Author: Renee Rose; Vanessa Vale
Date: 2020-12-17 08:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Contemporary; Paranormal Romance; Paranormal; Shapeshifters; Novella; Fantasy; Erotica; M F M; Menage; Romance
Description: **TWO MARKS PACK RULE: ALWAYS COUPLE AS TWO.** I caught their smell while I was out doing my job as an enforcer. Knew she had to be the one. I came back with my alpha. Because our bloodline always mates in pairs. Two men for every she-wolf. Two daddies for our mate. The one we will pamper and protect. Spank and devour. Which we will carry away to start a family with her. As soon as we have convinced her that she belongs to us. **Available ONLY in the *Dirty Daddies Anthology*!**

Untamed

A Two Marks Prequel

Vanessa Vale

Renee Rose

Two Marks: Untamed

Copyright © 2020 by Bridger Media and Wilrose Dream Ventures LLC

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of the author's imagination and used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from both authors, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Cover design: Bridger Media

Cover graphic: Wander Aguiar Photography; Deposit Photos: pellinni

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Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

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Also by Renee Rose

Also By Vanessa Vale

About Renee Rose

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1

BEN

The glaring neon sign over the door cast the parking lot in a hot pink glow. Thumping bass pulsed through the closed door.

“You sure this is right?” Gibson ran a hand over his salt-and-pepper beard as he looked the place over.

I glanced up at the sign, the cartoon of a woman riding a very endowed horse. Naked. Beneath it, the dive’s name: Hoedown. Fucking hell. If we were in our early twenties, our dicks would have gotten hard at the thought of coming to a place like this. Now? Our dicks were only hard because of the scent we’d picked up. We’d stopped at the gas station on our way to Wolf Ranch, caught her scent, and it led us here… Next door.

It was the sweet, vibrant scent that had tickled my nose last time I was in the area. The reason I brought Gibson, the alpha of my pack, back with me this time.

Our mate.

The next deep inhale confirmed this was the place. I shrugged in reply.

“Please tell me she’s not in there letting human men see what’s ours,” he growled, taking in the squat cinderblock building just off the highway. “I don’t want to have to kill every one of those fuckers.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. We may mate in pairs, but it didn’t mean we weren’t just as jealous and possessive as the wolf breeds who mated singly.

“When we get her out of here, she’s going to know how her new alpha feels about her in this shithole.”

That new alpha? It was him. The leader of the Two Marks pack.

I wasn’t alpha, but an enforcer, and I felt the same fucking way.

“I’ve waited five months to follow this scent again,” I told him, stepping out of the way to let a man leave. It had been that long since I’d been in Montana last, when I’d borrowed Clint Tucker’s truck to get down off the mountain after following a rogue shifter to the Wolf Ranch pack’s land. Back then, my wolf had perked up immediately at the sweet scent that had filled the cab. Some female shifter had ridden with him, and my wolf had been intrigued. In all that time, I hadn’t forgotten. My wolf… and my dick wouldn’t let me. And now I was sure.

Gibson clenched his jaw because he knew I was right. We carried the same scent gene, meaning we claimed one female together, just like all males in our lineage, our pack.

“Let’s go get our mate.” He tugged open the door. I followed.

The place was dimly lit and western themed. There was one central stage that cut through the middle of the huge room. It had two poles, one at the back and one front and center at the end of the runway. Along the far wall was the bar, but the clientele were being served by waitresses with low-cut, midriff blouses and tiny Daisy Duke cutoffs which barely covered their asses. They might be getting tips, but they weren’t getting much of the men’s attention. After I took a deep breath, none of them got much of ours either. None were our mate.

No, the sweet scent came from the hot little number on stage who currently hung upside down on the front stripper pole. How she was able to hang on by wrapping her legs around the shiny metal in a way that defied gravity, I had no idea.

She popped upright with abs that had to be rock hard then dropped gracefully to her feet and lowered into a squat. Her knees were bent, spread wide apart. She was an athlete, like most she-wolves.

My wolf growled, and I took a step toward her.

I couldn’t look away. She was a slender thing with long whiskey-colored hair, tattoos snaking around muscular arms and a tight dancer’s body but with tits that made a man drool. Hell, most of the guys watching her had their mouths hanging open, and no doubt, their dicks were hard.

Her breasts were big for her slender frame but definitely all natural, unlike some of the pool floats the other waitresses sported.

Gibson tapped my shoulder and led me to an open table along the side of the runway, right up front. We dropped into our seats and watched her writhe up and down, as if she were scratching her back on the pole, all the while flashing every man in the place her g-string covered pussy that peeked out from beneath a tiny, plaid schoolgirl skirt. With knee high socks and high-heeled Mary Janes, she played the naughty school-girl to a ‘T’. The only thing prim about her white blouse was that it was tucked into her skirt. We’d missed the part of her performance where she’d ripped the buttons off so the two halves of the front were spread wide, hiding nothing. It was as if she knew what would get Gib and me going.

Gib leaned forward, set his forearms on the edge of the stage and held a twenty between his fingers. She caught sight of it and crawled our way.

I growled, and thankfully, the music covered it. She arched her back with the skill of a stripper who knew how to flaunt her assets, making those tits thrust out, her nipples plump and ready to be sucked.

She stopped right in front of Gibson and gave him a sly smile. He leaned in, careful not to touch her, and breathed. I heard his wolf growl, and she must have too because she went still, her eyes widening, nostrils flaring and picking up our scent. Yeah, she knew we were shifters and might even have an idea of why we were here.

But then, she slid into motion again, pushing out a hip for Gib to tuck the bill into the waistband of her skirt. I moved close enough to do the same on her other side, so we formed a triangle—her up on the raised stage and us sitting before her.

Oh, we’d put our mate up on a pedestal, probably naked, and once we hauled her out of here—preferably over my shoulder—we would be the only ones to see her bare from now on.

The song came to an end, and the music cut off.

“We want you between us,” I said in the lull between dances. “In the VIP room.”

Her cinnamon-colored eyes raked over us, a smirk curving at her lips. Her gaze, which had held false pleasure, now held real attraction. The glint of her she-wolf in the glow of her eyes.

“Both of you like schoolgirls?” Her voice was like caramel syrup, and my dick punched against the zipper of my jeans. She grabbed the cowboy hat from my head and set it on top of hers.

“Only the bad ones,” I answered.

“And you’ve definitely been a bad girl,” Gib said.

She smirked and twirled a lock of hair around her finger in mock-innocence. “Are you going to spank me?”

“Count on it, kitten,” I growled.

2

SHELBY

Oh fates.

They were shifters, and they were gorgeous. Six feet plus of bearded cowboy goodness—times two.

Usually when I caught the scent of a wolf, I hid in the back until he left. Roscoe, the owner, was used to that sort of thing. Every dancer here had someone she didn’t want finding out how she paid the bills. I didn’t need word getting back to my pack about how I earned money. The guys would get all protective even though I could more than take care of myself. Human males were not a threat to a shifter.

These guys? I picked up their deep spice scent before they even sat down and adjusted my routine to crawl toward them. Yeah, a single scent that they seemed to share. I’d never known shifters with that before.

I’d never laid eyes on them in my life. I definitely would have remembered. I didn’t know who they were. And strangely, I wanted to.

My inner she-wolf had me sticking out my breasts and practically preening for them. I never got wet on stage, even though I had tons of guys practically getting off on looking at me. But these two?

I worried there was a wet spot on my g-string, and everyone would know.

It had started with their scent, but it was also their looks that made me hot. Both had beards and dark hair, one with threads of gray in it. One appeared at least fifteen years older than I. The other I pegged to be mid-to-late-thirties. Yes, I had a thing for older, powerful males. They wore jeans and snug long-sleeved shirts. They weren’t local because I’d have met them. Cooper Valley and the shifter world was that small. But they screamed cowboy, screamed small town, nonetheless. If I had to guess their profession, I’d say lumberjack based on their beards. Or maybe they were rodeo champs like Boyd Wolf. They were that big.

Brawny.

Virile.

And the older one with a dash of silver in his dark beard just said I was a bad girl.

I was. I so was. I gave them a nod, which had my hair sliding over my shoulder, the long strands brushing my exposed nipple.

It was less about the money and more about following my instinct when I accepted their offer. Or had it been a demand?

They seemed bossy, like most male wolves I knew.

Usually it annoyed the shit out of me, but with these two? Nope. I’d let them boss me around. Scold me. Master and guide me. Do all the dirty things I fantasized about every time I picked the naughty school-girl or French maid costume to dance in. I’d never imagined having two growly wolves in charge of me, though.

“Fifty bucks a piece gets you a private in the VIP room.” I lifted my gaze toward the back hallway, the roped off area for big spenders.

They stood, the older one settling his hand at my lower back, the other snatching his hat from my head.

Eddie, the bouncer, surged forward because the male was touching me, but I shook off his touch before he got to us. I knew wolves when they’d set their sights on a female. They didn’t tolerate interference. No way would either like anyone getting between them and what they wanted.

Me.

A huge guy like Eddie wasn’t any kind of deterrent for a shifter.

“No touching, wolf,” I warned.

The older hottie’s nostrils flared, and his eyes changed from brown to amber.

God, something about his scent made my knees weak and had me wanting to push up his shirt and lick that muscled chest. I settled for resting my palm there.

“I touch you,” I promised softly. “You don’t get to touch me. Are you going to be able to handle that, big guy?”

His growl came as a low warning, and I swore to fate—went straight to my nether region. Flutters flopped in my belly. My g-string was definitely wet. Time to get off the stage.

I’d never had this reaction to a male wolf before—much less two.

“Christ, that scent. Can we just carry her out of here now?” the younger one muttered. “Fuck the bouncer.”

A ripple of apprehension ran through me, but it was equally matched with desire. I’d never been so excited to get a client to the VIP room as I was now.

They sandwiched me between them. Even in my platform heels, they were at least a foot taller. I led them to the back where the bouncer pulled the velvet cord to let us down the hall. No one else was in the VIP section at the moment, which had never made me so happy.

They pulled up two chairs and dropped into them. The guy with salt and pepper hair and a matching beard pulled out five twenties and fanned them out in front of me. I plucked them from his fingers and tucked them in my platform shoe where they wouldn’t slip out.

“I don’t know how we’re going to give you the spanking you deserve if we can’t touch,” he rumbled.

Heat flooded my core because insanely enough, I wanted that spanking. I shouldn’t encourage them or let them think they could play these sorts of games with me, but I was so wet, my thighs were growing slick. And they were shifters, so they smelled my arousal. Knew exactly the kind of effect they were having on me.

“I could probably make Eddie look the other way.” I glanced toward the bouncer. “Especially with a little green incentive.”

These were the tricks I’d learned to get as much cash out of clients as possible, but it felt all wrong to milk these guys for money. I found my face growing warm, and I never blushed for clients.

They didn’t look annoyed though. The younger one pulled out a twenty and handed it to me. I winked and sashayed over to Eddie to tell him we were going to have a little fun, and if he wanted to position himself at the end of the hall instead, it would be fine with me.

“You sure, doll?” He glanced at the shifters.

I nodded. “I’m sure. These guys are safe.”

The truth was, these two were the least safe guys I’d ever brought back here. They weren’t weak humans who couldn’t hurt me. They had shifter power and potency. Alpha stature and size. Even though they made me nervous and off-kilter, I knew I had nothing to fear from them. Especially if I was their mate. My she-wolf wasn’t scared at all. She was ready to rip her panties off and go spread eagle, ready to ask these guys to sniff her ass. The rest of me had a touch of stranger-danger. Fear of the unknown. Especially with the comment the younger one had made about carrying me out of the place.

