Shadow Pact

William sat at the butcher-block table in the small kitchen of the house he shared with Paoli. He stared at the paper before him—scripted in Paoli’s neat handwriting—with open surprise. On the page was a single name and species along with location. “Are you sure this is right?” William frowned at the paper.“It’s right,” Paoli confirmed without even glancing at him on his way past.“When was the last time we had a female werewolf?” William raised a skeptical brow and his gaze followed Paoli around the table.“It’s rare they’re marked," Paoli agreed. "But it happens.”He took the chair across from William and propped his bare feet on the edge of the table for no reason other than it bugged William.Paoli was one of the oldest vampires William had ever met, and by far the least conspicuous. He stood only about an inch shorter than William was himself, whi

Emily gripped with her knees and buried one hand deep into the thick pelt to keep herself from falling off. Her other hand was clamped around Amber's ever-changing waist in a desperate effort to keep her upright so Emily could use her body as a brace. It was sort of like the world's most dangerous juggling act, with the threat of certain death if any of her body parts gave out too soon. Her thighs began to shake with the effort of holding on, but the sound of howls closing in as the wolves gave chase seemed to lend her exhausted muscles the strength she needed.  When the massive wolf came to a sudden halt, she nearly flipped over his head. She was only saved by the appearance of strong hands on her waist. She jerked away in surprise and turned to find the blond man standing beside her, a man again.With reluctance and a wary look, she allowed him to pull Amber down. It was only when she saw him move toward it that she realized they were stan

William leaned against the door with his head near the partially open window for the last part of the drive. His body hadn't fully cooled from having Emily in his arms and the wind helped to dilute her scent somewhat.He breathed a sigh of relief when he finally pulled into the garage and got out of the car.              Emily got out, looked around, and gave him a look of surprise from across the car roof.              For the briefest of seconds, her surprise puzzled him. Then it dawned on him and he gave her knowing smile as he closed his door. "Were you expecting something else?" He quirked one teasing brow.Emily froze.She didn't want to offend them.Again.But she hadn't covered her surprise well enough, and it was too late to deny it. "Yes, actually," she admitted. "Like castles and moat

Emily woke much earlier than usual, feeling trapped and claustrophobic. She made her way to the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face, then noticed her reflection looked as exhausted as she felt. Her eyes were bleary with dark patches beneath them and her skin was much paler than normal, which gave her an unpleasant pause.How sure was she that no one was feeding on her? She leaned forward, checking her throat carefully in the mirror. There didn't appear to be any bite marks, and the cross was still protectively around her neck, which made her feel better.               Somewhat.Cautiously satisfied she was simply suffering from sleeplessness, she got dressed in last night's clothes. What she needed was some space and fresh air to settle herself. Her nerves weren't about to let her get more sleep, and she felt like a caged animal in her room. After a long moment's indecision, she

A mere two hours later, Emily found herself standing, unarmed, on an airplane runway between a vampire and a 'complicated' man who could turn into the world's biggest wolf. She was feeling slightly dazed and unreal. Everything was happening so fast.Behind them, a small white hanger stood in shadows. In front of them, a small plane taxied to a halt like a weird cab. The hatch opened to show a man she'd never seen.His hair was long; similar to Paoli's shoulder length.She wondered absently if that meant they were from the same time period. She eyed Paoli critically. She turned to look at William, wondering about his age, and found he was scowling at her for some reason. She scowled back in response and returned her attention to the pilot, who made his way quickly to them.Once he stopped and exchanged greetings with Paoli, his attention turned to her in a way that was just unnerving. His body didn't seem to move, but his head looked like it was rotating o