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  The roots tangled around her first paw and held her fast. She tugged harder. Nothing. Using her back feet against the wall, she pulled her claws loose. The momentum sent her slipping against the mud. Her other paw didn’t have such a good hold and she plunged back into the water.

  She swam to the surface, treading water. Wet fur was heavy. Panting, she couldn’t catch her breath and shifting was out of the question. She’d drown by the time she was done.

  A shadow passed over the opening. Her heart skipped a beat. She barked and hated asking for help, but she hated being dead more.

  The shadow grew more substantial into the form of a wolf she didn’t recognize. Then it vanished.

  Her bark grew more frantic. Where did he go? Would he really leave her to drown? She gripped the exposed roots in the mud again and tried to climb, but her limbs shook. Ian… She lunged to the side, face buried in the mud, trying to stay above the water. She’d wasted her chance at happiness with her true mate. “Hang on,” he shouted.

  She blinked at the night sky and spotted his face. He’d been the wolf and had shifted to human form. Leaning over the side, he grasped her slippery paws.

  “Got you.” His voice sounded strained. Fingers ran over her fur. “This might pinch.” He grabbed her scruff and hauled her up in one solid jerk, tossing her onto the other side of the trap.

  She lay on her side panting. Shivers wracked her body so hard she couldn’t stand.

  Ian gathered her into his arms and carried her. “Fuck this training camp.” He headed toward the manor.

  She buried her head against his chest—for warmth. She’d never been so happy to see anyone in her life.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Clare weighed nothing in Ian’s arms, even half-drowned. Her silken fur dripped and shivers ran through her canine body as she pressed closer to him, burying her ice cold nose against his neck.

  He didn’t ask her to shift back to human. Wet fur offered better protection from the cool night air than wet skin. It would help retain what body heat she had left.

  Pine needles stung the bottom of his bare feet as he jogged through the forest toward the manor. How many would be injured tonight? Would any more die? He stroked Clare’s head and held her tighter. If he’d arrived a few minutes later, he would have lost her. Who would he argue with if she died?

  The manor sat backlit by the hunter’s moon. Flashlights flickered in the first floor windows. Pallas sat on the front stairs, long legs sprawled in front of him. He whittled a long branch to a dangerous point. When his gaze fell upon them, he rose and set the stake aside. “You’re last.”

  Ian’s chest felt hollow and his blood boiled. They had both tried so hard. “She’s hurt.” The vampire almost killed Clare with his stupid mission.

  “That’s to be expected with an exercise of this nature.” Pallas’ expression didn’t change. He spoke as if describing a simple math equation instead of a serious event.

  Ian snarled.

  Clare dug her claws into his shoulder as if sensing his suicidal thoughts. If he hadn’t been holding her, he would have dived for the stake. Caring for her came first.

  He brushed past the bloodsucker, knocking Pallas out of his way. “Excuse me, task master.” He kicked open the front door.

  Clare still shivered.

  “Penny.” He shouted.

  The omega ran from the one of the back rooms.

  “Bring fire and wood to your and Clare’s room” He took the stairs two at a time. He paused by the bathroom to grab a dry bath towel. Inside her room, he set her on her paws.

  She stood with her head huge low.

  He rubbed her sodden fur with the towel. “Let’s get you dry first then you should shift while you have the strength.”

  She lifted her paws one at a time and turned her body at his request. He’d never seen her so compliant. Part of him wish she’d snap her teeth at his fingers. Her fur receded into her skin as she shifted to human.

  Backing away, he gave her room to make the change. Body temperature affected the process. Her hypothermia caused the shift to slow and extended the pain. Clare remained silent as her joints popped one at a time. The noise curdled his stomach. Shifting was like a Band-Aid. Better to get through it with one sharp jerk.

  Clare stretched her finely athletic body, mouth open in a silent scream.

  Every wolf instinct in his body cried to offer her comfort but he knew how sensitive to touch her skin must be so soon after shifting. He yanked a blanket off the bed and waited for sanity to clear her eyes.

  She didn’t move at first. Just lay on the hardwood floor breathing. Her dazed stare finally moved to him. “Is that for me?” She eyed the blanket.

