Three Fur All (6 page)

“You okay, bro?”

Mika shook his head. “I don’t know. I saw the way she was with you tonight, resting her head on your shoulder, and your hand on her knee.” He curled his fingers into the wood, feeling the splinters lodge under his nails. Seeing October with Elliot broke his heart because she wasn’t with him. It cut him to the soul, and he didn’t know how to handle it.

“Whoa! Mika, you need to chill. I told you that you had to come back. Something about October draws me to her. I look at her and I see Dominique, but I also see her. I’d forgotten how nice it is to have a woman around. We’ve talked, and I’ve gotten to know her. She’s really great. I can’t help it if I’m attracted to her. We have to find a way to get past this. How do you think I felt when I saw you kissing her before dinner?”

A wave of cold washed over Mika that helped cool some of his rage. “I didn’t realize you saw us together.”

Elliot pulled out a chair and sat down. “Well, I did. I didn’t rush in and rip out your throat the way I wanted to. I was content with you staying at the store, but she was the one who asked about you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.
Really.
The simplest solution is to figure out where the kidnappers are hiding. Or at least the one who terrorized her. She’ll be okay in another week. Then we bring her back to her life. Right now October is complicating things.”

What Elliot was saying was true, but Mika wasn’t sure he could let her go. His dreams over the past week had been riddled with October walking through them. His wolf yearned to possess her. If she desired both of them, then something might have to be worked out. Or she could choose.

“Is everything okay?”

Elliot and Mika looked over to the doorway and saw October. The scratches on her face had healed and were fading. The bruises on her wrists were still visible. She was a strong woman and a fighter.

Her breath was noticeable in the chilled air. She rubbed her arms from the cold breeze, though Mika hadn’t realized it was cold out.

“I think we need to talk about something,” Elliot said.

She sighed and chewed her lip. A few strands of hair floated around her face. She nodded. They went back into the house. October sat at the dining room table and put her leg up on the chair next to her. Mika saw a flash of pain work across her face. It was clear her ankle was still hurting her and she wasn’t faking it. She traced the patterns in the wood and didn’t meet either of their gazes.

“October, you know you can stay here as long as you need to,” Elliot said.

She nodded. “I know. But that isn’t the reason you wanted to talk. I get it.”

“Look, it’s obvious that you are attracted to the both of us,” Mika blurted out. Keeping his emotions bottled up was killing him. If he didn’t get this resolved right now, he would find it easier to head back to the bookstore and stay there while October was with them. If she chose Elliot, then he didn’t need to be there at all.
I’ll erase her from my mind
. Although the thought of losing her made it seem his heart was being stabbed with a dull corkscrew and dug out.

October pulled the elastic from her braid and fiddled with the strands. Tears glistened along her eyes. “I’m not one of those women who
plays
with guys’ hearts. Mika, you left, and after everything Elliot told me about you, I couldn’t help but feel close to you. And Elliot’s been wonderful. It’s crazy, but I want the two of you.” She shook her head and got up from the table.

“Then we—”

She made her way back to her room. Mika was about to go after her, when Elliot grabbed his wrist and stopped him. His friend’s firm grip made him think for a moment instead of just reacting. “Let her be, Mika. We were going hunting tonight anyway.”

Mika nodded. He had almost forgotten. The idea of moving his muscles and running was something he looked forward to.
“Yeah.”

“Good.”

“I’ll be right back. I have something we need.”

Mika ventured back into his room and pulled out October’s torn shirt from the night they had rescued her. He brought it outside and then waited for Elliot. His friend emerged naked. Nakedness wasn’t something new between them, but since things had changed in regards to their guest, part of him saw the other man as a potential threat to a would-be mate. Mika couldn’t shake it. He threw the ruined shirt to Elliot and stripped as well. He folded his clothes and set them on the chair. Mika rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms. Above them hung a sickle moon, giving them only a little light to see by. The valley below was teeming with life. He could feel it and the world around him giving him power to help facilitate the change.

The burn of transformation fired through him. It started with the cracking of his jaw first, as it realigned to make room for longer and sharper teeth. The vertebrae in his back popped. He dropped to all fours, unable to keep balanced on two. His skin itched where fur pushed through his flesh. He ignored the yearning to scratch at it, but instead focused on his face protruding and his jaw reforming into that of a wolf’s snout. The heat continued to wrap along his nerves until it consumed all of him. A cry of pain left his lips that turned into a wolf’s howl worshipping the moon.

He glanced over at Elliot. His friend had already slipped his skin into that of the wolf. Mika sniffed the shirt one last time, catching in his nose the tangy scent of the wolf that had kidnapped October.

He bounded down the steps and into the woods that surrounded the house, hoping to find the trail that would lead him to the rogues terrorizing innocent women. If he could bring even one of them to justice, then hopefully he could be connected to the pack once more. And get his life back.

Chapter Seven

October stared out the window at the valley below. The confrontation between Mika and Elliot paced through her mind. She was volleying between whom she was attracted to more and whom she wanted to be with. Her heart was split in two. Mika might not have been there for the past week, but ever since she kissed him that first time, he had remained on her mind. Elliot had given her more information about what had happened between Mika and Dawn. She had wanted different things and had pulled out of the relationship. The breakup had resulted in him getting kicked out of their community because she complained he had beaten her.

Then there was Elliot.

He was more than his looks. Elliot told her that he had been a model when he was younger, but he’d gotten tired of the fast-paced life, the drugs, and the partying that went along with it. That, and he was getting hit on all the time, and he wasn’t that kind of person. Now and again he did a couple of shoots at the requests of people he knew, or an interview. He hadn’t elaborated more on Dominique, just that when he had met her, she was his whole world. When he had talked about her, his whole face lit up. The flame he carried in his heart for the other woman would never extinguish. She didn’t think she could live up to her memory. During the week, Elliot had kept her company and asked her questions about her past, but didn’t press her about her captivity.

