drake hesitate, and Ailean groaned.
“Promise. Promise we’ll work it out,” Drake whispered

timidly. “Promise you won’t reject me again.”

Accepting His Animal

Ailean nibbled along his jaw to his ear, first tugging the

lobe and then sucking at the sensitive skin behind it. “Yes,
little mate,” he breathed. “Promise to fix this. Promise to be
together. But need. First need.”

His broken sentences didn’t make sense to Drake until

Ailean ground his stiff, naked cock into Drake’s jean-clad
erection. His body jerked as sparks shot through his
strangled dick. “Oh!” he groaned. “Yes!”

His mate must have taken that as acquiescence, because

seconds later his pants were opened and dragged from his
unresisting body, his socks and sneakers with it, then his
shirt was whipped over his head. He hissed in shock as bare
skin hit cold floor.

He didn’t have time to get used to it. Ailean hauled him

into  his  arms,  as  easily  as  if  he  were  a  child,  and  Drake
found his legs wrapping around the shifter’s waist. The hard
cock that slid against his own, already wet from oozing pre-
cum, told Drake how on edge Ailean already was. The man
managed  to  continue  rocking  them  together  as  he  walked
across the room, but he was too busy sucking up a mark on
Ailean’s neck to care where they were going. Last time, the
man  had  marked  him,  and  he  hadn’t  had  the  chance  to
reciprocate. He wasn’t going to miss this opportunity to do
just that.

Seconds later, rough cotton settled against his backside as

Ailean  set  him  on  a  towel  spread  across  the  bathroom
counter. Drake settled his elbows under him as he watched
Ailean  use  the  wall  dispenser  to  pour  a  liberal  amount  of
lotion  into  his  hand.  He  reached  between  Drake’s  legs,  but
he  stopped  a  hairsbreadth  away  from  Drake’s  taint  and
mewled  a  needy  request.  Drake  propped  his  heels  on  the
counter and tried to get closer to Ailean’s digits.

A glance up at Ailean’s face showed the man’s relief as he

stared down at Drake. The shifter’s features clearly showed

Charlie Richards

his relief at the way Drake accepted their impending
coupling. As he leaned over him and claimed Drake’s lips
again, this time in a slow, sweet, exploratory kiss, he pushed
a well-lotioned finger into Drake’s hole.

Drake didn’t bother trying to hold back the groan as

Ailean’s finger pressed deep and was quickly joined by a
second. The stretching invasion felt so good. After knowing
what sex with Ailean felt like, he’d missed it so badly. His
cock jerked against his stomach, smearing pre-cum over his
abs, as the shifter rubbed his prostate.

“Yes, oh yes, Ailean. Right there,” he whispered. His

body  rocked  on  those  fingers  while  Ailean  pleasured  him
with  his  hand.  Ailean  licked  and  nibbled  his  lips,  catching
his  panting  gasps  in  his  own  mouth.  “More,”  he  moaned.
Ailean didn’t question him, just gave him another finger. His
other hand rested on his hip as he helped him rock, helped
him wring as much sensation out of those thrusting digits as
he could.

He felt his orgasm building, felt the tension pull his balls

tight. His head dropped back on his shoulders, breaking the
kiss. Instantly, wet heat enveloped his cock as Ailean sucked
him  deep.  It  was  too  much,  and  not  enough,  but  when
Ailean’s  teeth  scraped  gently  against  the  throbbing  vein
running  the  underside  of  his  dick  as  he  sucked  harshly,
Drake lost it.

He couldn’t even warn the man, he just exploded, his

mouth open in a silent scream. Streams of his spunk flooded
his mate’s mouth. Ailean hummed happily as he sucked it
down, sending vibrations down his cock which made one
more stream burst out of him.

Drake felt the fingers slide from him, stroking across his

prostate one more time, sending a sharp buzz through him.
Ailean released his cock and rose over him. “Need you,
mate,” Ailean whispered, the tip of his wet cock bumping

Accepting His Animal

Drake’s suddenly too empty hole.

