Katlyn (M/F/M red-hot menage shifter romance) Standalone (Shadow Creek Shifters Book 1) (8 page)

Katlyn was helped to her cabin, and sure enough, Tessa still wasn’t there. Katlyn was so woozy that she could barely stay awake, and even with her best effort to stay awake to wait for Tessa to be brought back, she stopped resisting.

Chapter Eight

“I hope you haven’t messed things up for us, Paige,” Brendan said as Chase tried his best to clean blood off the sofa while he checked Tessa’s wound.

“It’ll be fine. I didn’t bite her too hard. She won’t remember a thing when she wakes up tomorrow,” Paige reassured them.

“And if she does?”

“She won’t; they never do.”

“That seems like a lot of blood lost,” Chase said. “What happened?”

“I didn’t expect her to bleed that bad, but by the time I noticed, she was bleeding like a stuck pig.”

“I don’t think it’s going to come off.”

“I have something that will take that right off,” Paige said. She retrieved a bottle of cleaner, sprayed it on the sofa and Chase dabbed it off clean.

“Seems like you’d have bitten her on the leather couch instead of the cloth sofa,” Chase said. “It makes more sense.”

“I suppose, but the fabric of the sofa is more comfortable.”

“I can’t believe you did this. She’s Katlyn’s friend and she’s pretty smart,” Brendan informed her. “She’ll figure it out.”

“No, she won’t. You didn’t tell her what I am, did you?”

“No, I didn’t, but in time you might have to. Just promise me you won’t bite Tessa again,” Brendan said.

“That goes without saying. I never meant to hurt her so badly, I assure you. Please keep my little secret from Katlyn. Our new teacher doesn’t need more to worry about other than adjusting herself to the classroom.”

Brendan ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “This is a big problem. What if you injured the girl too badly and she dies, or is infected with the virus?”

“Don’t even think that. I only bit her once. She should be fine,” Paige said. She looked toward Tessa, her eyes clouded. “I hope you’re right, Paige, that’s all I can say,” Brendan said as he glared at Paige. “It looks like Tessa has at least quit bleeding. We’d better take her back to her cabin and I hope like hell that Katlyn is asleep. I’d hate to have to explain why her friend had to be carried back.”

Brendan carried Tessa to the cabin, walking alongside Chase. He couldn’t help but wonder how long all of their secrets would be able to remain hidden with these kinds of mistakes.

By the time he made it to bed, his cock had quit throbbing. He really wanted to reacquaint himself with Katlyn and her luscious curves, but Chase would be there, too. It’s what he signed up for long ago and he hoped he’d be able to handle his emotions when the time came. He didn’t mind sharing with Chase, but when it came to Nate and his pack, he vowed that he’d rip them limb from limb if they even thought about coming near their female.

* * *

Katlyn sprung up a few moments before the alarm went off. Truthfully, even though she had been quite inebriated, she’d been tossing and turning ever since she’d woken up at three. She was fully aware now just how turned on she was by Brendan and Chase and knew it wouldn’t be long before they’d get together. She still felt reluctant about it, but it was hard to control her emotions when her body responded by just being close to them.

When Katlyn sat on the edge of her bed, the whole room spun. Memories of the night before rushed in, and it was then that she remembered Tessa, and her absence, wondering what had happened. She took a deep breath and then felt steady enough to stand and venture into the bathroom. As she stared into the mirror, a grimace overtook her face. She looked awful! Dark, puffy circles were beneath both eyes, and her face was bloated looking, to her at least. She’d really tied one on last night, and alcohol always went straight to her head. She took her shower right away since she didn’t want to be late on her first day.

After Katlyn’s shower, she dressed in a cream-colored dress from the clothing that Brendan and Chase had bought her the night before. She didn’t even remember them bringing her purchases upstairs. They had even hung everything up. She slipped on flats and it was then that she heard a moan coming from Tessa’s bedroom.

Katlyn sat on the edge of Tessa’s bed and asked, “Are you okay, Tessa?”

“I-I’m not sure. The back of my neck really hurts.”

The light switch was turned on and Katlyn inspected Tessa’s neck, biting her fist when she saw two puncture marks. What on earth did Paige do to Tessa? How dare she attack her defenseless friend? This certainly added to Katlyn’s dismal mood.

“Wh-What’s the matter?” Tessa asked, her eyes red and swollen.

