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Broken Bond 5
CALLUMThe Cedar Ridge ski resort is a winter tourist trap that sits just outside the edge of the six-pack’s territory, owned and operated by the six shifter packs that reside within. Since we generally keep to ourselves, the ski resort was built as an income stream to keep our towns afloat, as well as the Cedar Ridge brewery just down the road. The ski resort is shuttered in the summer months, but the brewery is open all year round so we have consistent revenue. It’s a smart setup, but it also tempts us into wandering off-territory more than we probably should.My boys and I spend a lot of time at the ski resort in the winter, though we generally stay away from the human tourists as best we can since one of the fundamental rules of shifter culture is to keep our existence a secret. We’ve all been snowboarding for years, and we take full advantage of the fact that we’ve got a full-service ski resort right in our backyards. The runs here are second to none, and while the guests staying
Broken Bond 6
VANESSAI feel him before I see him, watching me from a dark alcove near the front entrance of the bar. Always watching.When Callum steps out, he looks like a demon emerging from the shadows. His are teeth bared in a malevolent grin, his sharp jawline illuminated by the neon bar sign hanging in the window beside him. His name leaves my lips in question as my eyes drink in the sight of him; tall, broad-shouldered, and dressed in dark denim, a faded grey t-shirt, and a beat-up black leather jacket. His hair is deliciously disheveled, a stray lock flopping down over his forehead and skimming his browline.He’s the picture of a beautiful nightmare; a bad boy fantasy come to life. My pulse races in nervous excitement as I swivel away from the front door of the Stillwater Tap to take a step in his direction instead.“Hi.” My voice comes out in a breathy whisper; so damn husky that I hardly even recognize it. “Hi,” he answers back in that deep, raspy timbre.I shiver.My heels snick again
Broken Bond 7
VANESSA“I’ll be out of your hair in a few days,” Vienna explains to my mom as she takes a dish of green beans from her hands.“Oh, stop,” Mom scolds, swatting Vee on the butt with a kitchen towel. “You know you’re welcome to stay as long as you like. We love having you here!”I pick up a basket of rolls, shooting my friend a wide grin. “Yeah, just think of it as an extended sleepover!”She smiles wryly, following me to the kitchen table to deposit the food. The whole house smells amazing- my mom always cooks hearty dinners, but she pulls out all the stops when we have company. Although Vienna can hardly be considered ‘company’- she’s practically family. This isn’t the first time Vee has crashed at my house, but it’s the first time she’s arrived with a duffel bag in tow and expressed her intention of staying for longer than a single night. I’m glad she did. When she called me early this morning, I could tell by the tone of her voice that something was wrong, and when she showed up a
Broken Bond 8
CALLUM The sound of a fist rapping loudly against my apartment door rouses me from a dead sleep. I’m a little disoriented as I lift my head from the pillow, swiping drool from the corner of my mouth with a forearm while using my other elbow to push myself up against the scratchy cotton sheets. What time is it? The knocking continues. Whoever’s there isn’t giving up, so I pry myself from bed with a groan, the rusty old springs of my mattress answering with a groan of their own. Finding my feet and blinking against the harsh sunlight streaming in through the blinds in my bedroom, I swipe a pair of sweatpants off the floor and stumble into them as the pounding on my front door continues. “I’m coming!” I growl out, not even attempting to mask my annoyance. A quick glance at the clock on my nightstand tells me it’s 10:30 a.m., which is about typical for my fucked-up sleep pattern. Still, with how deeply I was sleeping, I could’ve gotten another hour in if this prick wasn’t pounding on m
Broken Bond 9
VANESSALike always, I feel him before I see him. The energy in the air shifts somehow, almost crackling, and I know he’s nearby. I glance toward the tall rocks that line the outer edge of the natural hot springs, listening to the sound of crunching snow as he strides closer, still out of sight. I blow out a slow breath that fogs the air in front of me, mingling with the steam rising from the pool of warm water.Callum finally comes into view as he rounds the rocks, brows lifting as he takes in the sight of the crystal-clear water and my state of partial undress. “Well… this is a surprise,” he drawls, stalking closer.I sent him the location by dropping a pin so he could use the maps feature on his phone to find his way here. This place is technically off-territory, located on the grounds of the Cedar Ridge ski resort. It’s easy to get turned around in these woods, so the resort offers guided trips out here for guests who want to take a dip in the natural hot springs- but since I work
Broken Bond 10
CALLUMI leave the hot springs with the worst blue balls of my fucking life. I go straight home, hop in the shower, and jack my dick to get the poison out, but then I start thinking about the sounds Nessa made when she was falling apart on my fingers and I’m instantly hard again.So I jerk off twice.Even then, it’s not enough- not when I can still picture the flush of her cheeks right after she came, how swollen and puffy her lips were as she fought to catch her breath.I’ve never been a giver. When I’ve hooked up with girls in the past, it was always about my own pleasure, not theirs. I didn’t kiss them if I could help it, and I sure as hell didn’t rub them out without getting anything in return. I grew bored with hookups quickly, and then it got to a point where I stopped even bothering because it was easier to just jerk off to relieve the tension rather than hassling with the neediness of another human being.But this is different because of the bet, right? Nessa isn’t easy prey;
Broken Bond 11
CALLUMMy heart’s pounding as I stick the key in the lock of my apartment door, twisting it to hear the heavy click of the deadbolt unlocking.What the fuck am I doing?This is my safe space; my sanctuary. It isn’t somewhere that I bring girls for hookups. Hell, I rarely even let my own friends come inside.We could’ve stayed at the packhouse. There are plenty of guest rooms to go around, and that’s where I usually crash after a party anyways. I bet I could’ve gotten Nessa to follow me into one of them, just like she followed me into my apartment building from the truck. The thought crossed my mind.Still, I invited her here. It didn’t feel right to ask her to steal away to a room in the packhouse with me like a cheap hookup. She deserves better. So, she’ll be the first woman to enter my space, and I’m choosing to ignore the significance of that right now because I’ve had a hard-on for this girl since the first time I laid eyes on her, and I’m pretty sure we’re about to seal the deal.
Broken Bond 12
VANESSAI was a lot like my little sister Mia when I was her age. I was obsessed with princess movies- the kind where a handsome prince or a white knight would rush in and sweep the princess off her feet, then they’d ride off into the sunset together and live happily ever after. As I got older, I recognized that life wasn’t a fairytale, but that didn’t stop me from daydreaming about falling madly in love someday and finding my own happy ending. My parents did. Their relationship is like a real-life fairytale, so it didn’t seem far-fetched to dream of one day having something like that for myself.Turns out, relationships are far more complicated than I imagined, especially with a dark knight bent on pushing away anyone who gets too close. I took a chance on Callum because he made me feel things that nobody else ever has. He ignited something in me that made me want to take a leap of faith and see where the spark between us could go. Mates or not, he’s the first man I’ve had real feeli
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