Maybe it was because deep down I knew they could do it if they wanted. No one—not even me—would be able to stop them.

The thought of that was… actually hot as hell.

Every she-wolf wanted to be overpowered. Chased down in the woods and thrown onto her back, forced to surrender to the wolf who wanted her most. The one who would claim her for life.

In this case, it appeared to be not one, but two.

I strutted back and dropped into the younger one’s lap, grinding my mostly bare ass down on the bulge in his jeans and looping my arms around his neck. “All yours, big guy.”

Again, these might have been well-rehearsed lines, but the way they came out now was totally different. I sounded breathless. Excited.

His hand slid up into my ripped open shirt to cup my breast. His lips found the pulse at my neck. “You’ve got thirty seconds to tell me why our mate has been showing off this perfect body to every asshole in the county,” he growled. “Then we’re going to spank your ass pink.”

Several things happened at once. I orgasmed. A little one—but still. Definitely an orgasm. The only explanation was the same reason I tried to lunge off his lap—the confirmation of the words, our mate.

Because they rang true.

If they hadn’t, I wouldn’t have come just by hearing myself called that.

And yet, it was too much of a shock. Two strangers showed up, called themselves my mates and wanted to spank me?

Of course, I didn’t make it very far. And by that, I meant I didn’t make it an inch. His arm wrapped around my waist like a steel band, and he pulled me firmly back on his lap. I struggled but didn’t let out a sound, didn’t call for the bouncer. The older man didn’t intervene. He watched, eyes pinning me with the same force of the arm around my waist.

I loved feeling their strength as much as I struggled against it, knowing I wasn’t calling the shots for once. That they were... what? Rescuing me?

That was when I realized. These guys really might just carry me out of here. Considering I didn’t know who they were or where they were from, they could claim me and take me right out of Cooper Valley. Away from my pack and my mom, who needed me.

“Easy, she’s scared,” the older man cautioned, his nostrils flaring at my scent.

The younger one boldly cupped my mons, sliding a finger beneath the edge of my g-string and over my dripping slit. “She’s also gushing wet.”

“Let me see her,” the other said, reaching over and easily lifting me to his lap. He arranged me in a straddle position and molded his hands to my bare ass, gently kneading it as he met my gaze with his steady brown one. “There’s nothing to be afraid of, kitten. We’d never hurt you. I’m Gibson. This is Ben. We’re from the Two Marks pack in Wyoming. Ever heard of us?”

I shook my head.

“Wolves from our lineage mate in pairs.”

I gaped at him even as my pussy clenched again, apparently still orgasmic over being near my mates.

My mates! Plural.

Holy… fate. I glanced between the two of them. They were serious.

Gibson brought his thumb between my legs, delving under the plaid skirt to rub my clit over the miniscule excuse for panties. “Ben caught your scent when he was here on council business a few months ago, and he came back with me to find and claim you.”

My heart beat fast. Since I was sixteen, this was all I’d dreamed about. Finding my true mate. Being claimed by him. Yeah, him—not them. Two mates? This was nuts!

“Caught our scent?” he asked.

I nodded again.

“Unlike most shifters, we share it. That’s how our she-wolf knows she belongs to both of us. It’s also why this is intense for you. This sticky honey” —he slicked a finger beneath my panties, and I gasped— “Proves you’ve surrendered. You know you’re ours.”

Now that the moment had come, now that he said ours, it didn’t seem like such a fairytale.

It felt really freaking scary.

I didn’t know these guys from Adam, and they were here to claim me and take me back to their pack. Maybe I’d been hanging around too many human females, but it suddenly seemed like a medieval arranged marriage.

Slowly, I shook my head. “I think you’re mistaken.” I tried to dismount from Gibson’s lap.

He let me get to my feet but caught my hand. “Like I said, don’t be scared. What’s your name?”

“Shelby.”

“Shelby,” Ben murmured, as if savouring the sound.

“Come here, little she-wolf.” To my shock, Ben tugged me over both their laps, face down, and flipped up my skirt. “We all know you wanted that spanking.”

Not gonna lie. I definitely wanted the spanking. Their thighs were rock hard beneath me and, thankfully, I was sprawled across them enough, so I didn’t touch the dirty floor.

I felt Gibson’s fingers hook into my g-string.

“Bad girls get spankings bare,” he growled.

“My ass is bare,” I grated out.

“Bare… completely,” Ben added, when my panties settled just above my knees.

My pussy clenched at their words. And actions. Fuck.

Gibson’s hand cracked down on my ass and I was grateful for the music pumping loud enough to muffle it. He squeezed a rough handful of flesh, showing me it belonged to him. I wasn’t sure if this was just foreplay or if he really got off on domination, but my wolf didn’t give a flying F. I gushed arousal, squirming over their muscled thighs.

“And it’s your lucky day because you just got yourself two mates to keep you in line,” Ben added, pulling my wrists behind my back, even though I wasn’t fighting them or trying to cover. The act of being loosely restrained made me even hotter.

I let out a shaky breath right before Gibson started spanking in earnest, smacking me to the beat of the music, which meant fast and hard.

“Naughty little she-wolf. Showing what belongs to us to all those humans out there.”

I bucked under his hand, lifting my ass to meet it. Every crack fell sharp and satisfying. I was a shifter, so pain was transient. It hurt, but in a good way. A wonderful, hot, smarting way.

I writhed over their laps in ecstasy as Ben reached for one of my nipples so he could pinch and squeeze it.

I moaned. Two sets of hands on me at the same time. Not gentle, but telling me without words how things would be with them.

Gibson stopped spanking me long enough to slide his fingers into my heat. I hollowed my back, pushing my ass up to take him deeper. I was so wet those digits slid right in. My body wasn’t my own—I’d never felt my lady parts that way—so swollen and slick, dripping with juices. I’d never heard the wanton sounds come from my mouth. The two men continued to work me, Ben giving my breasts more attention than they’d ever received while Gibson alternately spanked and fingered me.

Maybe it was their technique. Maybe it was just their scent calling to my inner wolf. Either way, it didn’t take me long before I hurtled into my second orgasm, and this one was far more satisfying. My pussy clenched around Gibson’s fingers, squeezing and pulsing as his thumb found my back pucker and massaged it. I bucked on his lap, alternately rocking to take him deeper and pushing my ass up to experience the new anal stimulation. If there were two of them, that meant that one of them would—

Waves of pleasure rolled through me, each one stronger than the last. Sparks danced before my eyes. I’d never come like that before, and their dicks were still in their pants.

As it ebbed, reality came pouring in. These two strangers were my mates. They were here to claim me. I started clawing to get off them again, terrified at the pleasure they’d wrung from me. If they could make me lose myself like that from just a little play, then I was in big trouble. I was screwed.

Because I knew I was going to end up leaving with these guys, not just leaving Hoedown, but leaving Cooper Valley. And I couldn’t.

I absolutely couldn’t.

There was a reason I was showing my rack off at the strip club in the next town down the highway, and my leaving Montana wouldn’t make it go away.

It would make it worse.

3

GIBSON

“That’s it, baby.” Ben praised our mate, massaging the back of her head to calm her.

She was skittish as hell, and that bothered me. We’d come on too strong.

The aggression produced by seeing our unclaimed mate half naked in front of a room full of men had made us too possessive. Too demanding.

I’d dreamed of finding my mate all my life. I’d given up in the past few years, but when Ben had said he thought he might have found her but never met her… fuck, had I been skeptical. Doubtful enough that I’d waited months to find out for sure. Ben had gone off on a job for the Shifter Council. I’d been kept busy as Two Marks alpha. When Ben had returned, as sure as ever that our mate might be in Cooper Valley, Montana, we hadn’t waited a second longer.

As soon as we found her scent at the gas station, I knew just as strongly as Ben. It was hers. Our mate’s. We’d had to follow it… straight to a fucking titty bar. To a she-wolf who was sharing the sight of her body with anyone pulling off the highway and coming in for a look. The only males who should be getting off at the sight of her were her mates. Me and Ben.

That’s why her ass was a pretty shade of pink. That’s why we made her come across our laps. We’d mete out punishment and pleasure in equal measure. If her choice of a performance outfit was any indication, she was looking for someone to take her in hand. Lucky for her, she’d have two someones to do just that.

While I was certain Shelby recognized us as her mates, she was pretty damn far from accepting that fact. We hadn’t expected to find our mate in a strip club. I figured she felt the exact same way.

In fact, I was certain she was still thinking about bolting. Oh, we’d get the hell out of here—but together. I glanced at Ben, who nodded his agreement. We helped her so she stood between us, her little white panties taut around her thighs. My dick dripped pre-cum at the sight. The scent of her arousal was heady and potent, and it coated my fingers. My wolf wanted me to tug open my pants, spin her about and fuck her right down onto me. Here. Now.

That wasn’t happening. Not in the back room of a strip club. No fucking way. My dick and my wolf had no say on when.

Ben stroked her long hair back from her face as I took in her flushed cheeks. Her eyes were wild, and her tits practically bounced with her nervous pants of breath. She might have just come all over my hand, but it hadn’t calmed her.

“Shh,” I crooned, pulling the two halves of her miniscule blouse together as much as possible. While the lush inner swells were visible, at least her nipples were covered. “Everything’s okay, kitten. You’re leaving with us,” I said.

She shook her head. “I… just met you. Mates or not, you’re strangers. I’m not going to Wyoming with you.”

“Not to Wyoming. To your place.” I filled both my hands with her firm ass and squeezed. Damn, she felt good. “Did you think that was the only orgasm we’d give you? No, sweet thing. We’re going to need to pleasure you all night.”

Her blue eyes changed to amber, and she drank in our scent with a slow pull through her nostrils. She couldn't ignore biology—the undeniable sexual pull between us—any more than we could. Going to her place would make her more comfortable.

No matter how much I wanted her in my house on my pack’s land, we weren’t doing the drive tonight. Probably not even tomorrow. We’d give her time because she needed it. And we needed to find out why the fuck she stripped. She might be running hot for us, but I doubted she was strutting on stage because she was an exhibitionist. No, the way she just submitted to us, I had a feeling she really did want to be dominated. Our girl had a reason for being here, and whatever it was, we’d deal with it. It was our job now to take care of her.

“I have another set.” She glanced toward the door.

Ben stood, stroked her hair once more. “I’ll handle it.”

“The only stripping you’ll be doing from now on is for us.”

I saw uneasiness in the shift of her jaw. It seemed she knew better than to argue with us, but it didn’t sit well with her.

“Time to go.”

Reaching down, she started to pull her panties back up.

I clucked my tongue and stopped her motion with my hand then took over the task, but instead of lifting them, I worked them down her legs. “No panties for you. I want you bare and ready for me. Lift your foot. Good girl. Now the other.”

She complied, and I stood. Tucking the damp scrap into my pocket, I took her hand and led her through the club for the last time.

4

SHELBY

We’re going to need to pleasure you all night.

I couldn’t deny the surge of lust I’d experienced at hearing those words. I’d been incapable of refusing the offer.

Although... it had been less an offer than a demand, and perhaps, that was the reason right there I was nervous.

“Star, you okay?” Roscoe demanded, stalking away from Ben who’d probably just told him some macho bullshit about me quitting. A growl rumbled from Gibson at my stage name.

“I’m fine, but I do have to go.” I held up a hand to try to ward off his concern and approach. The last thing I needed here was an altercation between two hormonally-challenged wolves defending their unclaimed mate and the strip club owner and his bouncers.

I put a hand on Gibson’s chest and went up on my tiptoes to whisper although he didn’t need me to do that to hear, even with the music blaring. “You two make a scene, and I’m not going anywhere with you,” I warned, even though we both knew they could toss me over a shoulder and carry me off.