Warm and tingly feelings for the two men lit up her insides.
Shit.
What the hell am I going to do? I want both of them.
With Mika, she sensed the wildness underneath the nerdy exterior he portrayed. Elliot was more refined, but definitely a savvy
technogeek
. Mika’s arms were warm, and his lips were hungry for her. Elliot’s lips were soft, and he was more reserved. He hadn’t let her kiss him more than that brief brushing of lips. He would touch her shoulder or, like tonight, lay his hand on her knee. Each man seemed to have a higher body temperature than what she was used to. If they were going to make her choose between them, she wasn’t sure she could do that. Soon she would be completely healed and have to return home. When she left, would she still see Elliot and Mika? Or would they be part of a time in her life that was horrible and she wanted to push back into the darkness of her mind?

She got out of bed and put her weight on her ankle. As long as she used one crutch and held on to the wall, she could get around the house okay. Over the past week, she’d contacted her work and her roommate, letting them know what had happened. Her roommate understood, and her boss had fired her. The job sucked anyway. The thought of going back to her old life seemed a dream after what she had been through. Nighttime had been the hardest. Elliot had kept her company until she had fallen asleep. Even in the quiet, she wasn’t sure if someone was watching her.

In the dining room, she noticed the lights were off and the house was quiet. She felt a draft. The sliding glass door was open. She hobbled outside and saw Mika’s clothes neatly folded on the chair by the balcony. On the railing was her ruined shirt.
Odd.
What in the world are they doing with that? Mika told me he got rid of it. Why would he lie to me about it? Why are his clothes outside? Does he have a thing for streaking?

October ran her hands over her arms, feeling the chill of the night seeping into her bones. She pulled the plaid shirt Mika had given to her closer to her body and pressed the collar to her nose. His musky scent lingered even after she had washed it. It was another thing that made her feel close to him. When she settled down to sleep, the heady aroma kept him in her mind. Then the dreams would begin. Elliot would wake her up and remind her that she was safe. Now they had abandoned her to the night.

Where did they go? Why didn’t they tell me where they were going?
The stars above gave more light than the thin crescent moon did. Each little jewel dotting the sky was a hope cast across the darkness by some little child or hopeful spirit. She used to wish on stars. Now when she gazed up at them, she didn’t see desires waiting to be fulfilled. October saw the light of dead rocks that was just reaching Earth. Once upon a time, she used to believe in fairy tales, but those dreams had died when the reality of the world had hit her. No one had answered her prayers while she was kept caged. She didn’t know what she believed in anymore. Was it the will of the universe that she was kidnapped or that she had escaped? Maybe it had happened so she could meet the two men who had saved her.

Now you’re just reaching for straws as to why you’re attracted to both of them.

She smiled, and another part answered her.
Because they are totally hot in different ways and you want them in bed with you.

Maybe.
But would they go for that?

The breeze cooled her a little more. In the distance she heard the shrill howl of a wolf. Fear and horror buzzed along her nerves. The hair stood up on the back of her neck.
He’s found me. Where are Mika and Elliot?

She glanced around and saw the only route of escape was through the house or down the stairs. The bay came again. This time it was closer. A minute passed, and another cry filled the air, answering the other wolf.
Maybe it isn’t him. Maybe it really is just wolves. It’s possible the mountains are full of them. Or maybe he has a pack and he finally healed enough to track me down.

Below her, two forms emerged from the trees. Two large wolves, looking like Great Danes on steroids, trotted toward the deck stairs. She slunk back into the shadows to watch them. Each step they took, her fear intensified. Knots twisted and turned in her stomach, growing tighter as the wolves got closer. She retreated until her back hit the wall. From her vantage point, one of them had silver fur that gleamed even in the little slice of moonlight. The other was darker and blended with the night. They were a contrast of darkness and light. Her eyes widened when their shapes transformed before her eyes, their muscles rippling. The crack of bones drifted to her ears, and the cries that came from their throats were a mixture of animal and human. They shivered and soon went from standing on four legs to two. The thunder of her pulse filled her ears. A cold sweat had broken out over her body.
I’m not seeing this. This isn’t happening.
It brought her back to seeing her captor do exactly the same thing. She hadn’t been sure of her eyes then either. What made it even worse was when the wolf forms stopped
shifting,
the men who appeared were the two she was struggling with feelings for.

Elliot came up the stairs first. “At least this time you were able to pick up a scent.”

“I guess having two noses is better than one.” Mika slapped him on the back and chuckled.

“You’re both monsters!” October cried out and stepped from the shadows. Her terror remained, but it was fast turning into resentment.

Mika and Elliot froze. The rage built in her, and it didn’t matter they were both naked and gorgeous. Elliot’s wiry muscles were cut into his pale skin. There was a crisscrossing of scars on his thighs, but the rest of his body was perfect. Mika had more definition of his muscles, but he wasn’t overpowering. The knobs of his nipples stood out in the cool air. When her gaze settled on their semierect cocks, she fought the images of the three of them in bed together.
That’s never going to happen now. Not now that I know what they truly are.
October shook off the lust that mingled with the anger, tore her gaze away from their lower anatomy, and fixed her eyes on their faces. Their twin shocked expressions told her they had never expected her to discover what they truly were. Mika held out his hand and stepped forward.

“Stay away from me!” She stuck out her crutch to keep them away.