Strange Lake Falls Panther (Strange Lake Falls Series Book 4) (3 page)

Connor walked into the darkened house. He dumped his bags just inside the front door and kept going. He knew his way around without the lights.

It was so quiet. He knew his mother expected him to take over this house as his own now, but the place was just too big for him. It had three bedrooms, each with its own bathroom, a living room, and a family room. The basement was unfinished but it was also huge. He often wondered what his parents were thinking when they bought such a huge place with only one child.

He noticed that there was a blinking light on his answering machine. He hit play. “You have eight messages. First message. ‘
Connor, this is your mother. Call me when you arrive.’
Second message. ‘
Connor, it's Mom. I don’t think there’s any food in the house. Come by the pack house when you get in and I’ll fix you something to eat.’
Message three. “
Just checking to see if you arrived yet. Call me when you get in, no matter how late it is. I love you.’
Message four . . .”
All but three messages were from his mom. The other three were solicitors. He couldn’t help but smile. He took the cordless receiver and dialed the pack house.

“Hello?” A familiar voice answered the phone.

“Hi, Sam, it’s Connor. How’s everything?”

“Connor! Oh my gosh, you’re back! Mary . . . Ric, Connor’s on the phone.”

Before he could ask Sam to calm down, his mom’s voice came over the line. It was the best sound he had ever heard in his life. Coming to Strange Lake Falls wasn’t quite home, the house didn’t really feel like home either, but hearing his mother’s voice was home for him. He almost cried right then.

“Connor, baby. I’m so glad you’re home.”

He gulped back his emotions. “Me too, Mom. Me too.”

“Come over here and I’ll make you something to eat.”

“I’m not hungry right now, really. I’m more tired than anything. I was thinking of going to bed.”

“Oh . . . you’re right. You must be exhausted. Go to bed and I’ll come by in the morning and cook you a good ol’ fashioned breakfast.”

“Mom, you don’t have to do that.”

“I insist. Get some sleep, because I’m going to be there at the crack of dawn.”

Connor almost laughed when he heard Ric groan in the background about having to get up early. “Let me come over there, but not at the crack of dawn. How about I come over to the pack house about nine?”

“Fine, I’ll see you in the morning, then. I love you.”

“I love you too, Mom.”

He hung up the phone feeling happy and sad at the same time. He hadn’t seen his mother in over eighteen months. He had changed quite a bit. What would she think of him? He went to his old bedroom and into the bathroom. He turned the lights on and stared in the mirror.

He looked different. He was taller, with more well defined muscles, toned, not a football player’s big body now but more of a gymnast and swimmer physique. He also seemed to be taller. Even his eyes had changed; though they were still the same color, the shape of them seemed more feline. He felt different, too. Would his mother see the differences? Maybe, maybe not. But she would be able to scent the difference. He wasn’t human anymore and she would be able to tell that eventually.

Maybe he should have warned her. If he had told her what had, she would have come to South America after him and that would have been too dangerous. He could have told her over the phone just now, but then she would have come in the middle of the night to see that he was okay. No matter how or when he told her, she was going to be devastated. He sighed, there was no changing things at this point and time. What was done was done.

He turned on the water in the shower and removed his clothes. He was looking forward to a real shower, with hot water that wouldn’t run out halfway through and wasn’t mostly brown. His shampoo bottle was still half full. He massaged the shampoo through his hair. Maybe he should have tried to cut his hair before coming home. It still would have grown back long again in a day or two. He had to constantly keep it cut short to prevent it from getting tangled while he moved through the rainforest. He hadn’t cut it since he left South America and it was already past his shoulders.

He rinsed the suds from his hair and grabbed the bar of soap. He didn’t use a washcloth, just rubbed the soap all over his body. When he was done washing himself, he turned the water off and grabbed a towel. Fast, sure motions got his body pretty much dry. He walked naked back to his bedroom and crawled into the bed.