That was the part that freaked me out.

Meeting them here—away from others like us—meant they had no one to vouch for them. Especially being from another pack. Clint had outed himself as an enforcer last fall, his job to protect shifters was a stark reminder that there were rogues around. When I walked out the doors, I had no one to protect me from them if required.

When Gibson looked troubled at my words, I relaxed slightly. He took my threat seriously. Or took me seriously, anyway.

He tucked an arm around my waist and made an attempt at dropping his scowl. “We’re sorry for the inconvenience, but Star won’t be returning.”

“Are you safe with these guys?” Roscoe demanded. All things considered, he was a decent guy.

I swallowed. I should be safe with them. As their mate, they would be hard-wired to protect and provide for me. That didn’t mean they wouldn't be high-handed assholes while doing so. After all, they’d just informed me and my boss I was out of a job. Not to mention spanked my butt pink over having it out in the first place. Of course, I'd enjoyed the heck out of that.

And that thought got my bare pussy wet. Wetter.

Gibson’s nostrils flared.

“Yeah,” I managed to say, sounding slightly out of breath. “They’re safe.”

Roscoe didn’t look convinced, so I flashed an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry. I’ll just get my stuff.”

“You bail, I’m not fucking paying you for tonight’s shift,” Roscoe snapped.

“Don’t talk to her that—” Ben began, but Gibson cut in. “Not a problem.”

Not a problem for him. I doubted he had bills he couldn't pay. I needed the cash, but I also didn’t think they were going to let me get back up on the stage without a bar brawl.

“I’ll go clean out my locker,” I said quickly, escaping to the ladies’ room which also served as a very lame dressing area for the dancers at Hoedown.

I didn’t bother to change my clothes, not caring to examine if it was because I didn’t want to put on a new pair of panties after my oh-so-dominant new mate had stripped off the last ones and commanded I remain bare. I couldn’t help it if surrender was in my nature. I grabbed my purse and clothing bag from my locker and met Ben and Gibson at the door.

Gibson took my hand in his large one and tugged me outside. There, he turned me to face him, set his hands gently on my shoulders. “Don’t be scared, kitten. We’re going to take good care of you.”

I didn’t answer. I was sure he believed that, but good care could be interpreted in many different ways. What if we had different definitions? My father hadn’t taken good care of my mother. When I was little, she’d been a stay-at-home mom. Hadn’t thought she would need a career outside the home. Then boom! One day, when I was a teenager, he just up and left. She’d been scrambling ever since.

She’d quickly gotten underwater on her mortgage and racked up credit card bills while trying to find a job that paid more than minimum wage. At sixteen, I’d gotten an after-school job and worked—helping her pay the bills—ever since. College had never been an option. At a certain point, I’d realized living with her wasn’t healthy, and I’d moved out, but she still relied on me with her mortgage and other surprise bills. My wages as a ski instructor and rafting guide and the money from my little juice bar stand barely paid my own rent, which was how I ended up at Hoedown. The cash was good, and the hours didn’t conflict with my other work.

“Listen.” He cupped my face and ran his thumb across my cheek.

I didn’t mean to, but my body automatically responded to his touch, and I leaned into his hand. My gaze met his in the pink glow of the neon sign.

“I feel you trembling, kitten,” he murmured. His voice was deep but the tone soft. “I know you’re not sure about us. But you do believe you’re safe, right?”

That question again. I closed my eyes. My she-wolf certainly felt safe. Hell, my she-wolf also felt horny, so maybe she wasn’t the best judge. Did I think I was safe?

When I opened my eyes again, I found him watching me so intently it made a shiver run through my body. “Yes.”

“Good.” He nodded.

“Ben will drive your car. You ride with him and give him directions, okay?” He waited for my response. He was alpha, I was sure of it, but he paid attention to my emotions.

I drew a long breath and exhaled. "I… Are you going to claim me?" I met his gaze and willed my legs to stop wobbling. I’d wanted to be claimed my entire life, but now that it was imminent, I was scared. I felt too much too fast.

Their claiming bite—bites?—would forever embed their scent in my skin. Mark me as theirs. Once bitten, there'd be no going back. I had no idea how it even worked with two males.

"Not without your consent." He glanced at Ben, who moved to stand beside us. He nodded.

"Promise?" I don't know why I wanted to delay the inevitable. Why I fought against fate. Maybe it was just to believe I still held some control over my future. My wolf might trust them, but I didn’t. I didn’t even know them. The way my dad bolted, could I ever trust a man even after being claimed?

"You have my word as pack alpha," Gibson vowed.

"You have my word as your mate and a council enforcer," Ben swore.

Alpha. Council enforcer. Holy crap. When my she-wolf picked mates, she found mates.

I licked my lips and both of them tracked the movement, their eyes changing color. A blast of lust rocked through me. I glanced down. Judging by the tents in their pants, we all felt it.

"Let's go," Ben said, taking my elbow. “Where’s your car?”

I still wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into, but there was no turning back now. Even if I wanted to send them away, they’d never budge. Not without taking me with them. Taking them to my place was the best case scenario. Especially since I’d be back in pack territory.

If only I could convince them to stay in Cooper Valley.

But I already knew that was impossible. Gibson was an alpha. An alpha. He had a Wyoming pack to lead… for his lifetime. He couldn’t run off to Montana to play house. No male gave up his pack for a female.

Not even when she was his one true mate.

5

BEN

"I need to taste her," I practically growled, licking my lips.

Gibson and I had shared women before, but this time I found it harder to defer to him as alpha. Riding back with the scent of our beautiful mate's arousal drenching the truck had me harder than stone and nearly out of my mind with the need to claim her. Especially with her wearing the plaid skirt that was so tiny it didn’t even cover her ass in her car. Which meant her bare pussy was pressed against the seat getting it all nice and wet. With the way her skimpy blouse was open from neck to navel so I could see the inside swell of her breast, it was any wonder I hadn’t driven us into a ditch before I pulled up in front of her little house on pack land.

Gibson rotated her to face me where she stood inside her place. The space was so small—it was a living room, dining room and kitchen all in one. He reached around to slowly slide her blouse off her shoulders. "Is that okay, little wolf?" He cupped both her bare breasts and thumbed over her nipples.

"Yes." Her voice was throaty, choked with the same desire we felt, as she let her head fall back. It had me busting out of my jeans.

Gibson slid down the zipper on her skirt, and the tiny garment fluttered to the floor to join the top.

I knew my eyes changed color by the sharpening of my vision. Our mate stood naked before us in just sexy knee highs and the school-girl heels. Fuck, was she stunning.

"We’ll never let another male see what's ours," I croaked, possessiveness closing my throat. I set my hat on a table and peeled off my shirt. Advanced.

I noticed she didn't agree, even bit her lip to keep the words in, which had my wolf howling.

Gib picked that up, too. He continued to work her nipples, but he leaned down and put his mouth near her ear. "We'll provide for you now. You won't ever have to earn money that way again."

She lifted her chin and straightened her spine which made her breasts fill Gib’s palms. "Maybe I like dancing."

His eyes changed to amber. "No more stripping." I didn't think he meant to, but he put alpha command in the words.

Shelby's knees buckled, and even my body went weak with submission. I froze in place.

Before her knees hit the floor, Gibson swept her up into his arms and carried her to the no-nonsense futon. "I'm sorry, kitten. I do want you on your knees, but I want you there willingly. Tell us you won't fucking strip anymore, so we don’t have to go back there and burn the place down. Gouge out the eyes of every asshole who ever saw you."

Gibson settled with Shelby on his lap. He pulled her back, so she leaned against his chest, her knees straddling his thighs, facing outward. He captured her wrists and raised them behind his head, pushing her breasts up and out for me to savor. “Keep your hands here, sweet mate, or you'll get another spanking, understand?"

He pinched her upturned nipple to show her exactly how hard it might be to follow his instructions.

She gasped but didn’t move. Just looking at her sprawled across his lap was hot as hell. I opened the button on my jeans and slid down the zipper to give my dick some room.

Gib nodded then widened his knees, which opened her up for me. I settled between her legs and palmed her silky thighs, holding her just where I wanted.

Fuck. Her pussy was bare and pink and glistening. She had plump folds that didn’t hide her clit—it was right there, all hard and eager.

I didn’t wait a second longer. I lowered my head and licked into her. She gasped and jerked in my hold as I said, "Answer your alpha."

My mouth and chin were coated just from that one swipe of my tongue. Her juices ran like nectar. Gibson's alpha command had only made her wetter. Her eyes glowed amber, and her body was still slack with surrender. I wasn't sure she'd even understood me.

Gibson pinched one of her nipples. "Kitten, I need your answer."

“Yes, Alpha.” Her voice was honey-thick.

I wasn’t sure she even knew what she was agreeing to, but it would have to do for now. We could revisit her former profession later, after we taught her to trust us. I slid my hands under her ass to hold her still as I feasted on her pussy.

I gave it a little spank. That made her sex drip with fresh nectar, and I lapped it up like a starved man.

Nothing had ever tasted so good. Her tang drove me wild. I thrashed her with my tongue, sucked and nipped her outer lips, penetrated her. Then I lifted her hips higher to rim her while Gibson’s hand slid from her breast down the center of her body to work her clit.

Her moans filled the small room. Her legs lifted and kicked around my ears. I raised my head to take a moment to see exactly what our touch did to her.

Gib spanked her pussy with several short, light slaps, and I shifted to work my slick thumb in her ass. Since males from our pack claimed their mates together, a claiming ideally occurred when she took both at the same time. One of us would be in Shelby’s ass, the other in her pussy as we bit her and gave her two marks. As we made her come until she screamed herself hoarse and passed out from the intensity of it. Mating two shifters was potent.

“Oh fates! Oh-oh-oh!” she screamed. Writhed. Sweat bloomed across her silky skin.

“This is what it’ll be like when we claim you. Me in your ass, Gib in your pussy.”

To match words to action, Gib sank three fingers in her pussy as she came for us, beautiful in her abandon. She clenched hard around my thumb, surrendering to the pleasure and her mates. She collapsed like a rag doll against his chest, her arms still loosely dangling from his neck.

“Good girl,” Gibson praised.

I slipped my thumb from her, sat back on my heels and just stared. I’d probably do it for the rest of my life, amazed she was ours. She was so fucking responsive. We knew she’d be into ass play, into us taking her completely… and together. It was in her DNA. Fate wouldn’t put us together otherwise. But the submissive schoolgirl thing? That was just icing on the cake.

“Mmm.” She watched me with heavy lids. The color of her irises gradually changed back to their unusual shade of cinnamon. “Do you have condoms?” she asked as she licked her dry lips.

Something stiffened under my ribs. Wolves didn’t get STDs, so her request for condoms meant she wasn’t willing to have our pups. But it came back to trust and acceptance. She wasn’t there yet, and I needed to remember that, no matter how sure we were that she was ours. Males were more certain of their mate’s scent than females. We knew she was ours, which meant it was our job to prove we were worthy of the job. To show her. And if that meant filling a condom instead of her pussy the first time we got inside her, so be it.

Gib dug out his wallet from his pocket and held it up as a yes. Energy returning to her body, she turned to face him, unbuttoning his jeans as she knelt before him.

I moved out of her way because… fuck, our mate wasn’t shy.

Gib’s eyes flashed yellow as he practically flung his wallet at me to retrieve a condom. He groaned when she released his sizable erection. I found the condom and ripped open the foil, then freed my own manhood and wrapped up. Shelby offered me her ass as she lowered to her elbows between Gib’s legs and slid those pouty lips over his mushroom head.

Fuck.

“Fuck!” Gib cursed. His excitement and loss of control spurred my own, but I still remembered to ask for consent.