  Kneeling, he helped her sit and wrapped the blanket around her. Where was Penny? The faint smell of blood reached his nose. “You’re hurt?”

  “Scratches mostly.” She examined her fingertips. “I tore two claws out though.” She showed him her raw nailbeds in the process of healing and he grimaced. It could have been much worse, but he still wanted to stake Pallas in his sleep. He scooped Clare off the floor.

  She gave a small squeal of surprise. “Stop toting me around like a teddy bear.” Her teeth chattered, making her stutter.

  A knock on the door stopped his response. Penny entered with firewood, tinder, and flame. She set to work on the small fireplace in their room and in no time had a fire roaring. “I’ll let you warm up.” She left with a knowing look.

  He set Clare on the bed and tucked her under the blankets. She felt so small in his arms but her presence filled his heart. When Clare entered a room everyone noticed. She didn’t use drama like Darrell or fear like Pallas. Clare’s personality commanded attention and those less dominant responded instinctively. Except he wasn’t less dominant. So why did he sense her every breath?

  Her gaze dipped below his waist. Suddenly the room seemed devoid of air. They’d both been naked, but shifters viewed nudity differently than humans. Most of the time. Like not now. Just a blanket separated their bodies.

  He cleared his throat. “I’ll go find us some food.” Striding across the room, he aimed for escape from temptation. She was hurt and traumatized. He needed to make sure she healed. Food cured everything for shifters. She could use a hot meal and from the smells in the manor, he’d guess someone was cooking.

  If Pallas sent the blue team home, Ian could say he still won the best prize. Clare’s life.

  Huddled under the blanket, Clare fantasized the hot water tank actually worked and she could soak in a bath until her fingers wrinkled. A new set of shivers set her trembling to the point of making her bones ache. She’d never been this cold. Even the winters of Colorado hadn’t frozen her like the icy dark waters of the trap.

  She knew coming into this training it would be difficult. She’d heard the rumors that Pallas and his kind of vampire were quite ruthless. To her it meant he’d train her to be ruthless too. Was it worth risking her life?

  The door to her bedroom opened and Ian entered with a plate of roasted meat and vegetables and wearing pants. “You’ll be glad to hear that Penny is baking pies.” He handed her the plate but her hands trembled so much she almost dropped her meal.

  His strong hands encompassed hers, steadying the plate. “Let me help.”

  “T-thanks.” She took a fork and inhaled half the plate before taking a deep breath. “Oh my God, this is so good and hot.” Shifting when cold took a lot of energy. She no longer had any reserves. Not after days of strenuous exercise, stressful living conditions, and cold food. She missed her mother’s cooking—potluck Sundays, peach cobbler, and barbeque chicken.

  Her stomach rolled and she lost her appetite. They came in last. She’d be sent home and it wouldn’t be long before she was eating at her parent’s table. Another set of shivers struck her. “You can have the rest. I’m full.”

  Quirking an eyebrow, he stared at the pile of untouched food. “You’re serious?” He crawled into bed with her on top of the blan
kets and set to eating. Why did she resist him? He was everything she wanted in a mate. Handsome, caring, clever…his timing sucked though. It didn’t take him long to clear the plate clean. “Penny said she’d save us a whole pie.” He curled around her, burying his face in her wet hair.

  She swallowed a lump in her throat. “Anyone else hurt or d—died?” They already lost one too many to this program. She didn’t want to dig anymore graves.

  “No deaths, but few sprained ankles. One broken leg. Did you know he set fucking bear traps?”

  “Yes. One almost got me.” She melted against his warmth and her shivers faded. “Did we make a mistake coming here?”

  “No, otherwise we never would have met.”

  She tilted her chin enough to see his face. It was the answer she needed to hear. Not just the words but the determination behind them. There was no lie in his voice. She’d fought her attraction to Ian since the day they met and she was a fool for it. Life was a difficult journey but she didn’t need to travel it alone. “We work well together.” She could scarcely breathe this close to him.

  His gaze traced her lips. “That’s why I searched for you. Together we’re stronger in this camp or outside of it.”