The moment he pulled back the covers he froze. The most delicious scent rose up to him and seemed to envelope him. It was a mixture of honey and lavender and something else, something like . . . arousal. He knew that honey and lavender scent; it belonged to Roxanne, and so did the arousal. He pressed his face against his sheets and inhaled deeply. There was only his scent and Roxanne’s.

Roxanne had been in his bed and she had pleasured herself. His body responded to the scents. His cock was full and primed. Without much thought, his cat pushed him. He rubbed his body all over the bed, trying to cover himself with her scent. Her scent was very strong, which made him think that she had been there recently.

His head hit his pillow and he could smell her there too. He reached for his cock and began stroking himself. If he was going to have a girl get off in his bed, he wanted the same opportunity. What he wouldn’t give to have her there watching him.
Fuck, that was a hot image!

He pumped himself, squeezing slightly to give himself a bit of pain with the pleasure. Connor closed his eyes and imagined the beautiful Roxanne there, watching him with her pale blue eyes. She had knowledge in those eyes of hers. Of course she did, she was much older than him. He had never thought of himself as liking older women before, but then again, Roxanne looked like she was in her twenties.

She had long platinum blond hair and a body that was sculpted for pleasure, but there was so much more to Roxanne than her outward appearance. He had noticed the few times he was around her that she was extremely kind to others. She had been so patient when helping Sam learn about her new werewolf abilities. She showed respect to his mom and Ric, and in turn many respected her. She had so much to offer a mate, she could have her pick of any werewolf she wanted. Why was she still unmated? Connor wished he could . . . No, thinking like that wouldn’t help him. He pushed those thoughts away and remembered instead an vision of Roxanne when she undressed once to shift to her wolf form.

Shifters weren’t shy about their bodies. He wondered if his mother still had issues. He was there the first time his mom shifted. She looked about his age now, which was a little awkward. He was happy that his mother finally found the love of her life. He wished he could find that. Thinking about his mom almost made him lose his arousal.
No thinking of Mom at times like this.

Another image of Roxanne came to his mind. He imagined Roxanne taking a shower in his bathroom. He would lick the water from her body. Then he would lift her up, press her back against the shower wall, and plunge into her sweet channel. She would be tight and hot. She would wrap her legs around his waist, taking more of him in. She would demand a faster pace and he would be happy to oblige.

Faster . . . harder . . . deeper.
He would take her with all the pent up emotions that he had. Until finally . . . He pumped his seed out onto his hand and the sheets.
Fuck!

He hadn’t masturbated like that in years. He wondered if Roxanne thought of him when she touched herself. She had to have been. Why else would she come here? Unless his mom had her staying here for some other reason.

It didn’t matter. He wouldn’t be staying long enough to find those answers. He wiped himself off with the sheet and threw it on the floor. He’d wash it in the morning. Right now his body was relaxed and he was in his own bed for once. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

*****

Roxanne stretched her arms as she got up from her bed. It was still dark outside. The house was strangely quiet. The pack house was never quiet. Something was different. She inhaled and smelled a familiar cinnamon fragrance. She knew that fragrance, an incense that her friend Diana used whenever she came to Roxanne in her dreams.

“I knew you would recognize the scent. I have missed your company.” A pretty brown haired woman walked closer to Roxanne’s bed.

“I’ve missed you too, Diana. But why are you here? In my dreams? Is it about what the pack soothsayer foretold?” As far as Roxanne knew, she had been the only person that Diana could share her dreams with. Usually she could see past, present, or future events involving others if she had something of theirs to go by. But it had never been a problem for her to connect directly with Roxanne.

“Yes, but she doesn’t have all the facts. Futures change with every decision we make.”

“So if I don’t breed now, I can still breed without having to wait a hundred years?”

Diana shrugged. “It’s your time to breed. But no one can say for sure how long you would have to wait before it’s your time again.”

“Why do I have to have a time?”

“Purebloods are fading. That much is true. But what the wolf council wants is to try to delay the inevitable. Change is coming, and it needs to be embraced.”

“Change? I don’t understand.”

