Losing It: A Collection of VCards (17 page)

Immediately following Gray’s ear splintering cry, her body went limp. The color of her hair didn’t change. Still sun-kissed blonde.

Adrian resisted the urge to gather it inside his fist and pull back as he sought his own release.

Her hips sagged as though she had no energy left to hold up her own weight. Adrian lifted them up. Just a few more seconds. She was really tight now that she’d reached climax.

With three more thrusts, Adrian bellowed and collapsed over her. They fell to the bed.

Adrian fought back the urge to kiss the witch’s shoulder. He pulled out. She shuddered briefly.

“Wow,” she whispered. “That was just… wow.”

Adrian smiled. “It was good?”

“Like magic.” She snuggled into the pillow then went still.

Adrian watched her carefully. Several seconds later he heard soft, rhythmic breathing.

Was she asleep?

“Hey,” he said, nudging her shoulder gently. “You awake?”

No answer.

Very well. Get some rest, little witch. The night wasn’t over yet.

Adrian wouldn’t get any sleep that night. He couldn’t possibly. His heart beat erratically. This was the moment when he should be satiated. He should lay on his back, head resting on his arms, and bask in his triumph.

Instead, he sidled up beside Gray and wrapped her in his arms. Gray snuggled against him in her sleep, sighing dreamily before resuming steady breaths.

Tremors ran from Adrian’s fingertips to his toes. He shivered. It didn’t matter how secure she felt in his arms or how much he wanted her to stay—to be Gray. If it really was Gray, she could disappear in an instant. He’d taught her how to do that and she’d used it against him the first chance she got.

No witch in her right mind would ever love him.

But that didn’t stop Adrian from wishing—his heart yearning for the impossible.

***

Love Spell is an extended scene from
Enchantment
(Spellbound #3) by Nikki Jefford. Dive into a world of urban fantasy, adventure, and romance with book one,
Entangled
, free in ebook at all major online book retailers.

About the Author

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan, living in the Pacific Northwest. Books, travel, TV series, hiking, writing and motorcycle riding are her favorite escapes. She enjoys meeting people from all walks of life, from around the globe, and believes that the planet and all its inhabitants should be treated kindly.

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Nikki’s the author of:

The Spellbound Trilogy

Entangled (Spellbound #1)

Duplicity (Spellbound #2)

Enchantment (Spellbound #3)

Holiday Magic (A Spellbound Christmas Story)

Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter

Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 1)

Northern Bites (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 2)

Stakeout (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 2.5)

Evil Red (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 2.6)

Bad Blood (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 3)

Hunting Season (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 4) (Releasing 3/3/15)

Whiteout (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 5) (Releasing Summer 2015)

Say Hello!

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To Love a Werewolf

By Melissa Haag

For over a millennia, we thought we were alone.  Now, a select few have

learned the truth.  Six women are reborn every one thousand years to

bring us a message:  We are being judged.

Humans have ruled the earth by the grace of the Judgements.  Our prosperity

has been the downfall for the werewolves and urbat, and the urbat refuse

to stand aside for another millennia.

The time for judgement has come again...

The following exclusive segment occurs the first night the group flees the Compound, the home of the werewolves.  Enjoy!

***

It was happening again.  We were running.  The safety I'd felt had been an illusion, and that imagined protective bubble didn't just burst, it shattered, piercing my heart with jagged shards as I thought of my brothers.  I needed to protect them...

A wave of love washed over me, an emotion not my own.  Emmitt.  Since Claiming him, I'd never felt alone.  The link forged by my Claim, my bite, ensured that.  Now, he and I shared feelings of support and comfort for each other, like all Claimed pairs.

I looked up and met Emmitt’s loving blue gaze as he caught my hand and brought it to his lips.  I was still in awe of him, the werewolf who'd found me and protected me from Blake, the man who'd held me for my premonitions.  For Emmitt, I tried to pull back the fear that I knew had upset him and caused him to flood me with his love.

"You're not alone this time, Michelle," he said softly.  He tore his gaze from mine to focus on the road once more.

Behind me, Aden, my youngest brother, giggled.  Both my brothers were in the backseat, sandwiched between Winifred and Jim while the four played I Spy.  Emmitt continued to hold my hand as I glanced back at them.