“You want me to fuck you, kitten?”

She wiggled her hips then popped off Gib long enough to look over her shoulder at me, tossing her hair. “Mmm hmm.”

She wasn’t inhibited or tame. Not that I figured she would be after that show up on stage at Hoedown. She was just sweet and submissive. Perfect. And ours.

Gib grabbed her head and gently guided her back to his ready cock.

“Your mates are going to fuck you so hard, you’ll beg to be claimed, kitten,” I promised, dragging the tip of my sheathed cock through her juices I could still taste on my tongue.

She made a muffled sound of agreement, her mouth stuffed with Gib’s cock.

“That’s right, baby, take me deep,” he encouraged, setting his hand on her neck.

Before I knew what I was doing, I’d impaled her, all the way to the hilt. She choked a little on Gib’s cock before he braced her shoulders for me. I gripped her hips for added stability and eased back to slam in once more.

Heaven.

There was no other word to describe the rightness of being inside my mate. Hot, tight, wet. And she was taking both of us. She was right there with us.

Our fucking mate. Fucking our mate.

“Kitten,” I muttered. “You feel so good.” I forced myself to slow my breathing, to keep my strokes gentle, but I wanted to pound her into oblivion.

She bobbed faster and with more enthusiasm over Gib, as if my pleasure transferred directly to her.

He wound her hair up around his fist, using it to guide her head over his thick length. “Fuck, baby. You feel so good to me, too.” His voice was pure gravel.

Shelby’s pussy dripped with her pleasure. I bumped up my pace, letting my loins slap into her perfect ass. Every inhale brought more of her intoxicating scent. Every thrust drove me closer to the edge. I wanted to fuck her all night long, but my balls were already drawn up tight, blue from the need to release. I’d been waiting to get in her since I first caught her scent months ago.

Shelby took hold of the base of Gib’s cock with both hands, twisting them opposite each other as she continued to suck hard, her cheeks hollowed out while he controlled her head, pushing her up and down over his cock.

“Fuck!” he shouted. “Don’t claim her,” he reminded me just before I lost control, jackhammering our sweet mate with a fast, hard pounding. “I’m coming,” he warned Shelby, but she didn’t pop off.

I watched as he came, his alpha pleasure suffusing all of us with delirium.

I meant to wait for Shelby to swallow and finish him off, but I couldn’t. A shudder ran through me as lightning struck the base of my spine. My thighs tightened even more, and then I roared, burying myself deep inside her and coming like my life depended on it.

This was the most intense, most incredible orgasm I’d ever had. My need to claim was so strong, it was almost impossible to resist.

“Don’t.” Gib’s command made me turn my head away, rear my torso back to keep my descended canines from sinking into the soft flesh of her shoulder.

Not marking her was harder than I’d imagined, but I got it under control, breathed until my vision returned, the entire time still moving inside her because she was coming now, too, her muscles squeezing and pulsing around my cock. Milking the last cum from my balls.

“Thank you, beautiful,” Gib rumbled, stroking her hair when she popped off.

She looked over her shoulder at me, her cheeks flushed, her lips swollen, her hair a wild tangle from his fingers. “Thank you for your restraint.”

Her voice was pure sweetness, and it entered my ears like a second intoxicant. The first being her scent.

I dragged in another breath and eased out of her. I was still hard. I doubted I’d go down anytime soon. Once wasn’t enough. No fucking way. It was a taste, an idea of how it could be between the three of us. “That was incredible.”

Gib slid down in the futon and lifted her up and onto his lap. She went willingly, her thick mane of dark blonde hair falling in silky strands across his chest.

I felt no jealousy over him holding her. Mating pairs from our lineage never did, or so I’d been promised. It was strange in a species so territorial and possessive of females that nature and fate combined to make this rare twist. Fate’s joke, perhaps.

I took the time while he held her, to watch her settle, to take off her shoes and knee highs, then I went to the kitchen to ditch the condom and get a large glass of water for our mate. When I came back, I sat beside them. “I need to know at least five hundred things about you, kitten, before we fall asleep.”

6

SHELBY

“Who said anything about sleep?” I lifted my head and grinned at Ben, who handed me a glass of water.

His eyes crinkled.

I’d had sex before with a few shifters after full moon runs or during mating games, just to let off steam. It felt good and wasn’t weird because we knew the score. Unlike humans who bonded to partners emotionally instead of through their pheromones, friends with benefits worked flawlessly with shifters.

But nothing—nothing—compared to what I’d just experienced. It wasn’t just the dual male action, and that was something I’d never even considered before. It was definitely because they were my mates. I swore, it was like my body sang the entire time they touched me. Vibrated at a different frequency. Exploded into smithereens and then came back in a totally new form during orgasm. It was insane. Intense. Powerful. Yet… simple.

Shifters were used to being naked. Used to others seeing them that way. After shifting back after a run, everyone was bare. That was why it wasn’t hard for me to strip. I was used to taking my clothes off in front of others.

Being bare physically was one thing, but I had a feeling these two would see things I wasn’t ready to show. Or feel. Or share.

The fact that they’d run with my little schoolgirl outfit and spanked me had me feeling raw and tender. I liked it way too much. The fact that they kept calling me a good girl made me loose-jointed and swoony. Utterly submissive.

In the span of two hours, I was changed. A completely different person. My life had veered off course from one deep inhale to the next. Because of this, I feared I was very solidly in the camp of allowing my mates to claim me, come what would.

Even now, as my very human reasoning returned, I couldn’t feel anything but the strongest affection for these two gorgeous shifters, and I knew nothing about them but their dick size. It was like the human concept of love didn’t even apply. Our bodies just produced the feeling when near our mates. And I liked it.

“Oh, we’ll be happy to keep you up all night,” Gibson rumbled, burying his fingers in my hair again. It felt good. Soothing. “But Ben’s right. We definitely need to learn some things about you, so we know how to keep you happy.”

I studied him. His dark hair with hints of silver, the matching beard. The strong physique. He was completely dressed except for his pants open and his half-hard dick laying against his belly. He looked sated. Relaxed. As if his wolf wasn’t driving him in the moment, unlike earlier at the club.

“You first,” I said. “Profession?”

“I’m CEO of the West Springs Distillery. It has been run for generations and provides work for many members of my pack.”

“And you really are their alpha?” I’d felt the alpha power in his command earlier but didn’t know if he was just from an alpha line or had already inherited the position.

He nodded.

A younger alpha, like Rob Wolf, our pack’s leader. It probably meant Gibson had already experienced loss through a parent’s death. That explained why his eyes looked far more ancient than his face. That and the responsibility he faced every day for his pack members’ well-being and safety. Yet he was relaxed and calm with me. I’d made him this way. Sure, a blow job would short circuit any guy’s fuse, but I felt powerful in my own way, knowing I’d given him this peace.

I looked to Ben. His dark hair was rumpled, his gaze steady and even. They were both calm and commanding, but Ben seemed more intense. “You’re on the shifter council?” I asked him although I was taking in his bare chest, the thickly-muscled physique.

He shook his head. “I’m an enforcer. Of course, that’s a secret you can’t share with anyone. Your alpha and his brothers know because we met last fall.”

I drew in a breath, sobered. Pack enforcers had the dangerous and soul-crushing job of carrying out the council’s justice, which often meant they served as executioners. “Thank you for your service,” I murmured, knowing he put his life on the line every day, so the rest of us could stay safe.

Ben’s face softened into an affectionate smile. “You may like to play the bad girl, but you are as sweet as they come, aren’t you, kitten?”

I shook my head. “I’m not that sweet.” Except he was right. Being a bad girl was only a role I played. I wasn’t even that tough or strong. I held a prime female support role in the pack. I was the one who helped with cookouts and potlucks. Picked up the groceries and came early to set up. Stayed late to clean up. Ensured everyone was taken care of. Fed, nurtured. Satiated. It felt good to make others feel good.

“Don’t lie to your mates.” Ben brushed my cheek with his knuckles, breaking me from my thoughts. “Or you’re going to get spanked again.”

My nipples puckered, and both males noticed, their nostrils flaring. I was wet still, my body eager for more, and with one inhale, they picked up on it.

Those secrets I wanted to keep? They’d literally sniff them out.

“I see lots of spankings in her future, Ben,” Gibson observed, amusement playing on his face. It was a small turn of his lips, but like Rob, Wolf Ranch’s alpha, I had a feeling he didn’t smile all that much.

My face grew warm, and I shifted my ass on the futon, twitching my thighs together to alleviate the renewed throb between them. I’d just come. Twice. It wasn’t enough.

“Speaking of spankings, you still haven’t told us why you were stripping,” Ben added. “Does your alpha know?”

I glanced away and wrapped my arms around my torso. “I told you—I like it.”

“Stripping for horny strangers?” Gibson asked.

I nodded. I didn’t want to admit my money problems to them. Pride was one reason. But something else held me back. I didn’t want to become reliant on these guys for money. Not after what I saw my mom go through. Turning my money worries over to them would make me completely vulnerable to future devastation. If they abandoned me like my dad did, then I’d have nothing. No skills, no job.

“Liked it, past tense,” Gibson growled, a touch of alpha in his voice, which made me go weak.

It also made my pussy clench. I didn’t have this reaction to Rob when he issued alpha orders. Nope. He and all the other guys in the pack were like brothers to me. My reaction was specific to this particular alpha. The one who I seemed to enjoy being the boss of me. My new mate. One of two.

Ben slid his hand up my thigh to cup my bare mons. “She gushes nectar every time you do that,” he observed to Gibson.

Gibson growled, pleased. “Don’t worry, kitten, we’ll give you another reward soon.” He squeezed one of my breasts and pinched my nipple. “After we learn all your secrets.”

“But—”

“Was that your only job?” Ben asked, cutting me off.

I shook my head. “I’m a ski instructor in the winter and raft guide in the summer. And I have a juice stand I run at the local farmer’s markets and events.”

Gibson smiled. “You like being outdoors. I can’t fucking wait to run with you.” He meant as wolves, of course. “What color?”

“Tan.” I held up a lock of my honey-colored hair to show him what my wolf looked like. “Similar to this.”

“Show me.”

I didn’t even know if he put command in the words, but my body literally transformed before the thought made it to my brain. One minute I was naked between them in human form, the next my she-wolf was on her back, showing her belly to her new alpha.

“Oh fuck, she’s gorgeous,” Ben rumbled, rubbing my belly as Gibson stroked my ears and face.

“The most beautiful wolf I’ve ever seen,” Gibson agreed. “Shift, baby.”

In seconds, I was back, Gibson’s body on top of mine, his lips crashing down. He kissed me with the ferocity of a claiming male until I was breathless, until his canines descended, and he had to throw himself off me to keep from biting.

“Yeah,” I panted, dizzy with lust. “Marking my face would definitely be a mating foul.”

Ben chuckled. “Kitten, you don’t understand how hard it is to hold back.”

I put my hand between my legs to alleviate the ache there and felt how wet and swollen I was. “When is my reward?” I heard the pout in my words.

“A few more questions,” Ben pressed. “When can we meet your family?”

That one took me by surprise although I guessed I should have expected it. They weren’t from around here and wanted to claim me. We’d essentially be merging families.

“It’s just me and my mom,” I admitted.

Gibson came close again, his wolf under control. He ran the backs of his knuckles down my arm. “Your dad’s dead?”

“My dad left,” I snapped, a little of my teenage bitterness leaking through in the words.

Both males drew back slightly. It was unusual for a male to abandon his mate and pup, which had made it all the more humiliating for my mom and me. We hadn’t been shunned, but it had been embarrassing, nonetheless. It still was.

“That’s why you won’t let us claim you yet,” Ben said softly, stroking a finger over my bare leg.