“Make me yours again,” he answered immediately.
A soft growl erupted from Ailean’s throat as he thrust

inside in one long, swift stroke. Buried balls deep, Ailean
froze, his body shivering as he allowed the burn in Drake’s
rectum to ease, for which Drake felt grateful. Ailean gazed
down at him, his brown eyes full of warmth and awe as he
stroked fingers over every inch of exposed skin, as if Ailean
needed to learn Drake all over again.

After several minutes, Drake tried to rock against the man

seated  deep  inside  him,  desperate  to  feel  that  thick  cock
rubbing the walls of his rectum. Ailean’s soft touches had his
cock  full  and  aching  again.  When  Drake  moved,  Ailean
shifted  to  hold  him  tightly,  as  if  he  feared  he’d  disappear,
wrapping one arm under Drake’s back to grip his shoulder.
The  other  hand  moved  to  Drake’s  hip,  locking  their  bodies
together.

Ailean purred softly as he began to move, his cock sliding

nearly all the way out before pushing slowly back in. Drake
could  feel  every  ridge,  every  vein  as  he  impaled  Drake  on
his  dick  again  and  again.  Drake’s  cock  leaked  a  steady
stream of pre-cum as Ailean pressed closer still, trapping it
between  them,  giving  pressure  and  friction  to  his  sensitive
flesh with each stroke.

It took a second to break through his lust-clouded brain,

but finally Drake realized Ailean whispered something
against his neck with each stroke. “Mine, mine, mine.”

Drake grinned, knowing the separation had affected

Ailean just as strongly. “Yours,” he whispered back. “Your
mate.”

Ailean groaned his pleasure and his body went tense for a

second before his hips jerked, his cock buried deep. Drake
felt the shifter’s prick expand right before hot cum sprayed
his inner walls. Ailean bit gently on a tendon in Drake’s

Accepting His Animal

Chapter Ten

lowly, his ragged breathing began to level out, and the
post orgasmic haze cleared. His first thought was, why the

hell did I think I could live without this man? The next, shit! Is
Drake okay? He snapped up his head, searching his mate for
signs of discomfort or pain. Instead, his mate smiled faintly
from where he lay on the counter, still impaled on Ailean’s
softening dick.

“My mate,” Ailean whispered, tracing Drake’s face in awe

as he stared down at him. My mate came back to me. Drake’s
forgiven me. He’s let me claim him again. “Not that I’m not
grateful that you showed up, but why are you here?”

When he’d walked into the room and spotted the wolf

shifter  with  his  hands  on  his  mate  and  the  scent  of  cum  in
the  air,  Ailean’s  ears  had  buzzed  with  rage,  and  he  hadn’t
been able to understand a word any of them had said. When
Phillip tried to take Drake from the room, he’d lost control of
his jaguar  instincts, his  only desire to reclaim  his mate and
fix what his damn human half had broken.

Drake’s brow crinkled as he said, “I told you. I came to

help Lyle.”

“Really?” The word came out a grunt as he pulled his

now soft cock out of his mate’s body.

His mate’s breathing hitched, and he squirmed slightly

and gasped when he pulled free. “Yeah. It just made sense

Charlie Richards

that since I created the problem that I fix it. I think I got it
right, too.”

He frowned at Drake as he soaked a towel and cleaned

them both up. “What do you mean?”

“I found a way to help him,” Drake insisted. “I’ll know

for sure in another…” he glanced at the watch on his wrist.
“Two minutes.”

“Shit, seriously? Come on,” he said, helping his mate to

his  feet  and  hurrying  into  the  outer  room.  He  grabbed  the
remains  of  his  clothes  from  the  floor  and  held  them  up.
“Damn,” he muttered. His shirt was a complete loss. “This is
why  we  shouldn’t  shift  in  clothes,”  he  told  Drake  ruefully.
“Fortunately,  the  pants  are  still  wearable,  but  if  I  run  into
anyone I’ll have some explaining to do.”