“Remember what I said about following Ric?”

“Yeah, you said if I followed Ric I would find my mate. But you were wrong. Ric’s not my mate, he mated another.”

“I never said Ric was your mate, just that by following him, you would eventually find your mate.”

Roxanne was about to ask something else but a loud growl from outside made her stop. It didn’t sound like a wolf growl. “What was that?”

Diana gave her a gentle smile. “That, my friend, is your mate.”

Everything went a little fuzzy and then Roxanne bolted upright in her bed. Damn Diana and her dream stalking. It always left her feeling strange. This one was particularly odd. What did Diana mean by her mate?

She shook it off and got up and dressed. She wasn’t sure when the alpha that Ric had told her about would arrive, but she needed to be ready for him. That was her reason for picking out the pretty blue summer dress that brought out her eyes. It had nothing to do with the fact that Connor was back and would be making an appearance at the pack house. Nothing whatsoever.

The next morning, Connor found the keys to his old pickup right where he had left them. He had taken a taxi home last night from the airport. It felt odd being behind the wheel. Sure, he had driven Jeeps in the rainforest, but after he had been transformed, he spent most of his time walking on two legs or running on four.

He turned onto the gravel road that led to the pack house. He felt nervous. He knew it wouldn’t take long for Ric to notice his change. His mother was still learning what it was to be a wolf, so it would probably take her a little longer. What if she didn’t accept him? He had planned to leave anyway, but the thought that his mother might reject him worried him.

He pulled up to the large pack house. There were several cars there already. He recognized Sam’s little yellow VW bug. Alpha Ric’s big ol’ pickup. The brothers, Rod and Jay, shared a Jeep. There was a minivan for the werewolf family. His thoughts were interrupted when the front door to the Victorian farmhouse flew open.

He looked up and smiled. “Hi, Mom.”

“Connor!” Mary ambled down the steps, her big pregnant belly hindering her.

Connor laughed as he went to her and picked her up gently. “Why didn’t you say something about being pregnant?” His hands hovered over her protectively.

Mary was crying tears of pure joy. “I wanted it to be a surprise. After the miscarriage, I wasn’t sure I would be able to carry to term, so I didn’t want to jinx it.” She rubbed her large belly with a tender caress.

Connor remembered having headaches when he was a little boy and his mom would rub his head and sooth him. He reached out and touched her expanded belly. He felt a strong kick on the right side. But Mary lifted his other hand and placed it on her other side. He felt another strong kick. He looked up at her in surprise.

She nodded as she whispered to him. “We’re having twins, no one else knows that. We want it to be a surprise.”

Connor laughed as he knelt down and placed his face level with her stomach. “Hi, little ones. I’m your big brother Connor. I want you to know that you have the best mother in the world.”

“Oh, Connor,” Mary said with tears.

“Come on in. Breakfast is going to get cold,” Ric said as he wrapped his arm around Mary and walked her back up the stairs. He ushered her forward. “Go on in, I need to speak to Connor for just a moment.”

They both watched as Mary wobbled down the foyer heading to the dining room. When she was out of sight Ric turned back toward Connor and gestured for him to go back outside. Connor felt tension build up inside of him. He knew he would have to explain what had happened eventually, but he wasn’t sure he was ready yet. Ready or not, it was clear that Ric wanted answers.

“What happened to you?” Ric asked. He didn’t elaborate. He didn’t have to.

“I was attacked by a panther shifter almost eighteen months ago. The shifter was a loner, he had gone crazy killing people. I’ve spent the last year trying to track him down but he has disappeared.”

“A panther? I’ve heard of lion shifters, but not panther.”

“Evidently there’s not many left. The old shaman I met said that the panther shifters were dying out and moved away from the rainforest, all except for the shifter that turned me. Mors.”

“Mors?”

“Yeah, Morris Baynard, but he calls himself Mors. He’s all kinds of messed up.”

Ric frowned. He looked at Connor, then looked at the house, as if he was trying to make up his mind. “You need to tell your mom. She’s going to figure it out anyway.”