"I know,” I said, turning forward.  He was right.  I wasn’t alone.  Seventeen of us were running this time, caravanned in four vehicles.  “But I'm not worried about me."

His hand lightly squeezed mine.  "Liam and Aden will be safe."  We continued to speak softly so Liam, my much too smart five-year-old brother, wouldn’t hear.

I nodded.  "It's not just them, though, is it?" I said, thinking of what Bethi had revealed about Emmitt being in the most danger.

Charlene, Emmitt's mom, was like me, a uniquely gifted woman, one of the six Judgements meant to balance the three races.  If Blake, the Urbat leader, captured Emmitt, Blake would not only have leverage over Charlene, but me as well because I’d Claimed Emmitt, making him twice the target.

"I'll be fine," he said.

I didn’t respond.  We needed to complete our bond.  It wouldn’t make him safe, but he’d be safer as my husband rather than my fiancé.

Nervous anticipation unfurled in my middle.  Werewolves didn’t marry in a conventional sense to become husband and wife, they Mated.

Wife.  Mated.  Tonight.  The words bounced around in my head as we drove further from the Compound.

***

As soon as Emmitt pulled to a stop in the parking lot, Aden was crawling over Jim to get to the door.

“Do you think there’s a swimming pool?” he asked excitedly.

Jim laughed and caught Aden in his large arms.  “I know there is.  Grandma Charlene made sure of it.”

Both boys cheered loudly.  I couldn’t help but smile at their excitement even as my heart constricted with worry for them.

Reaching for the door, Emmitt paused and turned to me.

“Michelle...”  He said my name with loving exasperation.  “You’re killing me.  Please.  Trust us.  Trust me.  We’ll be safe.”

I exhaled slowly, trying to let go of the concern that had burrowed into my head.  It wasn’t working.  He shook his head, leaned across the seat, and, with a glimmer of mischief in his eyes, slid his hand around the back of my head.  He pulled me forward and caught my lips with his own.

Outside, I heard a giggle.  Then, Emmitt started to nibble at my lower lip.  That was all it took to forget everything and open up to him.  He deepened the kiss and robbed me of reality.  I sighed and wrapped my arms around his neck.

A knock on the window startled me.

“Come on,” Jim’s voice penetrated the haze Emmitt had created.  “We want to go swimming.”

“Yeah!” two voices echoed behind him.

Emmitt pulled back and leaned his forehead against mine.  “I’ll trade you brothers,” he whispered.

“I’m hurt,” Jim said with a laugh, his werewolf hearing picking up Emmitt’s words.

“I doubt it,” Emmitt said, releasing me and opening his door.

Before I could reach for the handle, he was already out and around the car to open mine for me.

I smiled up at him as I got out.  The boys were racing toward the hotel with Jim jogging behind them, the sheep dog protecting his flock.  The imagery made me smile.  When in his wolf form, he wasn’t too far from the picture.

“And what has you grinning like that?”  Emmitt asked, wrapping his fingers around mine.

“Them,” I said, nodding ahead at our brothers.  “Jim may look twenty-fiveish but sometimes I don’t think he ever grew up.”

“He did,” Emmitt said with a laugh.  “He acts their age because they need a friend their age.”

It was something I’d noticed about Jim.  He always seemed to know what was needed.

We walked in behind the group.  Charlene and Thomas went to get rooms while the rest of us waited away from the desk.  The boys danced around Jim in their excitement.  They had no clue why we’d left.  I studied the others in our group.  Though I could see they were as tense as I, they hid it well.

When Charlene and Thomas returned, she held up five cards.  “They only had five rooms.  One is the honeymoon suite,” she said as she handed a key card to Emmitt with a smile, “and the others are double queens.”

My stomach flipped and my pulse leapt as Emmitt took the card and squeezed my hand.  I struggled to stay focused as everyone else in our group called out with whom they’d room.  Only Emmitt and I had a room to ourselves.  An embarrassed flush rose to my cheeks.

Everyone split up after a promise to meet in Charlene and Thomas’ room for dinner in twenty minutes.  Emmitt carried our bags, and I walked beside him.  We were both quiet.  Butterflies launched in my stomach as we neared our room.