He watched Drake pull on his clothes, hiding all that

tempting mocha skin from view. Drake shook his head. “I’m
still in shock that you guys can…” His voice stopped as he
shrugged and waved his hand toward where Ailean had
held the wolves captive.

Ailean crossed to Drake and wrapped his arms around

him. Burying his nose in Drake’s neck, he drank in his scent,
relieved to discover no fear. “I’m sorry you didn’t learn
about it from me. I just couldn’t seem to—” He stopped,
uncertain how to get his concerns into words.

Drake gently stroked his back. “I understand,” he

whispered.

Letting out a sigh, Ailean trailed kisses down Drake’s jaw

until he captured the human’s lips in a thorough ravishing.
“My mate,” he whispered when they separated, putting all
his emotions he couldn’t voice into those two words.

Drake’s kiss swollen lips grinned at him.
A knock on the door drew his attention and Ailean

reluctantly released his mate. Heading that way, he inhaled
deeply and caught several wolf scents. After pulling on the

Accepting His Animal

shredded pants, he cracked the door open and let in Declan,
Lark, Phillip, and Todd. Declan smirked and handed him a
pair of jeans and t-shirt. “Thought ye might need these after
I got that call from Drake.” He sniffed the air and grinned.
“Glad ye got it all worked out.”

Seeing Drake’s blushing cheeks, he pulled the man into

his arms, tucked him close, and nuzzled his cheek. He felt
the man relax against him and smiled. His gaze fell on
Phillip. “Sorry about that, dude.”

Phillip shook his head. “No apology necessary. Someone

should have told me he was your mate.”

His brows shot up as he caught a guilty look cross Lark’s

face. Ailean chuckled, “You little shit,” he hissed. “You set
us up. You knew if an unmated wolf was touching my
mate…”

Lark shrugged, suddenly no longer repentant. “Yup. I

knew you’d go ballistic.” He lifted a haughty brow.
“Someone needed to give you a swift kick in the ass.”

He let out a soft laugh, which immediately stopped when

Drake  pulled  away  from  him.  He  turned  to  see  him  lift
Lyle’s arms, worry filling him when he heard a squeal, until
Ailean realized it was a good sound. He wrapped his arms
around  Drake  from  behind,  unable  and  unwilling  to  stop
touching his mate for long, and watched over his shoulder.
Amazement  filled  him  as  he  watched  the  scales  recede.  In
less than a moment, flawless skin covered Lyle’s arm.

“You did it, little mate,” he crooned. “How did you cure

him?”

He felt his mate stiffen and pull away. From his worried

face, Ailean wondered what he’d said. “It’s not really a
cure,” Drake whispered.

Shaking his head, he frowned. “I don’t understand. The

scales are gone.”

“Yeah, yeah, kind of,” he said, his body still tense.

Charlie Richards

Wanting to ease his mate’s tension, he wrapped his mate

in his arms and refused to let him go. “Tell me what has you
so upset, little mate,” he purred.

Drake remained silent for a moment, and then he sighed.

“I don’t want to lose you again,” he murmured.

The words sent a stab of pain through Ailean’s heart.

He’d put this fear, this doubt, into his mate. Taking a deep
breath, he promised, “Whatever it is, I promise we can work
through  it  together.  I  learned  my  lesson,  little  mate.”  He
cupped Drake’s face and tilted his head up so he could stare
into  the  dark  chocolate  eyes  he  loved  so  much.  “The  last
week  has  been  hell  for  me,”  he  admitted.  “I  don’t  want  to
live without you.”

Giving a brief nod, Drake said, “It took me four days to

realize I couldn’t stop the changes. Whatever they gave him
was tearing Lyle apart from the inside out. I gave him an
additive instead.”

“What’s that mean?” Todd whispered, his hand clutching

his mate’s unconscious fingers.