Something flip-flopped in my chest like a pancake. Was it because of my dad leaving and not because they were practically strangers? If my dad hadn’t been an abandoning dick, would I already be halfway to Wyoming with them by now?

Maybe so.

“You don’t trust us to take care of you,” Gibson added.

I looked up at him. “Why should I? We just met.”

He settled back beside me. “Because we’re your mates. We know it. You know it. Your she-wolf knows it. It’s that simple.”

“But not for you,” Ben added.

I didn’t expect the rush of emotion that came with their words. I was a strong woman. I’d basically taken care of my mom since I was sixteen. I didn’t see myself as a victim or mope around—I stayed cheerful and positive. But suddenly, tears filled my eyes. All the tears I’d kept in when my dad abandoned us.

“I don’t need you to take care of me.”

Gibson stroked his fingers through his beard. “You’re a brave girl. Need? Maybe not. Want? Definitely. You just need to let go, and we’ll help you carry all your burdens. Your mates will take care of everything.”

Males handed over burdens. They didn’t take them away. Here were Gibson and Ben telling me the opposite. “Yeah, just like my dad? As if.” I pressed my lips together, realizing what I’d said aloud. “Oh, fate,” I choked, pressing the heels of my hands to my eyes to hide the tears.

Gibson peeled them away as Ben molded his body against mine, his arm circling my waist where we sat propped against the wall behind my futon. “Don’t ever hide your tears from us, Shelby,” Gibson said. “Your pain is ours.”

I’d heard a she-wolf’s tears sobered her mate. It was one of nature’s ways of balancing the power differential. It prevented or reduced domestic abuse in partnerships that lasted a lifetime. Ben and Gibson crowded close, enfolded me between their bodies. Sheltered me. Protected me.

Gibson licked one of my tears then leaned his forehead against my temple. Ben massaged the back of my neck.

“We’re not your father. We won’t ever leave you,” Ben promised.

“Never,” Gibson swore.

Shivers of recognition ran through me. I felt certain they spoke the truth.

Why, then, was it still so hard to trust?

7

GIBSON

I opened Shelby’s front door and carried in bags of take-out from the local diner. There was an assortment of pastries, over-easy eggs, sausage and potato hash, pancakes, bacon, omelettes and three coffees.

“Thank fate!” Shelby raced forward in nothing but a cute pair of panties, her gorgeous body and colorful tattoos on display. Ben mock-chased her and smacked her ass with a predatory growl.

My dick turned to marble again at the sight of her. So open, so fucking hot. I wasn’t going to get any sustenance if her tits kept bouncing like that.

We’d made our mate come four more times during the night, and I was still horny for her. Of course, we hadn’t marked her yet.

I wouldn’t last long if I waited too much longer. At my age as an alpha, being around my mate without marking her was a recipe for moon madness, for sure.

Ben knew I was in trouble. The last time I’d come last night, he’d had to tackle me off her. I’d been centimeters away from sinking my teeth into that sweet flesh of hers as she screamed my name and her pussy pulsed all around my dick.

We needed to convince her to trust us quickly. She-wolves usually picked up her mate’s scent and were immediately eager for his bite. It was in their nature. She knew bite and claim came first, trust and connection followed later.

Shelby’s father had done a fucking number on her. I’d find out his name from her alpha, and Ben and I would hunt him down and finish him for what he’d done. Not just to Shelby but her mother, too.

Despite her submissiveness, we’d be her mates, treat her as an equal. We wanted her to be the mother of our pups, the female alpha of our pack. And we’d be the best damn fathers we could be for our pups.

In the bedroom, though? We’d be dominant because that’s what turned her on. And it would work because we were the kind of males who loved to protect and take care of and pamper the hell out of our female in and out of the bedroom.

Shelby grabbed the bags from me and ripped into the food. I smiled. I’d been responsible for my pack ever since my father was killed trying to subdue his best friend who’d succumbed to moon madness, but I’d never had this kind of pleasure at providing. It was a fucking priviledge. One I’d longed for since the first time I beat off as a pre-teen.

This was different from the responsibility that weighed on my shoulders. This was only satisfaction. Watching her shovel the food I’d brought into her hungry little mouth made me feel as tall as a mountain.

And watching her do it in just skimpy panties—we’d have to make a no-clothes rule for our mate when in the house—made me hard as nails. I took a seat at the tiny dining table.

“Tell us about the tattoos.” I ran the back of my fingers over the colorful artwork.

She took a drink then looked down at them. Shrugged. “I got my first one at sixteen.” She pointed to a dragonfly that was on the inside of her right wrist. “I know, too young by human standards, but it was a shifter tattoo artist, obviously, so they don’t follow the human laws.”

Due to our healing abilities, tattooing a shifter would be an impossibility if we didn’t mix a hint of silver or salt into the ink to make the wound stay around long enough to absorb the color.

“You obviously didn’t stop at the one.” Ben took a sip of his coffee.

She shrugged again. “I like them. They are a reminder of how I felt in that moment.”

The combination of all her moments was a wild mix, just like she was. A dichotomy of feelings, moods. Hot and cold, vibrant and… based on her history, dim.

“They’ll always be with me.”

Ah, the crux of it. Ben stood and went over to look out the window over the kitchen sink. He felt as I did. Anger. Fury. Rage at the depth of her hurt feelings. Her abandonment issues affected everything she did.

I took her hand and she stood, came over to stand between my spread knees. “Baby, got room on there for our names? We’re permanent, too.”

She looked down at herself but didn’t say anything.

“I’m thinking my name here.” I circled my finger around her right nipple. “Ben’s name could go here.” I moved to the same spot above her other one.

She gasped then wiggled out of my hold. “That would mean letting another male see my nipples again. I thought that was off the table now.” She tossed me a saucy grin.

“Ah, she’s more obedient than she pretends,” I said to Ben as I caught her and pulled her to my lap. “Good.” I nuzzled behind her ear. “We only want to give you good-girl spankings.”

She writhed over my cock, the scent of her sweet nectar telling us she loved that idea.

“Speaking of spankings,” Ben rumbled, “We need to get that ass ready for claiming. So we can both be inside you when we mark you with our teeth.”

Shelby’s muscles lifted over my cock and a shiver ran through her.

“Oh fuck.” I shoved her panties to the side and sank two fingers inside her dripping cunt. She tossed her head back on my shoulder. “Did you just come, kitten?”

Her muscles squeezed again, this time around my fingers, that tight little pussy milking my digits. My vision sharpened, and the serum for marking her flesh coated my teeth, but I shoved the urge back down as I pumped my fingers into her roughly.

“Oh fates!” She pushed her taut nipples toward the ceiling as she finished coming.

Ben and I watched her, fascinated, as she recovered. Her lids fluttered back open, and she lifted her lolling head from my shoulder. “It’s like the full moon times fifty,” she said with awe. “I can’t seem to get enough.”

“You have no fucking idea what you’re doing to us, kitten. How you’ve gotten under our skin.” My control was starting to snap. “I have an idea.” I lifted her from my lap. “Where’s that tattoo artist of yours?”

“Alan? He lives in town.” She cupped her own breasts like she was thinking about my suggested location for our names. “Why?”

“Call him. We’re going to tattoo your name on our bodies.”

“Fuck yes,” Ben agreed.

“Prove to you we’re yours,” I said. “Forever.”

8

SHELBY

Ben pulled his shirt off and sat down backwards in one of Alan’s kitchen chairs. “I want Shelby’s name in big letters across my back,” he said.

Alan, a fifty-something wiry half-breed who never shifted but was still part of the pack, tipped his head to the side to consider. “Colors?” His regular profession was as a clay artist, but his ink skills had prompted him to become one of the most sought-after shifter tattoo artists in the West.

Ben looked at me. “What do you think, kitten?”

Alan snorted. “Never heard anyone call a she-wolf kitten before.”

“I like it,” I told him. Funny how I was already defending my mates. Claiming them. I did like the pet name. It made me feel innocent and cared for. “I think blue.”

“Blue it is.” Alan sketched out the letters on a large piece of paper first for scale and spacing then prepared his pen with the ink and a little silver dust.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked. Their decision felt as impulsive as all my decisions to get tattoos had been. I didn’t regret any of mine, but I’d also never tattooed someone’s name on my skin.

“You’re our mate. I want everyone to know,” Ben growled.

Alan looked from Gibson to Ben. “Our mate? You guys from that pack in Wyoming?”

Gibson gave a silent nod.

Alan looked impressed. “Whoa.” He glanced at me. “Finding your mate and realizing it’s two males… how are you taking this?”

Gibson sat in a chair beside Ben and pulled me onto his lap. It seemed to be my new home. Not that I was complaining. His body was sturdy and solid beneath me, his hold gentle.

“Um…”

“She’s still adjusting,” Gibson supplied. He brought his nose to my nape and inhaled deeply, tickling my skin with his beard.

I wasn’t sure if Alan had the ability to scent that they hadn’t marked me yet. The truth was that my resistance was futile. I couldn’t fight fate. Well, I could, but it would mean sending Gibson to his death because of moon madness, and I obviously would never let that happen.

Besides, I didn’t want to resist my mates. The more time I spent with them, the happier I felt. A deep happiness I hadn’t believed was possible. It had me believing that maybe biology was enough. Maybe I would get my happily ever after, despite my instinct to duck and run from it when it was looking me in the face.

“Where should I have your name tattooed?” Gibson asked, holding out his arms and hands for inspection. “I want somewhere more visible. Where everyone will see it, every day.”

“Right here,” I squeezed his right biceps, which was rock hard and beautiful.

As Alan finalized the sketch for Ben’s artwork, I settled on Gibson’s lap and just… savored. Their scent was heady and powerful swirling around me. I had no idea it could be so potent. That they could be so… virile. Powerful, yet gentle with me. Caring. Concerned. Not just that but a whole lot naughty. God, what they’d done to me. With me. My pussy clenched in eagerness for more. The idea of their kind of claiming, when they fucked me at the same time.

I mentally fanned myself. They’d done some ass play with me, getting me ready for having more than just a finger or two inside me. Their dicks were big, and it was going to be—

“What has you squirming and sighing like that?” Gibson whispered.

I blushed and didn’t say anything. Alan, with his shifter ears, would hear anything we said, even over the buzz of the needle.

I just shook my head, and he nipped my ear lobe. I’d never fooled around with a guy who had a beard, and it was soft and ticklish. Everywhere.

“Later, kitten. Whatever you’re thinking, we’ll do it to you later. Promise.”

Gibson inhaled, and I felt his chest rumble against my side. Yeah, he’d just figured out how wet I was.

My phone rang, and I looked down at the screen. “It’s my mom.” I slid off Gibson’s lap. “I’ll be right back.”

“Tell her we look forward to meeting her,” he rumbled in his deep baritone.

Butterflies’ wings flapped in my stomach. This was really happening. I was going to bring these two shifters home to meet my mom. To introduce my new mates.

“Hi, Mom.” I stepped outside for some privacy.

“Hey, sweetie, how’s it going?” She sounded tired. Working two jobs had aged her before her time. But she was strong in spirit and always had a smile, even in the toughest of times.

I never really questioned why she never took another mate. I loved her with all my heart. She was open and generous, caring and giving. There had to be a shifter out there who she’d be interested in. Lots of shifters never found their one true mate and settled down with someone compatible. It was more common than finding your true mate, honestly.

Thinking my mom should do so seriously hadn’t crossed my mind before now because I hadn’t had mates of my own. Now, though, I could see that my father was one kind of shifter, and Gibson and Ben were another.

She deserved someone to take care of her. Besides me.