  She loosened her grip on the blanket and ran her hand over his bare chest. “Outside frightens me. Going back to my pack—” A lump in her throat prevented her from talking. She didn’t want Ian to see how her pack dismissed her as a dominant. It would break that special something they had between them.

  “You won’t go back. We’ll stick together. Find a new start somewhere else.”

  Tracing his chin, she stared at his lips as he spoke. That special something bloomed within her chest and she decided to call it hope. A future with a mate who believed in her and loved even her faults. How could she possibly love him more than she already did?

  “Maybe we can start our own—”

  She didn’t let him finish his sentence. Her lips attacked his in a kiss that set her soul free. She owned him.

  He sucked, slid, and moved in time with her. Entangling his hand in her hair, he rolled on top.

  She unsnapped his jeans and pushed them over his hips, clumsy and rough, desperate to feel his skin.

  His body covered her as he finished tugging his pants off his legs. He buried his nose in her hair and inhaled. Growling, he ran his chin over her shoulder. Sharp stubble scratched over her sensitive skin and sent shivers down her spin. He moved lower, nipping at her collar bone with his teeth.

  Arching her back, she moaned and dragged her nails up his sides. The cut of his muscles felt delicious under her hands. She couldn’t touch him enough. Big and strong and all hers. Why hadn’t she listened to her wolf sooner? Denying Ian had only weakened her.

  His breaths came faster as he cupped her breasts together, sucking one nipple then the other until both peaks ached. He blew gently over the hard nubs.

  “Oh God, Ian.” She spread her legs, wrapping them around his hips.

  The muscles in his back slid under his skin as he continued his journey lower. Kissing her skin, licking around her belly button, running his stubble over her lower abdomen. “I’m going taste you.”

  The intensity in his eyes set off another wave of desire. She released her hold on his hips and let her knees fall open. “Go ahead.”

  A confident leer was her answer. He ran his index finger along her inner thigh until he cupped her mound. “If you’re too tired, we can wait.”

  She moaned. “Stop teasing me.”

  “I haven’t even begun.” He slipped her finger between her slit. “So wet.” Tracing her entrance, he teased her some more by going in a little then back out.

  She rocked her hips, but each time she tried to drive him in deeper he’d pull out. “Ian,” she all but growled his name.

  “Yes?” He flicked her clit.

  Her hips arched and she cried out at the sharp pleasure.

  He held her in place, eyes burning, and licked. Greedy, hungry, and perfect.

  Passionate noises fell from her lips. She clung to the sheets under her, the blanket tossed to the floor. Ice no longer flowed in her veins. She rocked forward as his tongue ran over her opening and circled her clit. Round and round, sending aching waves of need until her toes curled. His mouth latched on her and he suckled her hard. She threw her head back and cried out. The vibration of his growl heightened her orgasm. Gasping for breath, she let her body take over and road his tongue.

  Ian didn’t stop. He nipped her inner thigh then her lower abdomen. He worked his way up her body, stroking, nibbling, kneading until his hips met hers. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

  “Even half drowned?”

  “Shh, don’t remind me.” He gave her a fast kiss then returned for another and another, deepening his kiss until she could taste herself on his tongue. He reached between them, sliding his knuckles over her belly, down until he held himself ready at her entrance. Pushing inside, he thrust into her tightness, stretching her secret muscles.

  She groaned and wrapped him in her limbs. “More.” She loved the weight of him on her, the way his breath hitched as he complied with her wish and slid deeper inside, taking what they both wanted. Loved the way he mingled the sharp pain of a bite with the pleasure of thrusting in and out of her. Loved the way he whispered her name over and over in her ear.

  Her body seized, molten pleasure like nothing she’d ever experienced before, burned in her blood. She dug her nails into his back as wave after wave crashed. His snarl was viscous as he arched above her, head thrown back, tendons in his neck standing out. Thrusts grew harder, more demanding.

  Shaking and moaning, she cursed and clutched his ass to grind against him as to ease this desperate passion. Sweat coated her skin. The headboard pounded against the wall, leaving no secret to the rest of the manor what they were up to in her bedroom.

