Mountain Moonlight
MOUNTAIN MOONLIGHT
An Ellora’s Cave Publication, January 2005
Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
1337 Commerce Drive, #13
Stow, OH 44224
ISBN MS Re
Other avail
ader (LIT) ISBN # 1-4199-0113-3
able formats (no ISBNs are assigned):
Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML
MOUNTAIN MOONLIGHT © 2005 JACI BURTON
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. They are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.
Edited by
Briana St. James.
Cover art by
Syneca
.
Warning:
The following material contains graphic sexual content meant for mature readers.
Mountain Moonlight
has been rated E–rotic by a minimum of three independent reviewers.
Ellora’s Cave Publishing offers three levels of Romantica™ reading entertainment: S (S-ensuous), E (E-rotic), and X (X-treme).
S-
ensuous
love scenes are explicit and leave nothing to the imagination.
E-
rotic
love scenes are explicit, leave nothing to the imagination, and are high in volume per the overallword count. In addition, some E-rated titles might contain fantasy material that some readers findobjectionable, such as bondage, submission, same sex encounters, forced seductions, and so forth. E-rated titles are the most graphic titles we carry; it is common, for instance, for an author to use words such as
“fucking”, “cock”, “pussy”, and such within their work of literature.
X-
treme
titles differ from E-rated titles only in plot premise and storyline execution. Unlike E-rated titles, stories designated with the letter X tend to contain controversial subject matter not for the faint of heart.
DEVLIN DYNASTY:
MOUNTAIN MOONLIGHT
Jaci Burton
DEDICATION
To Charlie, my alpha male, for giving me the kind of love that I thought only
existed in fiction.
Author’s Note
The Carpathian Mountains are one of Europe’s largest mountain areas. Arching across seven countries in Central Europe, from Austria to Ukraine and down to Romania, the Carpathians are home to some 16 to 18 million people and key refuge for Europe’s largest populations of large carnivores such as brown bear, wolf and lynx.
Though
MOUNTAIN MOONLIGHT
is a work of fiction, the plight of wolves in the Carpathian mountain regions is fact. The Carpathian Mountains are the last refuge for wolves in Europe. Though much has been done to protect the remaining wolves in Central Europe, they are still endangered. Wolves know no borders, and crossing fromone country to another places them in potentially perilous situations. Despite improvements made in protecting the wolf population of the Carpathians, they are still hunted in many countries.
Fortunately, many conservation organizations exist worldwide to protect the endangered wolf population, including World Wildlife Federation (www.wwf.org) and National Wildlife Federation (www.nwf.org).
Mountain Moonlight
Chapter One
Vlasov, Romania
The private car stopped in front of the Hotel Vlasov, the only modern hotel in avillage that looked like something out of the past. Quaint medieval buildings were interspersed around a twin-towered, modern luxury hotel, a coming together of old and new all nestled in the tiny town situated at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains.
Conner Devlin sighed and shrugged his shoulders, tension knotting every muscle in his body. What a long damn flight followed by an equally lengthy car ride. If hedidn’t see the cramped confines of an airplane or vehicle for the next year, he’d be a happy man.
“’Bout damn time we got here.”
Conner stretched, nodding at his brother, Noah. “I’m sick of travel.”
“Ditto.”
Hopefully they’d get their business out of the way fast so he could get back home.
The hotel was small, yet elegantly furnished with a Russian flair. Ornate wall hangings decorated the lobby, a combination of both modern and old-world with opulent gold-toned chairs sitting alongside chrome and glass tables.
The floor was beige and cream marble, slick and polished to a gleaming shine. Fading sunlight filtered in from the floor-to-ceiling windows, showcasing a dynamicview of the Carpathians.
By the time they checked in, the need to stretch out and run was like a fire burning inside him. He’d definitely need a trek into the nearby woods tonight.
But now the sun shone just above the tip of the mountains, its rays slicing through the clouds and reflecting off the green hillsides. He gazed up at the Carpathians. Somewhere up there was Braslieu castle. And within the property the Braslieu family owned were his kin.
Distant kin, but blood nonetheless. And Devlins protected their own. Otherwise
he’d have never made this hellish trip.
He wrinkled his nose and blew out a tired breath.
Why did he have to come to Romania? Why couldn’t one of his staff have done this instead? Christ, he’d drawn the short straw on this one.
His parents said he was needed here, that his research and development expertise made him the prime candidate to set up and manage the wildlife preserve.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Still…Romania?
“Don’t look so happy,” Noah deadpanned.