“Mmm, good. Really good.” I stretched in the sunlight. My body felt worked over. The soreness disappeared immediately since I was a shifter, but I still felt traces of their touch. I’d been fucked hard and very, very thoroughly. Not with one guy, but two. My heart skipped a beat thinking about my mates and how they wanted to claim me. Yes, I was wary of them still, but I knew deep down they were mine. And I was theirs.

I couldn’t wait to tell her. While she hadn’t said it outright, I’d seen her look longingly at little Lizzie and Lily, the new babies in the pack. She wanted grandpups, and I was the only one who was going to give them to her. It had been a far-off dream, until now.

If I hadn’t made the guys use condoms the night before, it might actually be a reality. I set my hand on my stomach at the possibility. It wasn’t as daunting a thought as it had been not even twelve hours earlier. A pup. Man, I had it bad.

“I’ve got news,” I began.

“They want you to lead the children’s program at ski school next season, don’t they?”

I’d mentioned the possibility to her a few weeks ago when the nearby resort closed for the spring. The job would be good, and there’d be an increase in pay, but it didn’t start until next winter.

“I haven’t heard yet.” I walked out to Ben’s truck and leaned against it. “What’s up? Tell me what’s going on with you first.”

“Ugh. My news isn’t good. I lost the job at the motel.”

Oh shit. I froze in place, waiting to hear the rest.

“The boss’s niece is graduating college, and she’s returning to Cooper Valley. She’s taking over for me.”

“Taking over?” I asked, steaming. “That means you’re going to be doing something else. They gave your spot away.”

“I have two weeks left, so that’s good. I’ll have that time to find another. Maybe in Meade.”

I frowned. “Mom, you work at the grocery store the rest of the time. When are you going to look? And Meade?” I began to pace the cracked sidewalk. “That’s thirty miles from here. Your car can’t take that kind of mileage round trip every day.”

I’d paid for new tires over the winter because they’d been bald and unsafe. But that didn’t make the engine reliable, and there wasn’t money for a replacement.

“Something will come up. It always does.”

I plopped down to sit on the curb and rested my forehead in my hand. “This sucks.”

She sighed. “It’s not your problem, Shelby. I’ll figure things out.”

She wouldn’t, though. My mom had never made more than minimum wage, which just didn’t cut it when it came to paying the bills.

I needed to go back to Hoedown where I could make quick cash, so she wouldn’t be tempted to drive to Meade every day. Just the thought of her on those roads before dawn had me freaking. I had to stay. I had to. She needed support, and I couldn’t do it from Wyoming.

I glanced back toward Alan’s house. Heartache—yes, even after less than a day—set in to accompany the twinges of being sexually satisfied… multiple times. My she-wolf wanted to be with her mates, practically nudged me to get up and go back inside to them. Hell, I wanted to, too, but my mom needed me. She relied on me, and I couldn’t walk away now. She wouldn’t be able to pay the mortgage. Or the second. Or the car payment. Or the lights. Or food. Not if she only had the cashier job.

It was all because of Dad. This mess, this never ending hand to mouth arrangement was all because of him. I didn’t want him in our lives since he was an asshole, but if he’d stayed, Mom wouldn’t have to drink five cups of coffee a day because she worked herself weary. Wouldn’t have to debate if she should pay for heat or food.

I’d fallen for Gibson and Ben, and their wickedly skilled dicks, in less than a day. How could I build a foundation of a lifelong mating if they were anything like my dad and bailed on me? It was a good thing we’d used condoms. I refused to be like my mom. Oh, fuck, I loved her, but I didn’t want to be trapped in a cycle of unhappiness.

“Now, tell me about your news,” she said, cutting into my thoughts. “I heard that smile in your voice. I want to hear all about it.”

This was the moment I did the one thing I was used to. I lied to protect my mother. “I heard Lizzie’s crawling.”

9

BEN

I sensed the moment Shelby came back into the tattoo artist’s house that something was off. She’d been warming up before she took the phone call with her mom. Hell, not even that. She’d sat in Gib’s lap as I got my tattoo. Her sass, her loving nature had been evident. She’d been her true self. She was comfortable with Alan, trusted the shifter, which was obvious with the amount of ink she’d had him put on her skin. She’d been at ease here and with us. Now, she seemed to be putting on a pleasant front. Like we were friends, not her fucking mates. Like her pussy hadn’t milked my dick as she came all over it.

I had to wait until our tattoos were finished and we had her to ourselves again to ask what was up. My back stung where the silver dust had been embedded along with the ink. It was a minute amount. The burn was a reminder Shelby’s name was permanently on my body for all the world to see. She-wolves had the bite and their mate’s scent on them to know they were claimed, but this? No one would question who I belonged to. Same went for Gib, who had his new mark displayed prominently on his arm. We were Shelby’s. Irrevocably.

She was already beneath our skin. Figuratively and now literally.

But the moment we all stepped outside, she crushed us both.

“I can’t move to Wyoming with you,” she blurted, turning to face us and crossing her arms over her chest.

I swore to fuck, it felt like someone punched me in the gut, but I did my best to hide my reaction, the way Gib always did. For an enforcer, I was pretty level-headed, but when it came to Shelby, I was losing my cool.

I forced myself to sound casual. “What’s holding you back, kitten?” I picked up her hand and tried to catch her gaze. Gib came to flank her other side.

She shook her head and wouldn’t meet our eyes. I experienced her upset like it was my own. Tasted her turmoil. Sensed the way her insides twisted and bunched like a wet dishrag. “It’s just… all too sudden. We only met last night!” Her arms went up in the air, her body full of agitation. “I have a life here. Jobs I like. My pack needs me.”

I had a feeling there was something she wasn’t saying. Something didn’t add up because she wasn’t acting like a female who just found—and was thoroughly satisfied by—her mates. I glanced at Gib, who said nothing.

“Well, I’ll stay here with you until you're ready,” I offered. “I’ll take you down to visit Gib since he needs to return for the pack. We can work this out. We’ll do long distance until you’re ready.”

It wasn’t ideal—not by a long shot, but I wasn’t going to pressure her. Taking a mate without consent was unconscionable.

“No, I don’t want you to stay,” she whispered. Guilt shone in her expression. “You can mark me before you go. I know you need to.” She blinked back tears.

“Fuck that.” Gib stabbed his fingers through his hair. “We’re not going to claim you if you’re not ready.”

“I’m not going to let you go moon mad,” she countered, looking up at him and almost pleading with her eyes.

Gib drew in a breath and exhaled. “I’ll take my chances.”

Shelby stared at him, arrested, fear swirling in her lovely blue eyes. “You can’t,” she whispered. “I can’t leave here, and you must claim me.”

I wanted to grab her and shake her or spank her or fuck her into giving us her secrets, but I wouldn’t force them from her. She had to come to us willingly, with her whole heart, her whole body. Completely. Otherwise, our match was worthless. That was almost worse than never having found her at all.

“Shelby,” Gib said, a note of alpha sternness in his voice. “What’s going on? Is this about that phone call?”

She shook her head, blinking rapidly. “I don’t want to be dependent on you guys. I’m just not ready to commit.” She walked toward the truck, but Gib caught her around the waist and pulled her back.

Not ready to commit didn’t make sense. That was a human sentiment, not wolf.

“We’re not going to leave you,” Gib said firmly. “Dependence isn’t weakness. It’s strength. It’s… love. We love you, Shelby.”

I’d never heard Gib make himself so vulnerable, but rather than comfort Shelby, it made her chin quiver and tears swirl in her eyes.

“I need to go see my mom,” she said, her voice choked with tears. “Will you drive me back to my place so I can get my car?”

Gib drew in a breath and sighed. “We’ll take you back, kitten. We’ll give you some space and time to think. But this isn’t over.” He rubbed his beard. “Far from it.”

Shelby bobbed her head, agreeable as always, even though the line between her brows showed her anguish.

SHELBY

The moment my mates drove away, it felt like a limb had been ripped from my body. Every cell literally screamed for them to come back.

Ben. Gibson. My mates. My world.

Dammit. Yet I’d driven to my mom’s as planned.

I felt the separation from Gibson and Ben keenly. It was as if I was magnetized to them, like my insides were going to stretch through my skin. My she-wolf howled and prodded me to go find them. To sit on Gibson’s lap again, to feel his arms around me. To hear Ben’s approving voice, feel his gentle touch.

I sank down on my mom’s porch, covering my mouth with my hand. I was lost without them.

“Shelby? Honey? What’s going on?” My mom pushed the tattered screen door open and sat beside me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders.

I gave into the tears that had been threatening since I told my mates to leave. “Mom, last night I found my mates,” I said between sobs. “But they live in Wyoming.”

My mom gave a surprised laugh. “Wait—mates, plural?”

“Uh huh,” I sniffed, swiping at my tears with the back of my wrist. “Two of them. A pack alpha and an enforcer.”

“Oh, Shelby! This is wonderful! I don’t understand why you’re upset.” I felt her pleasure, the squeeze of her hold, the vibration of joy emanating from her body.

“Wyoming, Mom,” I reminded her. “You just lost your job. The timing’s awful. I don’t want to leave you now.”

“Shelby Jane, you are out of your mind.” My mom stood up to face me, hands on her hips. She wasn’t all that tall, but loomed over me now. “First of all, you make Wyoming sound like Siberia. It’s one state away. I’ll always be a day’s drive from you at most. Second, I am not your child, you are mine. I do not need you to look after me, you silly, darling girl.” She pulled me up and wrapped me in a warm embrace, sniffing my neck.

She pulled back, looked at me with a frown. “They haven’t marked you yet?”

I shook my head, fresh tears swimming at the mention of my beloved mates. The males who wanted to take care of me. Guilt tore at my throat. They’d probably been climbing out of their skin with the need to mark me, but they’d held back.

They refused to pressure me. I wondered how they were feeling right now, being separated.

“I always thought it would be a fairytale,” I explained. “You smell your mate and it’s magic right from the start. But it took me by surprise. I wasn’t ready for them, and now… now I’ve screwed everything up.”

“You’ve screwed nothing up,” my mom insisted. “Come inside and have some coffee. I want to hear the whole story and know why they aren’t here with you. I can’t believe they’d let you out of their sight.” She tsked them, but I set her straight.

“Again, I’ve screwed up,” I practically moaned, realizing how much of a mess I’d made.

I let her usher me into the kitchen, my stomach in knots, my skin burning and itchy to be near my mates again.

They’d be back, though. Gibson promised we weren’t through. He needed me. They’d tattooed my name on their bodies.

It was that thought and that thought alone that kept me from shifting right there and howling at the day-moon.

10

BEN

After we reluctantly—that was a tame word for it— left Shelby at her place, we headed to Wolf Ranch to meet with her alpha. We figured he could give us some pointers or clues about what would be holding Shelby back from accepting us as her mates.

I’d met Rob Wolf in the fall, and I knew him to be a calm, fair alpha.

We pulled up in front of the big ranch house and parked. Rob emerged and met us in the big circle drive, offering his hand when he recognized me.

“Ben, good to see you again.”

We shook hands, and I introduced Gib.

“I’ve heard of your pack.” He eyed us curiously, his nostrils flaring as he took in our matched scent, probably Shelby’s, too. “You mate in pairs, right?”

“That’s right,” Gib said, extending his hand. Not everyone appreciated the concept of two males claiming a female together. It ensured she was protected and cherished along with any pups she gave us. We were proud to claim Shelby together, and Rob should be happy one of his own would be so well cared for.

“We’re here for some help with ours. But first—” Without breaking the handshake, Gib swung his left fist in an uppercut and punched Rob in the gut. “That’s for letting her dance at Hoedown,” he said, his voice full of his alpha resonance.