  He finally began to slow. Dropping his forehead onto hers, he gasped for air. “Fuck, fuck, yes.”

  She kissed his cheek, his chin, stroked his sweat soaked hair, kissed his forehead. “I’ll never leave you.

  He cuddled closer, brushed his lips over hers. “Like I’d ever let you.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Ian claimed a loveseat for him and Clare close to the exit of the pack gathering room. She pressed her body against his, thigh to thigh, arm to arm. Their attraction crackled and he half expected to see sparks where they touched. Please, let the meeting be short so he could lure her somewhere dark and private.

  Nobody had been asked to leave yet. Both red and blue teams tied for last. Technically, blue team had already completed the mission but he broke the rules by saving Clare.

  Pallas could go suck it if he thought he’d leave her to drown. Heck, as if he’d leave anyone to die. Ian was here to learn to fight, not to become a cold blooded killer.

  The vampire stood on the other side of the room. He scanned the crowd of forty-seven shifters packed like sardines with some sitting on tables and others on the floor. The bloodsucker actually smiled, sending ice water chills through Ian’s veins. What had made Pallas so cheery? Probably had eaten one of the hunters for breakfast.

  Ian picked at the white threads lining a hole in his jeans, making it bigger. He wished the vampire would decide who went home before he flipped the fuck out.

  Clare laid her small hand over his. Her strength poured into him soothing his frayed nerves.

  Pallas lifted a form above his head so everyone could see it. “This is a pack registration form. If we don’t file by tomorrow, the sheriff will be forced to call Homeland Security to remove us from the area. For any group of shifters to live together, a pack must take shape. For a pack to take shape you need an alpha.”

  Sharp pain daggered through Ian’s hand as Clare dug her nails into his flesh. “Take it easy, babe.” He pried her fingers open. “There will be other packs.”

  She bared her teeth at him. “But I want this one.”

  “I’m calling for nominations.”
The vampire turned in a slow circle.

  Penny jumped to her feet. “Clare.”

  Blain was right behind her. “Ian.” Two others on his team, Yanis and Veronica, joined in Blain’s vote.

  Ian jerked his head back. He must have made some impression last night.

  Darrell and Julia, another red teammate, rose. “Clare.”

  Ian and Clare glanced at each other. Guess they weren’t going home after all? Ian lifted his hand for silence. “Is anyone else going to pick another name?” He waited but no one offered another candidate. “If not, I’d like to announce that Clare and I are a mated couple.”

  The room went dead silent.

  Pallas folded his arms. “Last call for any others?” His voice sounded like gravel.

  Ian smirked at the vampire. Nobody offered another choice.

  “Fine. Ian and Clare will be the alpha couple listed on the pack form.” He eyed them. “This is an honorary title. You still answer to me while you live under this roof. Got me?”

  Hands intertwined, they nodded. “So no one is going home tonight?”

  Pallas shook his head. “I didn’t say that.” Police lights flashed in the distance as the sheriff’s car pulled into the long driveway. “But none of them are shifters.” He grinned at Ian. “I have a couple hunters begging to go home in the basement.”

  On time, the sheriff pulled up to the manor as Pallas waited on the porch. He waited for her to climb out of the vehicle. She didn’t come out guns a blazing, as his brother Daedalus had predicted. He ran his hand over his mouth to suppress his delight. “Sheriff Lee, glad you responded to my call.” He’d been looking forward to seeing her all evening.

  “You.” She rested her hand on her gun. He didn’t doubt she’d be a fast draw and resisted the temptation to test her skill. “You broke into my office.”

  “I did, but not for nefarious reasons.” He held his arms away from his body to show he was unarmed. Not that it mattered. In one hand he held the registration forms. “I needed these. Since we were given an ultimatum with a short time frame, I had to resort to desperate measures.” A blush formed on her cheeks, softening her stern expression. Out of practice, he tried to smile. He made sure to keep his lips together like Sugar, Daedalus’ sweet wife, had suggested. “Maybe you can leave me with a number I can reach at night to avoid any future misunderstandings?”