“It means I gave him something to smooth out the

transition. After a couple more doses, his body will accept
the changes.” He stared around the group.

Ailean felt his tension return. Ailean stroked his spine,

soothing Drake’s nerves.

“When the transformation is complete, he’ll be a shifter,”

he whispered quietly.

“My God,” Lark’s shocked murmur pretty much summed

it up for everyone.

“Well,” Declan whispered. “He’ll have a lot to learn then,

won’t he?” The alpha’s gaze landed on Todd. “Good thing
he’ll have his mate there to help him, aye?” He looked at
Drake and lifted a brow. “What kind of shifter will he be?”

Drake shook his head. “I don’t know. From looking at the

DNA, my closest guess would be a crocodile or alligator.”

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100

“Closest guess?” Ailean crooned into Drake’s ear, making

certain his tone was soothing and not accusatory.

Shrugging, he mate craned his neck to look at him. “I

couldn’t match it to any known species. What kind of reptile
shifters are there?”

He lifted a brow at Declan, who shrugged. “Snake,”

Ailean said. “Other than that…oh, wait. I’ve heard of
komodo dragon shifters, but not in the northern
hemisphere.”

“Where do you get all this information from?” Lark asked

curiously.

Ailean shook his head. “I’ve traveled a long time, Lark.

I’ve seen a lot of places.” Before anyone could ask any more
questions,  he  pecked  a  quick  kiss  on  Drake’s  lips  and  held
up  the  clothes.  “I’m  going  to  step  into  the  bathroom  to
change, and then we need to go. I’m really not on shift right
now. I was in the lab when Lyle’s buzzers went off. We can
get  out  of  here  as  soon  as  I  get  dressed.”  He  gave  him
another quick kiss before disappearing into the bathroom.

When he stepped out, he found Grady had joined the

group. Catching his attention, he said, “You need to find a
new place to keep Lyle. If he’s going to turn into a shifter, he
needs a safe environment to learn control.”

Declan nodded and exchanged looks with Grady. “Me

home would probably be best. If something happens, he has
plenty of woods to run in and no one would be around to
see.”

Taking Drake’s hand he nodded. “Let me know when,

and I’ll make certain the paperwork is in order. No one will
ever know he’s been here,” he promised. After the others
expressed their thanks, he took Drake’s hand and pulled him
close. “Let’s go. We have things to discuss.”

Ailean led Drake into his house and an intense feeling of

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101

déjà vu flooded him. Instead of offering him a drink, he led
him directly to the living room. After turning on some soft
jazz, he settled onto his couch and beckoned Drake to him.
He wrapped his small mate in his arms and pulled him
close.

Kissing Drake’s temple, he whispered. “I’m proud of

you.”

“What for?” he asked curiously.
“Instead of focusing on how to remove whatever those

guys shot Lyle up with, like I did, you focused on saving
him. His life will be forever changed, but he’ll still have a
life.”

Drake smiled and turned in his embrace. He wrapped his

arms around Ailean’s waist and settled his head on his
shoulder. “I’m sorry my research hurt your friend.”

“You didn’t know,” Ailean murmured. “I should have

realized that right off. I just…damn.” He shook his head and
ran a hand through his hair in frustration as he relived the
memories that had flooded him in those moments.

His mate’s hand rubbed up and down his chest, his touch

soothing him as nothing else could. “I hope this doesn’t
make you mad,” he started tentatively, “but Declan told me
about how you were adopted by humans.”

He grimaced. “Grady said he mentioned it. What else did

he tell you?” he asked softly.

“That when you shifted as a teen, they thought you were

the devil. They tried to exorcise the demons inside you,” he
murmured, continuing to rub, soothing even as his words
made Ailean flinch. “I’m sorry that happened to you. No one
should have to live through that.”

“Did Declan tell you how they tried to exorcise the

demons?”

Ailean barely managed to whisper the question, and

when Drake didn’t answer right away, he wondered if the

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102

other man had heard. Finally, Drake shook his head. “No,
but if you’d like to talk about it, I’d be happy to listen.”