“Do you remember what happened last night?”

Tessa massaged her brow, flopping back on the bed. “No. I can’t remember anything. Not even where I was last night.”

“You hung out with Paige last night. Do you really not remember any of last night?”

“No, but I had the strangest dream last night.”

“Tell me about it.”

“I was running across a pasture and an animal was chasing me.”

“What kind of animal are we talking here? A mountain lion?”

“I couldn’t see it. All I knew was that I couldn’t let it catch me. Do you think it was just a dream, Katlyn?”

Katlyn swallowed hard and hugged her friend. “Of course it was just a dream, silly. Go back to sleep. It looks like you have a scratch on the back of your neck is all. I’ll grab a bandage and cover it for you. Just make sure you don’t take it off for a few days so that it heals properly.” She darted into the bathroom and found a bandage and bacterial cream. She first washed Tessa’s wound before she smoothed on the cream and applied the bandage. “There, the bandage is in place now.”

Tessa smiled. “Thanks, Katlyn,” she said as her eyes closed.

Stumbling into the other room, tears blurred Katlyn’s eyes. She felt so bad that she had brought them here, and now Tessa was injured by God knows what. Katlyn vowed to find out the truth if it killed her. There’s no way she’d allow Paige to do this to her friend. She’d find out for certain just what kind of animal Paige really was, but right now she had to pull herself together for the sake of the children. She had to protect Tessa at all costs, and part of that was to conceal those puncture marks until she figured out what had really happened to Tessa last night.

Outside was the utility vehicle Katlyn had used yesterday. Gray clouds hovered ominously overhead and it matched her mood perfectly. The drive was a quick one and she arrived at the schoolhouse with a crowd waiting for her. Katlyn’s heart soared now in excitement at seeing the children.

Katlyn parked and moved toward the schoolhouse, nodding at the children and parents who waited for her. She then opened the door and led the way inside, inhaling the soapy smell of the Murphy’s Oil Soap that must have been used yesterday after she’d left, but there was still a hint of pine that lingered in the air from the cleaner she had also used.

Five children ran inside and scurried to the oak desks, their chairs scraping across the floor as they sat.

“Take it easy, Maxwell,” said Nate, the werewolf she had met the night before at the saloon.

When Katlyn saw the boy limp to his seat, she said, “It’s great to meet you Maxwell.”

He flipped back his long hair and smiled shyly, taking his seat.

“Freak,” another boy said, indicating Maxwell.

Katlyn frowned. “That’ll be enough of that, young man. I won’t tolerate any name-calling in my classroom or on the grounds.”

A woman’s brow shot up and it didn’t take a genius to know that was the name-caller’s parent. “Robert, don’t make a spectacle of yourself. Listen to your teacher.”

“But Mom, you told me I didn’t have to be nice to his kind.”

Katlyn’s brow knitted. What did she mean, “kind?”

“I’m Annabelle.” The woman introduced herself. “Good luck keeping the children in line,” she said as she headed for the door. “I’ll be back at noon,” she said over her shoulder.

“Don’t worry,” Katlyn said to Nate. “I promise everything will work out just fine here.”

He sighed. “I sure hope so,” he said sadly as he left.

The two other boys in the room introduced themselves as Joel and Ivan, but the girl in the room sat well away from the boys.

“And what is your name?” Katlyn asked the girl.

“I don’t even know why a girl’s here,” Robert said. “They don’t need an education.”

“And why would that be, Robert?” Katlyn demanded.

“All girls are good for is having babies.”

In the blink of an eye, the girl rose from her seat, feathers popping up along her arms and her nose extending into a sharp beak as she attacked Robert, who snarled with fangs extending over his pouty lips, brown fur covering his chin.

“Stop it right now,” Katlyn said as she picked up a yardstick and pounded it on her desk.

The children parted ways, and Robert wailed, “I’m telling my mom.”

“Tell her all you want. Perhaps in the future, you’ll hold your tongue. Girls are just as much in need of an education as boys are. Having babies, indeed,” Katlyn said with a disapproving frown.

“I’m Melody,” the girl said as she took her seat, brown feathers and all.

“Shouldn’t you children shift back into human form now?”

“I can’t,” Melody said.

“What about you, Robert?”

“Nope, I haven’t learned how to do that just yet.”

“It seems like you were able to shift at least part of the way.”

