The muffled sounds of voices coming from the main room of the house slowly roused me from my slumber.  I reached for Noah, but his side of the mattress was empty and cold.Taking a few minutes to gather my wits about me, I swung my legs to the side of the bed and then padded my way to the ensuite bathroom.  After inserting the last of the medication that Dr. Blake provided, I closed my eyes so that I could concentrate on assessing the condition of my body.  I felt pretty good.  All that remained was a mild soreness in my ribcage which I expected that a few more days would see an end to.  During my examination, the doctor declared that there was only a hairline fracture in my rib and that it should heal quickly.  Considering the loud crack that I’d heard when that beast fell upon me, I’d experienced doubts about the validity of that claim.  I was happy to discover that he was right.Feeling refreshed and encouraged, I hurri

Kenzie and I sat on the front porch while we watched the sun slowly ease its way behind the trees.“The moon will be full again tonight,” she mused.  “I reckon we’ll see the turning in about four hours.”“How did you know that you had the right to cut off her head?” I asked as I vigorously rocked in the Adirondack styled rocking chair. “No one was going to stop you.”“I know,” she said with a sigh.  “I sometimes lose it when I’m around bitches like her.  It stems from my high school days.  I wasn’t a beauty, as you well can see, and I was picked on quite a bit by the popular girls.”“I think you’re beautiful,” I said in earnest. “So does Oscar.”She gave me an affectionate smile.“I’ve got a long way to go to be in your category of looks, but I will admit that I’ve grown into myself,&rd

The pack’s howling faded into the distance, but there was still an odd, almost creepy feel in the air.  I mentioned it to Kenzie and she readily agreed.“I don’t know if they’ll be coming back like they did last night,” she nervously said.  “Oscar hinted about the need to keep Danica busy so that she couldn’t circle back and cause us harm.”“That’s just dandy,” I hissed.  “What if someone from another pack shows up like they did last night?  What do we do then?”“I asked him that very same question,” she admitted.“And?” I said and then waited with eager silence to hear his solution.She shrugged as she informed me that Noah was posting his most loyal men around the perimeter of the land to keep watch for invaders.“Will that be enough?” I asked.  “What if someone slips past them? After all, from wh

It was cold, dark, and dank inside the cave.  Neither of us had on adequate coverings for such an environment.  We couldn’t have been inside it for more than a few minutes before our bodies felt the full impact of the cold.“I can’t stop my teeth from chattering,” I complained, “It’s like my body has a mind of its own.”“Huddle close to me,” she stuttered past teeth that were behaving the same as mine. “If we share our body heat, we might be able to get it under control.”  After I snuggled into her so close that my only other option would have been to climb beneath her skin, she added, “I didn’t realize how damp it was in here.  I was properly dressed when I found it.”“Did you come in?” I asked.“I hid from a bear for about thirty minutes,” she replied.“A bear?” I gasped.  “There are bears in these

We lay, peacefully, in each other’s arms after making love into the night.  As I listened to the steady beating of his heart while he slept, I wondered if the fact that he’d been such a powerfully virile lover was due to his recent shift from being a werewolf or if it was something that I’d have to look forward to on a regular basis.  I hoped it was the latter.I have no idea how long I reveled in sheer ecstasy over finally getting him to want me before I fell into a deep, dream filled slumber.I rarely remembered my dreams, but this time it was so vivid that it seemed real.I stood in the middle of a sea of wildflowers with scents that were both intoxicating and alluring. Closing my eyes, I inhaled through my nose until my lungs could hold no more.  Feeling delightfully heady from nature’s sweet floral bouquet, I slowly and reluctantly exhaled.When I opened my eyes, a tall, rugged middle-aged highlande