Frowning, he looked down into his mate’s warm,

reassuring look. “Why would I do that?”

“Because sometimes it helps to talk about it in order to let

it go,” Drake replied, smiling gently. “My brother is blind.
Sometimes he gets frustrated. It always seems to help him
clear his head to talk about it.”

Cupping his mate’s face, he kissed him gently. “Okay,” he

whispered. As soon as he said the word, something in him
eased.  He  knew,  of  all  the  people  who’d  understand,  who
wouldn’t hold it against him, his mate would be that person.
“They  would  chain  me  to  a  cross  in  the  attic  and  whip  me
with  a  belt  as  a  priest  prayed,  but  because  I’m  a  shifter,  I
healed overnight.” He grimaced. “That, of course, proved to
them  that  their  treatments  didn’t  work.  They  moved  on  to
cutting next, and eventually to burning.” He shivered at the
memory of the pain. He’d tried so hard to put it in his past,
and yet it still affected his future.

“How did you get away?”
“Other shifters caught wind of it. They helped me escape,

taught  me  how  to  control  my  shift.  They  introduced  me  to
other  jaguar  shifters,  but  as  soon  as  they  found  out  I  was
black  in  my  shifted  form,  they  ostracized  me.”  Tucking  his
face  into  Drake’s  neck,  he  inhaled  deeply,  using  the  man’s
scent to calm his racing pulse.

“How long have you been on your own?”
“I’m ninety-two years old. I’ve been on my own for over

seventy years,” he admitted.

Drake lifted a hand and traced a finger over his brow.

“You’re not alone now. You know that, right?”

“I do,” Ailean whispered, turning his head to kiss Drake’s

fingers. He glanced around his living room and then
refocused on his mate. “You know, I’ve lived here for over a

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103

year and in all that time, I’ve never invited anyone into my
home. Even Declan and Grady haven’t been here.”

“Why not?” Drake whispered, nuzzling his cheek against

Ailean’s.

Ailean smiled. It felt far better than he ever expected it

would to share these things with another, almost as if it was
no longer his burden to bear all alone. “I don’t really know,”
he muttered, getting distracted by the tingles his mate’s
nearness caused. “I guess I’m not very social.” He drew back
and grinned. “I’m kind of an asshole,” he admitted.

Drake chuckled. “Yeah, I caught that already. I’m anti-

social, but my brother’s not.”

He watched his mate frown. “What is it, my little mate?”
“After my father died six years ago, and we had to move

my mother to the nursing home, my brother moved in with
me.”

Drake looked away, nibbling his lip, and Ailean

understood. “I see. You’re worried about how that will affect
us?” Drake gave a sharp nod and Ailean pulled him tight to
his chest. “This place has three bedrooms. Plenty of room for
all of us.”

“Really? You want us to move in already? You hardly

know us!”

He grinned down at his surprised mate. “Well, shifters

kinda do things quick. It doesn’t take long for us to love our
mates, especially when their hearts are as kind as yours.” He
ended his sentence with a slow, sensual kiss, expressing all
his affection through action.

“You love me?” Drake gasped, when Ailean finally lifted

his lips.

Ailean smiled. “I do. I do love you, Drake. It tore me apart

to be separated from you, and I never want that again.” And
he would do whatever it took to make certain they remained
together, because he refused to suffer the agony of the last

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104

week again. Drake was his mate, and his place was with
him.

“Me neither,” Drake admitted after staring at him for

several seconds, probably to judge his sincerity. “I love you,
too.”

Relief and love filled him to the brim, calming his nerves,

letting Ailean know that this was right. He cupped his
mate’s jaw and gave him a gentle kiss, savoring his mate’s
taste. “Then we can work out the details after I make love to
you,” he whispered.

He watched a slow smile curve Drake’s sensual lips,

Ailean’s heart beating faster at the heat in his mate’s gaze.
“Count on it.”

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