“Mama’s going to be so mad at me,” Melody mumbled.

Katlyn sighed. What on earth had she gotten herself into? “Perhaps we could get to know each other better first by telling me what you can shift into.”

“I’m a werewolf,” Maxwell said proudly.

Robert rolled his eyes. “Big deal.”

“Much bigger deal than being a lame bobcat.”

“You’re not all that tough, wolfie. You have a lame leg and everyone knows what happens to weak shifters.”

Katlyn tapped her fingernails on the desk. “Weakness isn’t always measured by physical strength. I bet Maxwell is very cunning.”

“My mother says he’ll never be an alpha with a bum leg like that.”

“What does a bobcat know?” Maxwell retorted. “I’ll get stronger, and when I do, I’ll show you.”

“How about we don’t show anyone else how strong we all think we are.”

“I’m a mountain lion,” Joel said. “My parents didn’t have to bring me to school and I can shift all the way into cat form all by myself and back again if I wanted to.”

“Duly noted,” Katlyn said. “Is Brendan or Chase your father?”

“No, they don’t have any cubs. My mama said they’re too busy running the ranch and protecting us here.”

“So you do live on the ranch, then?”

“Yes. Mama says they took us in after our father was murdered in the Black Hills during hunting season before I was born.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Joel.”

“Thanks, but I was only a baby at the time so I don’t even remember him.”

Katlyn’s heart was ready to break in two. “That moves us on to Ivan.” She massaged her chin thoughtfully. “I can’t imagine what animal you might be.”

“I’m a werebear,” Ivan said. “I can shift quite well most of the time. The trick is to concentrate. You have to put it into your head that you’re a human or animal.”

“I tried that,” Melody said. “But I always get stuck. My mama makes a potion that helps.”

“Potion?”

“Yes. It tastes just like chocolate milk, too.”

Katlyn smiled, wondering if it was a potion at all or a cleaver way to trick the child into shifting back.

“I wish I had some of that right now so you wouldn’t get into trouble,” Melody said.

“I’m sure your mother will understand when you tell her what happened.”

“Oh, I won’t get in trouble for trying to shift, just for attacking Robert. His mother is on the committee.”

“Committee, eh? What kind of bird do you shift into?”

“A disgusting chicken hawk,” Robert laughed.

Melody pounded her fists on the table. “I swear, if you say another word, Robert, I’ll peck apart your face! I can shift into a red-tailed hawk. Nobody calls me a chicken hawk and gets away with it.”

“No more growling, pecking or shifting,” Katlyn said. “It’s against school rules to shift or attack each other. You’re here to learn,” she reminded them. “How many of you can read?”

Hands shot into the air and Katlyn smiled. This was much better than she had hoped. She passed out small, photocopied books to each child. “You’ll be expected to read aloud in class tomorrow. You’ll also be working on math, history, and science.”

“History,” Robert said. “Whose? Yours or ours?”

“American history.”

“We told you what we are,” Robert said. “What kind of shifter are you?”

All eyes were on Katlyn and she said, “I’m not a shifter at all. I’m human.”

Ivan nodded. “I knew you were. Us werebears have a great sense of smell.”

* * *

Time rolled along fairly quickly and Katlyn smiled when she saw Nate come for his son, Maxwell. They lingered in the classroom after a miffed Annabelle strutted toward the door with a blabbing Robert, telling her all about how he was nearly ripped limb from limb by Melody. She didn’t respond but she certainly gave Katlyn the evil eye.

A plain woman came for Melody and Katlyn apologized for Robert’s behavior.

“Not to worry. That boy is always picking on my girl. I’m just happy that she stuck up for herself.”

“Me, too, but next time I hope she lets me handle it. We’re here to learn, not fight.”

Once everyone left, Katlyn was alone with Nate and Maxwell. “Perhaps you should go outside and wait for your father. I’d like to speak with him for a moment privately.”

Maxwell limped to the door and closed it quietly behind him.

“I’m so sorry. That Robert sure is mean to Maxwell. I wonder where on earth he learned that hostility?”

“Well, you did meet Annabelle. Ever since Maxwell’s accident, most of the children tease him, but he’ll be an alpha one day.”

“What kind of accident?”

“He was winged by one of the ranchers. I don’t allow him to accompany the pack on hunts yet, and, well, boys will be boys.”