5
Jaci Burton
Conner rolled his eyes, both annoyed and glad that his brother had come with him. At only a year apart in age, they had been friends more than brothers—tight, sharing everything, including their women on occasion. And also sparring on a regular basis, a pastime they both enjoyed way more than they’d ever admit. “What’s there to be happy about? I haven’t even been here an hour and I’m ready to go home.”
“That’s because you miss the women.”
Ignoring Noah’s smirk, Conner shrugged. “I can get women anywhere. I just hateinternational travel.”
“And you miss the women.”
This time Conner laughed. “Yeah, I miss the women.”
Ah, the good life. He’d sure as hell miss it once he was forced to settle down, which hopefully wouldn’t be anytime soon. Despite the fact his parents seemed hell-bent on sending every one of their offspring to different parts of the world in order to expand the pack, he’d been spared so far. Maybe it was his sister Chantal’s turn now. His two older brothers, Jason and Max, had already been assigned to new locations. They’d also managed to find mates. Conner wasn’t anywhere near ready to find a mate, and he knew damn well Noah was even less ready.
At least Noah had been sent to accompany him and provide protection. Besides, who better to do the tracking of the pack than Noah? It was his specialty and he was one of the best.
The bell captain brought their luggage by, indicating in stilted English that he’d be
taking it to their rooms. Thank God a few people spoke English here.
A week to rest and check out the area would be nice. Not gonna happen, but would have been nice. They had to get started right away. Before the government intervenedand they lost control of the pack.
“What time are we meeting Katya?” Noah asked.
“Seven tonight.”
“What’s her function in this deal?”
“She’s the business manager for the Braslieu holdings and she’ll be working with us to set up the preserve.”
“Guess we should get unpacked and cleaned up, then,” Noah grumbled, showing about as much enthusiasm for this project as Conner.
They had booked private cottages instead of the main building. Conner hated hotels. There was never any privacy. If he had to be here, at least he could have something that resembled a private apartment. The cottages were only a short walk from the hotel entrance, down a well-lit path into the forested area.
Now this was more like it. Though the pale stone cottages were nestled fairly close together, they were still separate dwellings. He slipped his key into the lock and stepped inside, flipping on the light and taking a look around.
6
Mountain Moonlight
Not bad. There was a living area complete with a desk where he could work, a kitchen and a separate, closed-off bedroom with a large bath. The bed was king-sized, thank God. Nothing like trying to fit his six-foot-two frame into a tiny double bed like alot of hotels provided. He hated when his feet hung off the bed. And the bedroom had French doors leading out to a small terrace, complete with table, chairs and a spectacular view of the mountains. The moon rose opposite the mountains, and Connerimmediately fell its pull.
Too bad he didn’t have time to go for a run like he’d wanted to. But as he glanced at his watch he realized he didn’t have much time to get ready before meeting Katya.
After he’d showered and dressed, he felt at least a little refreshed. Hopefully he’dbe able to carry on a lucid conversation now, despite the jet lag. He left the cottage and met Noah coming out his door.
“Where?” Noah asked.
“Her cottage. She left the number with the front desk.” Katya’s cottage was behind his so it only took them a few seconds. He knocked and waited.
A distinctly female voice answered in rapid Romanian. Shortly the door swung open to a gorgeous vision.
Well, hell. Hadn’t expected to be gut-punched in reaction, but that’s exactly how he felt. An instantaneous, combustible response to the woman standing there.
Dressed in tight tan pants, brown suede boots and a full-length sweater, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Creamy skin, silky black hair and eyes the color of rich brandy. Luscious, like the primal forests he loved, she had a wild look about her, encased within pristine beauty. She had a classic hourglass figure —perfect, full breasts, small waist and curvy hips, all leading down to very long legs.
Damn she was hot. And for some reason he’d expected a middle-aged, all business type of woman.
She licked her lips and arched her brow, her gaze lingering longer than he’d expected it to.
Eye contact with her was electric.
He inhaled, picking up her scent, a mixture of wildflowers and—
Lupine. Katya was lupine. His pulse kicked into gear and the change could have easily overtaken him as animal lust took over. If he hadn’t practiced tamping down the urges for years, she’d be faced with one very horny werewolf right now.
“You are the Devlins, I presume?”
She welcomed them with a smile. Damn, that smile did something to his dick. The tiredness left his body now that she had his cock’s full attention
Somehow managing to find his voice, he held out his hand. “Conner Devlin. This is my brother, Noah.”