“I was going to tell her right before I left.”

Ric glared at him. “You can’t leave. You just got here, and with Mary being ready to go into labor any day, she’s going to need you here.”

Connor shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. I have seen the kind of sick mass destruction this guy Mors has done and I’m his fucking prodigy.”

“What are you talking about?”

“He went insane killing people and raping women trying to change them into were panthers so that he can propagate his kind. As far as I know, insanity is what killed off all the other were panthers. I can’t take the chance that I’ll go crazy too and hurt those around me.”

Ric leaned forward and took a deep sniff in his direction. “Insanity has a specific scent, sickly and peppery. You don’t have that scent, just forest and your cat scent.”

Connor wanted to believe that wouldn’t change, but he just couldn’t be sure. “I don’t want to hurt anyone, even by accident. I, also, can’t let Mors continue on the way he is. I have to track him down and stop him.”

Ric placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “I understand. Stay for a little while and give me time to consult with the elders of my council to see if they know more about the panthers. We could also ask Adrian Belliveau or his maker Lila. Both are much older than me and have probably seen more different types of shifters.”

Connor looked at the farmhouse with longing. He wanted desperately to stay with his family. He wanted to reconnect with his mother and he wanted to be there when his siblings were born. He had always wanted a brother or sister growing up. It had been lonely as an only child. His best friend Samantha was the closest he had ever come to having a sister.

“Stay just a little while longer and give me time. I would to find answers for you and maybe the werewolf council can send out trackers to help you search for this guys.” Ric squeezed his shoulder.

Connor let out the breath he was holding. He felt like for the first time he didn’t have to carry the burden all himself. “Okay, I’ll stay for a couple of weeks. But then I need to get back to my search for Mors. I can’t let him keep terrorizing villages.”

Ric slapped his back, pushing him forward. “Come on, let’s get in there and get a plate before the twins or Sam eats it all. I swear that girl can pack it away.”

Connor laughed. “She was always like that, even when she was a human.”

He followed Ric up the stairs and into the farmhouse. He inhaled and his stomach growled at the delicious scent. His mom had evidently made his favorite, Western omelettes. He walked into the large dining room and was welcomed by the entire pack. He got hard slaps on the back from the men and hugs from the women. He turned just in time to catch Sam as she threw herself into his arms.

“Welcome home, Connor! I’ve missed you.”

“Sam, you look great.” He twirled her around before setting her back down. Her long brown hair was shiny and silky looking and her werewolf genes had made her body toned and fit. He noticed her sniffing at him, and while she didn’t comment, he knew she would interrogate him later.

He had greeted everyone, everyone except Roxanne. He looked up and his eyes caught hers. His cat stood up and started pacing. His body was becoming aroused just looking at the gorgeous woman. Connor tried to cover his reaction to her. “Hello, Roxanne, it’s good to see you again.”

Roxanne returned his smile. “Connor, welcome home.”

*****

Oh God, he was here.
Connor was finally home. He looked so much better than she remembered. He seemed taller, more muscular, tanned; South America had been good to him. There was something in his eyes that made her wolf sit up and pay attention. Something was definitely off with him, but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was. She took her seat at the other end of the huge dining table.

She watched as Mary sat on one side of Connor and Samantha on the other. They both talked to him with ease and humor. He and Sam looked great together. It had crossed her mind more than once that they would have made a perfect couple, but Sam had always talked about Connor in a sisterly manner. He had been gone for almost two years, could his feelings have changed?

Roxanne reached for her glass of water while still watching Connor. She almost knocked it over when Connor looked up at her and stared straight into her eyes. Her breath caught in her throat and her skin felt tingly. Why was she suddenly acting like a young teenage girl with a crush. One look from Connor and she was squeezing her thighs together under the table.
Was it warm in here or what?

Connor kept looking at her but he asked Samantha about what was going on with school and her social life. “Are you dating a lot of humans or are you looking for a werewolf to mate?