He stopped in front of our door, opened it, and stepped aside so I could enter first.

The large room boasted of a king size bed and a sunken hot tub.  A bottle of champagne waited on the bed.  Emmitt caught the direction of my gaze.

“I’d prefer if you didn’t drink,” he said with a chuckle.

I smiled as I remembered my earlier attempts at bravery.  Liquid courage had its drawbacks.  Like remembering.  And I wanted to remember every moment of tonight, even if I was nervous.

I closed the door while he set the bag on the bed.  When he turned and found me hovering near the exit, he grinned at me then stalked me playfully.

“Alone,” he said as he neared.

His gaze swept my face, and I saw the raw desire there.  He reached up to tug the end of my long brown hair gently, and I noticed his hand shake.

Seeing his barely contained control, I wondered if he would be the big bad wolf for my first time or the sweet Emmitt I knew.  I realized I would take either version of him.  My nervousness fled, and I wanted to wrap my arms around him.

He caught the direction of my gaze and the corner of his mouth lifted in a self-depreciating smile.

“I’ve wanted this badly,” he said.  “I’ve dreamt of it...”  He stepped closer and lifted his hand to my cheek.  “Again...”  His thumb brushed over my lips and my pulse leapt.  I stopped breathing as he leaned close, his lips hovering over mine.  “And again...”

My breath caught, and I lifted my chin just a fraction, ready to meet him.

Someone knocked on the door, making me jump.  Emmitt sighed and closed his eyes as Jim’s voice reached us from the hallway.

“Time’s up.  I was sent to get you before you two got distracted.”

***   

Everyone crowded into Thomas and Charlene’s room to eat our Thanksgiving meal.  Instead of sitting beside me on the bed, Emmitt leaned against the wall across the room.  I didn’t have time to consider his choice what with the talk of plans to find the next Judgement and to evade the Urbat.

But, part way through the conversation, while I was taking another bite, I happened to glance Emmitt’s way and found him watching me with an intensity that made my legs weak.  The corner of his mouth lifted in a slight sexy smile, furthering the effect.  I blushed, quickly looked away, and tried to focus on the conversation once more.  It did no good now that I knew he watched me.

By the time the food was gone and the conversation wound down, a nervous energy consumed me.  Emmitt pushed away from the wall, his eyes never leaving mine as he crossed the room to stand before me.  He didn’t speak, just held out his hand.  I gave him my empty plate instead of my hand.  He grinned wide, tossed the plate into the garbage, then held out his hand again.

My fingers trembled as I surrendered to him.  He clasped my hand firmly, and after we said  goodnight to my brothers, led me out the door.

His thumb glided over the back of my hand in slow circles as we silently walked the hall to our room.  The light touch set my skin tingling, and my anticipation of what was to come grew.  This time there would be no interruption.  My stomach dipped and flipped with a mixture of excitement and nervousness at the sight of our room.

He opened the door, set his hand on the small of my back, and motioned for me to enter.  I took a steadying breath and stepped over the threshold, the heat of his hand calming and exciting me at the same time.

Behind me, I heard the click of the door closing, then the louder sound of the bolt sliding into place.  The finality of those noises set my pulse racing.  Alone.  Like him, I’d dreamed of this moment for months.

Emmitt’s heated touch left my back then his hands skimmed down my arms, caressing their lengths.  His slow movements and focused attention made my skin tingle with need.  I could barely breathe from it, and if my heart started beating any harder, it would burst from my chest.

“Shh,” he whispered softly, stepping closer until his chiseled chest pressed against my back.

The contact did little to calm me; I ached for more.  More contact.  More touching.  More of his love.  But, his hands on my arms kept me still.

He swept my hair aside and kissed my neck.  I shivered, closed my eyes, and leaned back into him.  He wrapped an arm around my waist to hold me there while his free hand smoothed over my ribs.

“Your heart is beating so hard...”  His breath brushed my skin with his quiet, hoarse words.  His roaming hand lifted to settle on top my left breast, just above that tortured organ.  My breathing hitched at the feel of his hand brushing the edge of my bra.  His palm heated me.  I wanted more.  The tingling sensations he created on my neck were nothing compared to the burn of his palm.