Rob growled, but Gib held onto his hand, as if to prove they were still friends despite the assault.

Physical expressions of displeasure were common among shifters and meant little since we healed immediately. Still, they both were alpha, so this could go sideways fast.

“The fuck?” Rob snarled, eyes showing a bit of his wolf. His gaze lighted on Gib’s fresh tattoo. “Shelby’s your mate?” He shook his head. “I don’t know anything about her working there.”

I had to say, I was relieved Rob didn’t know. It bothered the fuck out of me thinking an alpha wasn’t taking care of his own if she needed help. Of course, maybe Shelby wasn’t that hard up and actually enjoyed it, as she’d claimed. Although she’d said it rhetorically—maybe I like it, not I like it, assholes, now back off.

“Fuck.” Rob shook his head. He leveled an even gaze at Gib, who had dropped his hand. “I’m gonna let that punch slide because I’m sure I’d want to clock someone in charge, too, if a bunch of humans saw my mate naked. But you swing again, I’m gonna go furry on your ass.”

Serious fights between shifters to prove dominance happened in wolf form, with the powerful jaws and razor-sharp teeth that benefited our species.

The corners of Gib’s lips lifted in respect. “I got it out of my system,” he said mildly, all signs of aggression gone.

Rob pinned me with a stare, the look shadowed by the wide brim of his cowboy hat. “You gonna try that, too?”

I shook my head. “Nah. Gib speaks for both of us. Besides, we’re hoping for some help from you.”

“That’s a helluva way to ask for it.” He shook his head, but there was no rancor in his tone or gait as he turned and beckoned us toward the house. “Come in.”

We entered and followed him down the central hallway past the stairs into what must be his office. Once he had the door shut and settled into his chair behind his desk, we dropped into the two seats for visitors. He took off his hat, set it on the desk.

“Shelby know you’re her mates?” he asked. “She’s okay with there being two of you?”

Gib nodded. “She does, and I don’t think it’s having two mates that bothers her. But something does. She’s reluctant to mate. She says she can’t leave her pack to go to Wyoming.”

Rob absorbed that. “She and her mom are tight. Even tighter since her dad walked out.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t know about her working at Hoedown. But her mom works hard at low-paying jobs. They’ve never asked me or the pack for help, but, fuck.” He frowned. “Maybe they needed it.”

“We found her at the club last night, so we don’t know much. It doesn’t sit well that she’s had to strip to make ends meet. If we’d only found her sooner,” I said, feeling like shit for not having been able to help her. “I caught her scent when I was here in November, but I wasn’t sure, and I had council business to tie up.” Dammit.

“Well, Shelby’s never asked for anything,” Rob shared. “She’s the one always offering to help everyone else around here. She could be hard up, but I never realized.”

“She’s afraid to trust us even though she agrees we’re her mates,” I explained.

Rob slowly shook his head. “Shit,” he muttered. “Her father took off when she was a teen. He’s a fucking asshole for what he did to his family, and he’s been long gone. If he came back there would be a long line of shifters who’d want to fight him. I didn’t realize it still messed with her. She comes off as strong and capable. Independent as fuck. She’s a real sweetheart. The type to help others, not ask for it.”

I agreed with everything he said, and we’d only known her less than a day.

“I guess it’ll take time for that to come, to believe you won’t bail like her father. And she’s got two mates, not one. It’s going to be doubly hard for her.” He looked between us.

We didn’t say anything because he was only voicing what we already knew.

Rob sat back and steepled his fingers. “The roles are kind of reversed with her and her mom. She had to be strong to get her mom through the devastation of being left. Maybe it’s as simple as her not wanting to inflict the same pain by her leaving, too.”

Gib’s brows shot up. “Fuck.”

I brought my fist down on the desk. “Dammit. We should have thought of that. She called it off after she spoke to her mom on the phone.”

Gibson stood. “Let’s go get our mate,” he said to me. “Thank you, Rob.” He held his hand out.

Rob looked at it. “Yeah, not falling for that one again,” he muttered, and Gib grinned.

“Sorry about that. I’m the dick, I know.”

“Mates.” Rob shook his head. “They’d give us all ulcers, if shifters could get them.” He shook my hand and slapped me on the shoulder.

He led us out. At his front door, we turned to face him.

I shook his hand again. “If you’ll give us directions to her mother’s house, it seems it’s time to get some things straightened out.”

He told us the way. “Good luck. Make that girl happy, or I’ll kick the living shit out of you.”

“Depend on it,” Gib said with his hand in the air, striding out to the truck.

11

SHELBY

I knew before I even heard the crunch of gravel under their tires that they were here. My body started quivering, and I surged to my feet and threw open the door. I couldn’t wait a second longer to be close to them.

Ben’s truck tore into the drive and lurched to a stop, and both males tumbled out and came striding toward me.

I ran for them.

“Shelby-girl.” Gibson caught me up in his arms and squeezed me so tight I lost my breath. “Looks like you missed us.” He set me down and cupped my face brushing the errant strands of hair back. Ben came and stood behind me, so I was sandwiched with their huge, hard bodies. I leaned my head against Ben’s solid chest.

God, being between them soothed something in me. Made me happy. Content. It was as if all my troubles couldn’t get to me around their huge bodies.

“How’d you find me?” I wondered.

“Your alpha gave us directions,” Ben said.

I gasped at the implications. The screen door opened, and both men looked over at my mom standing on the porch. Without waiting for an introduction, Gibson strode over and held out his hand. “Ma’am, I’m Gibson West, alpha of the Two Marks pack, and this is Ben Davies. We’re your daughter’s mates.”

“I’m Marne.” My mom ignored his extended hand and threw her arms wide, giving him a classic mom hug, even though she’d never met the guy.

Ben led me over, so he could receive the same welcome.

“Ma’am, I’d like to invite you to join our pack in Wyoming,” Gibson offered.

His words froze me in place. What?

“We’ll provide you with a home, and I can offer you work, if you’d like it. Know though, that you’ll be taken care of.”

“I don’t take charity,” she said, her back bristling as if her she-wolf had spoken.

“No, ma’am,” he continued. “But we know how important it would be to Shelby to have you near. And of course, to your grandpups.”

“Grandpups!” My mom whirled, her face lighting up as she looked at me. Oh, he’d said the magic words. How had he known she was baby crazy? “Nothing would make me happier!”

All at once, everything heavy became light. Like one of those moments when the gray clouds parted and the sun came shining down. Going to Wyoming with my mates suddenly took on a completely different hue. Like Mom had said, it wasn’t Siberia. She had nothing holding her here.

“Really?” I asked, stunned by the whiplash-like turn of events… and my emotions. I’d gone from despondent to hopeful in seconds. “You’ll come with me to Wyoming?” I turned to Gibson. “And that’s okay? I don’t have a job and—”

Gibson scoffed. “You offend me, kitten. Of course Marne will join our pack. We’ll support you both.”

“I don’t want to be a kept woman,” I said, and Mom laughed.

“Yes, you do,” she countered. “Let them take care of you. Besides, you’re mating an alpha, which means your job is to help the entire pack. It’s something you’ve been doing around here for years. Not just me but everyone in the pack.”

Mom was right. I did take care of everyone. I looked to her though. “I won’t be beholden to a mate. After what Dad did—”

“Dad was a dumbass,” Mom said, cutting me off. She set her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes. “He left us, but honey, these two want you. I mean, your name is tattooed on his arm.”

“And my back,” Ben added.

“Don’t deny yourself or them a mating that you all desperately want because of your father,” she continued. “It would mean he wins… and he’s a loser.”

I laughed through my tears. He was a dumbass and a loser.

“Kept woman?” Gibson asked. “Not kept. Held. Cherished.”

“Protected. Loved,” Ben added.

“You are our top priority. Always.” Gibson wrapped his arms around me from behind and tugged me against him. “Your job,” he murmured against my ear, “besides being the alpha’s mate, will be to look pretty in our bed.”

Both men growled low, and my she-wolf preened at the naughty idea.

My mom bustled inside, pretending not to hear anything.

“And maybe to give us some of those private dances,” Ben suggested in a whisper. “With the plaid skirt?” He waggled his brows, and I soaked my panties, remembering the last dance I’d given them. The one that had quickly turned into a spanking over both their knees.

“And bear our pups,” Gib added, his eyes flashing amber. “Fuck this. I can’t wait any longer.” In a flash, I found myself over his shoulder. “Marne, we can’t stay!” he called out as he tromped toward their truck. “We’ll make plans later.”

I heard my mom’s laughter and her calling something out to us, but I couldn’t focus. All I could think about was being claimed by my two mates.

This was it. I had my mates. They wanted me… and my mom. All of them were right. My dad was in my past, and I couldn’t hold onto that any longer. Gibson and Ben were my future.

Starting right now.

Ben settled behind the wheel as Gibson dropped me onto the passenger seat and slid in beside me so I was nestled between them. The moment we were in, he buckled my seat belt then slid his hand down to firmly cup my mons, the other beneath my shirt to pinch my nipple.

“You’ve got a spanking coming, kitten,” Ben growled as Gibson kept touching me.

The truck bounced along the road, faster than probably necessary.

I squirmed, trying to get more friction against my clit. “I-I do? What for?”

Gibson bit my neck. Not with wolf teeth, just a human nip that left me breathless and flushed with heat. “Pushing us away. Not telling us what you needed. Making me beg.”

I laughed, but it came out a gasp as he tugged on a nipple. “I haven’t heard you beg yet.”

“It was a silent begging,” he deadpanned. “Alphas don’t beg out loud.”

I reached between my legs, trying to encourage him to use the fingers he had pressed against my lady-bits, but instead he slapped my pussy. “You need me to spank you here first?”

My muscles clenched, stomach quivered. I writhed between them. I’d never been so grateful my place wasn’t far from my mom’s in my life.

I seriously feared I would die if I didn’t get both these men inside me as soon as possible.

“Hmm?” Gibson slapped my pussy again. “You want me to turn your pretty little pussy pink before I fuck it?”

“Yes!” I admitted on a gasp. “Yes, please!”

“Now who’s begging?” Gibson rumbled.

Thankfully, Ben pulled in front of my house. “You two are lucky I didn’t crash the fucking truck,” he growled as he undid my safety belt. His wolf shone in his eyes.

I was sure mine did, too. “Please, please, please.” I threw my arms around Gibson’s neck to hold on as he lunged out of the truck and carried me swiftly to the door.

I managed to dig my keys out of my pocket on the way, so I could unlock it the moment we arrived and Gibson could kick open the door.

“You’ve got three seconds to strip, baby,” Gibson commanded the moment my feet touched the floor.

I scrambled to obey, throwing my t-shirt off and shucking the jeans and sandals.

“Too slow.” Ben tossed me over his shoulder and carried me to the futon where he lowered me on my back. “These should be off by now.” He yanked down my panties then flipped me over and arranged me on my hands and knees. He slapped my ass hard once then undid the back of my bra. I quickly shook it down my arms as he slapped my ass again.

“Bad girl,” Ben growled in his deep, sexy voice, spanking me fast and hard. “When your mate says clothes off, I need them off fast.”

My pussy clenched at the dirty talk. I held still for it, loving every punishing swat. The sting morphed into heat… everywhere. After a dozen or so, he lifted and turned me to face the side of the bed, where Gibson had dropped to his knees.

“You’d better suck off your alpha or he’s going to destroy you with that boner you gave him in the truck.”

Gibson helped me by unbuttoning his jeans and freeing his erection. Without using my hands, I opened my mouth and took in his swollen, purple head, sucking off the salty drop of pre-cum. “That’s right,” he crooned, pulling my hair away from my face. “Show me you’re a good girl. Suck my cock.”