Roxanne smiled as Samantha blushed. “I’m not dating anyone. It’s too dangerous to date humans because I might hurt them and . . . well, no one appeals to me.”

“Has the council pressured you?” Connor asked.

She shook her head. “No, thank God. They are all over Roxanne’s case, though.”

Connor turned Roxanne’s way. “You haven’t mated yet?”

This time it was Roxanne who blushed. She was about to answer no when Samantha answered for her.

“It’s not for the lack of trying. She has dated every werewolf, Tom, Dick, and Harry that the council has sent her way. A new one arrives tomorrow.” Sam continued, oblivious to the reaction she was causing in both Roxanne and Connor. Connor stared into Roxanne’s eyes and she felt embarrassed, like she had done something wrong. But she hadn’t, she was just doing what her people needed her to do.

“How long are you staying this time Connor?” one of the twins, maybe Rod, asked. He had always had a hard time telling them apart.

Mary answered for him. “He’s home for good.”

“Actually . . .” Connor was interrupted by Ric.

“Of course he’ll be staying. Enough questions. Let’s take this breakfast outside, it’s not too hot yet.”

Weres loved being outside. Everyone stood up and started piling out of the house. All except for Connor, who was whispering something to his mother. She patted his cheek and followed the others outside. It left Roxanne alone with Connor.

“I think they all forgot juice and coffee. I better go fetch something from the kitchen.” She felt nervous all of a sudden. She didn’t understand it. But she had goose bumps all over her body. Her wolf was pacing and feeling anxious. She walked past him into the kitchen, hyperaware of him following behind her. She tried not to make a big deal out of it.

“If I know my mom, she probably has some kind of dessert ready. What kind of dessert did she make?” Connor asked.

“What do you want?” She froze when she realized how that sounded. “I mean . . . what would you like to eat? No, that’s . . .”

Connor chuckled huskily. “Ice cream would be good.”

“We have tubs of that.” She opened the freezer and bent down. “There’s chocolate, vanilla, and a whole gallon of strawberry. Do you know what you want?”

“Yes.” Connor’s voice sounded strangled.

Roxanne glanced back and found that Connor’s eyes were fixed on her ass. She felt heat rise to her face. She cleared her throat. “What flavor do you want, Connor?”

He licked his lips. “Mmm . . .”

She stood up and turned to face him with a saucy smile. “I’m not on the menu. What flavor ice cream did you want?”

He gave her a knowing look. “I want a taste of what I found in my bed last night.”

She gasped and knew her face was turning red. “Um . . . what?” Did he know what she had done? How?

He leaned closer to her and growled low. “I’ll have any flavor that you have.” Then he backed away and leaned against the bar. Her move.

Roxanne was about to turn back to the freezer when a strange scent caught her attention. It was coming from Connor and it wasn’t completely human. She didn’t think, she just acted. She walked right up to him, pressing her chest against his, and stuck her nose against his bare neck. She inhaled deeply.

“Roxanne, what are you doing?” Connor asked but he didn’t step away. He raised an arm and wrapped it around her waist bringing her closer to him.

“What are you?” Roxanne asked looking up into his face. He was so handsome, but now it seemed like everything about him was more alluring, more controlled, more primitive, just . . . more.

Connor pulled away from her. “I’m a were panther.”

Roxanne frowned. “I thought they were mostly extinct.”

“Well, I was attacked by one and now I am one.”

“You’re a what?” Mary asked from the doorway.

Crap!
This was not how he planned to tell his secret. “I’m a were panther.”

He watched as his mother’s face paled and she began to sway. Both he and Roxanne raced over to catch her before she fell.

“I guess that didn’t go well, huh?” Roxanne asked.

He snorted. “No, having my mother faint as I tell her I was changed into a were panther by a psycho was not how I planned this thing to go at all.”

“Well, it could have been worse,” she offered as he picked his mother up in his arms. He looked at her questioning.

“How so?”

“I’m not sure. That’s just something people say to make others feel better. Did it work?”

“Hell no.”