"You did what?" Dimitri couldn't believe what he heard. "Adira, Everglades is not a normal bar." He turned to Alanna and Eve. "You two know about that place. Why the hell did you take her there?"Eve looked at him like he was crazy. "Because it was ladies night. You know? Two for one? Duh."It took everything he had not to throttle the woman. "Damn it, Eve, this isn't a game." He could feel the panther pushing at him, wanting free to wreak havoc on whomever he could. Fur pushed through his skin a little, claws pushing out of his fingertips, the pain of the shift just beginning. He tamped it down quickly. He didn't need to lose control now, not with so much at risk. He spun to Alanna. "Everglades is a paranormal bar. You should have known they would be there. Hell, Sheriff Einstein even told me they were there the other day, shooting off their mouth." The three women returned to Alanna's cabin when they left Everglades, and Lainie went to the sheriff's department to file a report on the

The evening sun dipped in the west, barely visible through the trees surrounding the small community of Bull Creek. A cool breeze whispered through the branches, rustling the leaves, as Adira eased her way along the trail following the panther, as he led her to where he knew the wards needed to be placed. It was hard not to be mesmerized by the feline's lithe body as he meandered through the woods, keeping his gaze bouncing around their surroundings. A smile spread across her face, knowing he protected her, keeping an eye out for Bane and his coyotes. After her run-in with Bane's thugs last night, Dimitri would not take any chances. She couldn't say that his over-protectiveness upset her. Not this time, anyway. In fact, if she were to say anything at all, it would be that his protective nature made her sex throb. If they didn't have to get the wards up so quickly, she would have loved for him to take her right there in the woods, driving his cock into her, spreading her open before him

Adira watched as Dimitri closed the door behind him. She felt terrible, blaming herself for the attack on Lainie. Dimitri's sister must have been attacked because of the way Adira mouthed off to Augur at the bar. This was the coyotes' way of retaliating. They couldn't get to her, so they went after her friend. Adira came to Bull Creek to help, but so far, all she did was make things worse. Not such a big help, huh? She only hoped Lainie was all right. Adira wasn't sure if Dimitri would forgive her if his sister were seriously hurt because of her. Hell, she wasn't sure if she could forgive herself.Turning to fix herself some tea, she placed her hand on Dimitri's teeth marks, and almost yelped at the touch, the sharp, electric sensations sending tendrils of pain throughout her body. Even without looking, she could imagine the bruise that formed on her lower shoulder. With a deep breath, bracing for the tender stings of pain, she caressed the deep impressions left by Dimitri's teeth, esp

The sounds of fighting could be heard outside the cabin—panthers, a wolf, coyotes, even a bear. Their cries mixed with pain and agony. Augur jerked away from the window and darted toward the front door. Whatever happened outside, apparently scared him. Adira watched as he jerked the door open and reached outside. One of the men who went to the back emerged and darted to the front door to take Augur's place. A quick glance over her shoulder showed that the other guy remained in the back. Now was her chance. Taking a deep breath, she sent power through her arms, sending blue light from her forearms to sizzle and help her break the ropes that held her. They shredded, charred, and fell to the ground as she sprang from the chair, knocking it backward.The noise startled the goon who headed to the front door, causing him to spin toward Adira. She jerked her arm out, palms up, as blue fire erupted from her hand and sent a ball of energy into the man's chest. The power picked him up, sending h

Eve Hartlow stared at the top of her beer bottle, frustration filling her at how she felt. She was tired of being helpless, of feeling like everyone in the world could take care of themselves except her. Even worse, she felt like she couldn't help defending her friends, which was obvious when everyone went after Bane Kastner when he abducted Adira a few days ago. Everyone, that is, except her. The others could shift, transforming into their animals, and race off to kick the coyote's ass, while Eve was stuck at Adira's cabin watching them all run off to Adira's rescue. Eve took a giant swallow from her beer, trying to drown out her helplessness."Not used to seeing you in here without your all-female posse," Noel Hastings said as she set a fresh beer in front of Eve. "Of course, I haven't seen you in here this early, either. You doing all right?" Noel leaned on the bistro table, her hands clasped together as she stared at Eve, ready to be a shoulder if needed. Eve wasn't sure when Noel