Oh hell, yes. They’d said they wanted to take care of me, and I felt it now. This was kink, hell yes, but it was more, too. It was what I’d been missing, the knowing that they would always be mine. I didn’t need their tattoos as proof. Not any longer.

Gibson’s dirty talk made me crazy, and the need to please him—please both my mates—had me bobbing eagerly over his length, hollowing my cheeks out to suck as hard as I could.

Ben continued to pepper my ass with hard spanks, then he pushed my knees wider and delivered five stinging spanks to my pussy.

I moaned around Gibson’s length, and he tugged on my hair to pull me off him. Through my lashes, I looked up at him, my pussy tingling from more than the spanking.

Gibson’s mouth was pressed into a thin line, and the tendons in his neck were taut. He was holding himself back, and I didn’t want that any longer. I looked to Ben who was shucking his clothes.

Kneeling between them, I put my finger to my mouth, licked it then ran it down the center of my body to cup my pussy. With my other hand, I reached back and set my palm against my ass, my middle finger dipping into the seam. “Fuck me. Make me yours.”

Both growled, low and deep, and I thought I was going to be pounced on, but Ben climbed onto the bed with me, pulled me into his arms and kissed me. His hands roamed my body, but others joined. Two sets touched me. Caressed me. Played with my breasts, teased my pussy. They learned every inch of me until Ben was holding me up, that their touches were too much and not enough all at the same time.

“Please,” I panted.

“No more condoms,” Ben said, his voice ragged. I looked into his dark eyes, saw every promise they’d spoken aloud.

“No more condoms,” Gibson repeated, kissing along the line of my neck. “Our bites on your neck, our cum in your pussy.”

That had to be the hottest thing I’d ever heard, and I whimpered. “Make me yours.”

“Remember, kitten. We claim our mate at the same time,” Gibson said. “I get your pussy.”

“And I get your ass,” Ben added. “You’ll get both our dicks and our teeth.”

I was so turned on. Impossibly so. I’d never even considered taking two guys at the same time before, but now, it was the only thing I could think about. I needed it. Them. Both of them claiming me at once. As if I were what put us together, made us a family. A trio that could never be torn apart.

“Please,” I begged.

“Such a pretty sound.” Gibson dropped onto the bed, his head on the pillow. I hadn’t even noticed when he’d taken off his clothes, but he was so strong, so potent with his dick sticking straight up as he laid there.

I licked my lips, the taste of him still on my tongue. I wanted him back in my mouth, but I wanted him in my pussy more. Bare.

He curled a finger. “Crawl up to me, little cowgirl. Climb on and take my dick for a ride.”

I didn’t need to be told twice, moving so I straddled his lean hips. Rising, I got him beneath me then shifted, so the flared crown was notched at my entrance, and I lowered down.

“Fuck, I love watching you take him.” Ben slid his hand over my ass, as if he couldn’t resist.

I took all of Gibson then set my hands on his chest and began to ride, lifting and lowering, following my pleasure. They let me drive for I didn’t know how long, but then, Gibson hooked a hand behind my neck and pulled me down for a kiss. My breasts pressed into his chest, and he widened his legs, spreading mine wider and wider.

The bed dipped as Ben moved into the space. I heard a lid flip open right before the cool drizzle of lube slid over my back entrance. Where that had come from, I had no idea. Their truck maybe? They were that prepared to take me. “My finger first, kitten,” Ben murmured, and he began to play. Just as he said, his fingertip circled the lubricant around my back entrance then began to work it inside. I moaned against Gibson’s lips as Ben slipped inside. Only slightly at first, but with more and more lube, deeper.

I couldn’t move with Ben’s finger in me and Gibson holding me to him, but he pushed up and into me in small thrusts. The combination had me lifting my head and panting.

“Another finger,” Ben said although I knew that was the case by feel alone.

I stilled, then panted. Gibson stopped moving, but kissed along my neck, my shoulder, as if prepping the spot for his teeth.

Time passed as Ben prepared me. It felt different and intense. I had no idea it would feel so good. I’d been missing out. Not just on this kind of pleasure but my mates as well.

I’d have this with them for the rest of my life.

“I’m ready,” I panted. “Please. I need it.”

I did. I needed Ben right there with us. Without him, I felt empty.

Carefully, he pulled his fingers free, but only for a second before I felt the hot press of his dick at my untried opening.

“Deep breath, kitten,” Gibson said. I obeyed. “Good girl, relax. That’s it. Another breath.”

He continued to coach me as Ben’s hand cupped my hip, his thumb holding my bottom open. It didn’t take long. I was well prepared and very slick. Ben’s dick popped past the resistant ring, and the head filled me.

“Oh my God,” I moaned. I was so full. They were so big, and as Ben continued to slowly move in and out, going deeper each time, I looked down at Gibson.

He smiled, brushed my hair back. “Such a good girl, taking your mates’ dicks at the same time.”

I relaxed at his praise, and Ben groaned as his hips pressed against my bottom.

“Fuck, it’s incredible,” he said. “Ready, Gib?”

“Hell, yes.”

Ben slowly retreated as Gibson thrust up his hips, then they reversed. Ben pushed deep as Gibson pulled back.

They fucked me, alternating, so I always had a dick in me. It was so intense I couldn’t speak. My clit rubbed against Gibson’s body each time Ben filled me.

“I… full… can’t… coming… oh… please,” I wailed as I came. My body shook with my pleasure, my pussy and ass clenching and squeezing as the most intense orgasm of my life crashed over me.

I heard a growl. I felt their wild thrusts, felt them deep. Their mouths were along my shoulders, their hands held me.

At the same time, their teeth sunk into my skin, and the pain was exquisite. Intense. I screamed and came again as I felt their dicks swell. They growled as their fangs held me, caught permanently between them as they came.

I felt the heat of their cum as they filled me. They lifted their mouths from the juncture of my shoulder and neck. Shouted their satisfaction. I must’ve passed out for a little while there because the next thing I knew, I was laying in Ben’s arms and Gibson was gently cleaning me between my legs with a wet, warm washcloth.

Good thing about being a shifter was that the healing helped in situations like this where my bottom would be really sore right now if I were human. Or so I’d heard from the other dancers at Hoedown. I was sated, replete and… bitten.

I put my hand to my neck, felt the spot where Ben had claimed me. “Mmm.” He kissed my forehead. “I like seeing my mark on you.” He inhaled. “Everyone will know who you belong to.”

Gibson joined us, settling so I was between them, snuggled tight. “That’s right, kitten, you’re ours now. Forever.”

I wiggled a little, settling into the feel of them. Traced the raised marks of my name on their skin. “No, you’re mine.”

They growled and pounced. “Damn straight, we are,” Gibson rumbled. “Two mates for one beautiful she-wolf.”

I was an alpha’s mate and mated to a bad-ass enforcer. I had a whole new pack to tend to, even before I bore my mates’ pups.

It was perfect, and I couldn’t wait to start our new life together.

Ready for more? Read Tempted next!

Renee Rose and Vanessa Vale are back with more steamy shifter cowboys! Because you know it’s going to be hot. Possessive. Wild. Times two. Everything you want in romance… and more.

We see a female, we want her.

We scent a female, we claim her.

We touch a female, we give her two marks.

Because in our pack, shifters share.

Two cowboys for every mate.

Read Tempted!

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Also by Renee Rose

Chicago Bratva

“Prelude” in Black Light: Roulette War

The Director

The Fixer

“Owned” in Black Light: Roulette Rematch

The Enforcer

The Soldier

The Hacker

Vegas Underground Mafia Romance

King of Diamonds

Mafia Daddy

Jack of Spades

Ace of Hearts

Joker’s Wild

His Queen of Clubs

Dead Man’s Hand

Wild Card

More Mafia Romance

Her Russian Master

Contemporary

Daddy Rules Series

Fire Daddy

Hollywood Daddy

Stepbrother Daddy

Master Me Series

Her Royal Master

Her Russian Master

Her Marine Master

Yes, Doctor

Double Doms Series

Theirs to Punish

Theirs to Protect

Holiday Feel-Good

Scoring with Santa

Saved

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Black Light: Valentine Roulette

Black Light: Roulette Redux

Black Light: Celebrity Roulette

Black Light: Roulette War

Black Light: Roulette Rematch

Punishing Portia (written as Darling Adams)

The Professor’s Girl

Safe in his Arms

Paranormal

Two Marks Series

Untamed

Tempted

Wolf Ranch Series

Rough

Wild

Feral

Savage

Fierce

Ruthless

Wolf Ridge High Series

Alpha Bully

Alpha Knight

Bad Boy Alphas Series

Alpha’s Temptation

Alpha’s Danger

Alpha’s Prize

Alpha’s Challenge

Alpha’s Obsession

Alpha’s Desire

Alpha’s War

Alpha’s Mission

Alpha’s Bane

Alpha’s Secret

Alpha’s Prey

Alpha’s Sun

Shifter Ops

Alpha’s Moon

Alpha’s Vow

Alpha’s Revenge

Midnight Doms

Alpha’s Blood

His Captive Mortal

Alpha Doms Series

The Alpha’s Hunger

The Alpha’s Promise

The Alpha’s Punishment

Other Paranormal

The Winter Storm: An Ever After Chronicle

Sci-Fi

Zandian Masters Series

His Human Slave

His Human Prisoner

Training His Human

His Human Rebel

His Human Vessel

His Mate and Master

Zandian Pet

Their Zandian Mate

His Human Possession

Zandian Brides

Night of the Zandians

Bought by the Zandians

Mastered by the Zandians

Zandian Lights

Kept by the Zandian

Claimed by the Zandian

Stolen by the Zandian

Other Sci-Fi

The Hand of Vengeance

Her Alien Masters

Regency

The Darlington Incident

Humbled

The Reddington Scandal

The Westerfield Affair

Pleasing the Colonel

Western

His Little Lapis

The Devil of Whiskey Row

The Outlaw’s Bride

Medieval

Mercenary

Medieval Discipline

Lords and Ladies

The Knight’s Prisoner

Betrothed

Held for Ransom

The Knight’s Seduction

The Conquered Brides (5 book box set)

Renaissance

Renaissance Discipline

Also By Vanessa Vale

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About Renee Rose

USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR RENEE ROSE loves a dominant, dirty-talking alpha hero! She's sold over a million copies of steamy romance with varying levels of kink. Her books have been featured in USA Today's Happily Ever After and Popsugar. Named Eroticon USA's Next Top Erotic Author in 2013, she has also won Spunky and Sassy's Favorite Sci-Fi and Anthology author, The Romance Reviews Best Historical Romance, and has hit the USA Today list eight times with her Bad Boy Alpha and Wolf Ranch series, as well as various anthologies.

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About Vanessa Vale

Vanessa Vale is the USA Today bestselling author of sexy romance novels, including her popular Bridgewater historical series and hot contemporary romances. With over one million books sold, Vanessa writes about unapologetic bad boys who don't just fall in love, they fall hard. Her books are available worldwide in multiple languages in e-book, print, audio and even as an online game. When she's not writing, Vanessa savors the insanity of raising two boys and figuring out how many meals she can make with a pressure cooker. While she's not as skilled at social media as her kids, she loves to interact with readers.

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Table of Contents

- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Want FREE Renee Rose books?
- Get A Free Vanessa Vale Book!
- Contents
- Chapter 1
- Chapter 2
- Chapter 3
- Chapter 4
- Chapter 5
- Chapter 6
- Chapter 7
- Chapter 8
- Chapter 9
- Chapter 10
- Chapter 11
- Want FREE Renee Rose books?
- Get A Free Vanessa Vale Book!
- Also by Renee Rose
- Also By Vanessa Vale
- About Renee Rose
- About Vanessa Vale