Wild Hearts Read online

  “A bit paranoid?”

  “No. It’s our business. We’re in security. Home security, personal bodyguard, those things. We’ve gotta make a living beyond the wild, sweetheart.” Jacy dropped the slat and turned to her. “He keeps the fridge and pantry stocked. He’s got every cable channel available.” Jacy pointed down a dark extension beyond the extremely contemporary kitchen with stainless steel appliances and black marble countertops. “Bedrooms and bathrooms are down there. If you feel the need to take a nap, make yourself comfortable. In fact, make yourself at home.”

  “And you?” Shyla stepped over to one of the tall sculptures. There was nothing definitive about it other than that it looked like a scraggly steel tree with flat strips for branches.

  “I’m going with Coal. You’re not to leave this place for any reason.”

  Shyla looked back at him. He slid his cell phone from his jacket and handed it to her. She lifted a brow.

  “Coal’s programmed on two. Len, three. If you can’t get in touch with either of them for any reason, you can call the numbers programmed up to eight. Everyone knows you’re here, and they’ll come right away.”

  Shyla tucked the phone in her jean pocket. Her gaze followed Jacy as he stepped up to her and pulled her into the hot cavern of his body. She wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes, inhaling the woodsy scent of his skin.

  “I’m gonna lock you inside, Shyla. Don’t try to open any of the doors or windows. Everything is wired. You’ll be safe until we return.”

  “How long will you be gone?”

  “As long as it takes to find those who watched the house last night. They might lead us to Laela. She’s your greatest threat right now, and we’ve been trying to locate her for a few months, to no avail.”

  Jacy leaned back, and Shyla tipped her face up to his. He kissed her, his hot mouth feeding her comfort as her legs weakened and the never-ending burn of desire licked at her lower belly. Her heart thudded against her chest. She didn’t want to be left alone.

  Shyla ended the kiss. “Does Coal always run after danger without stopping to plan out a strategy?”

  “Coal’s aggressive, but don’t mistake that for being careless. He plans as he goes. He doesn’t take shit from anyone, especially now that you’re involved.” He shrugged, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, and smiled. “He’s the best at what he does. He’s a fearless hunter. I’m his balance. He needs someone to pull the reins when he dives headfirst into fire.” He must have sensed her worry and added, “He’ll be fine. We’ll all be just fine.”

  Shyla stepped away from the hallway, allowing Jacy to pass. She watched him, admiring his confident walk, not to mention the way his jeans formed to his muscled legs and perfect rear. His dark blond hair brushed the collar of his jacket, the dim lighting reflecting off the glossy strands. At the door, he looked back, sunglasses in hand, and smiled. The sharp contours of his beautiful face held no doubt or fear. His green eyes glinted with a dark, wild hunger.

  Shyla moistened her lips. His feral wolf side switched on her sexual lust with little to hold it back. Her eyes lowered from his to the open top of his shirt, then snapped back up to his gaze. He laughed.

  “All you want in a few hours. Promise.” He stepped out of the house and called back, “Don’t open anything.”

  The door closed, and a series of clicks and beeps followed. Alone in a house that emanated masculine perfection and brought a yearning for Coal and Jacy, she rubbed her arms and headed down the adjacent hallway. Curiosity pulled her to the bedrooms. She wanted to see where Coal slept. She wanted to learn more about the brooding man who made her heart sputter and her mind roll, why he consumed her, even more than Jacy.

  The first door opened to a guest room, simply furnished and decorated. The second door opened to a lavish bathroom with black area rugs and accessories on gleaming white surfaces. The third door led into another world.

  This had to be Coal’s bedroom. With a California king-sized bed situated against the center of the far wall as the centerpiece, the room pulsed sexual prowess and masculinity. The walls were the same stark white. Cold metal sculptures adorned the wall around a black marble fireplace across from the foot of the bed. White taper candles filled the marble mantle. A black leather wingback chair was angled toward the fireplace with a round glass table beside it.

  Shyla shrugged her shawl off her shoulders and moved over to the fireplace. She flipped a switch partially hidden by the sculpture. Smokeless flames burst to life next to her, sending her reeling back on a shriek. With her hand pressed to her chest to calm her pounding heart, she drew in a deep breath, settling her nerves.

  “Coal, you’re one hell of a multidimensional masterpiece, aren’t you?” she asked the empty room. Sure her legs wouldn’t collapse beneath her, she moved to the bed and ran a hand over the cool black satin comforter. Dark red needlework created a sharp, jagged design along the hem that matched the black curtains pulled closed over the windows. It reminded her of tribal art.

  Shyla leaned over the bed, and her hands sank into the heavenly mattress. She climbed into the bed and stretched out over the comforter, nuzzling her face into the ultra soft fabric. Coal’s spicy scent filled her lungs, her body, and her mind, making her ache. She closed her eyes with a moan, her arms and legs slowly gliding over the satin. Images of Coal making love to her stirred in her mind.

  “God, what have you two done to me?” she whispered aloud. I can’t imagine being without you.

  A purr tickled the base of her throat, and she smiled. Maybe she’d have one more night with them before she left.

  Memories would be her saving grace back home.

  Chapter Ten

  Coal’s ears perked up. He stilled, the only motion coming from his ruffling black fur against the breeze’s gentle breath.

  Crack.

  The dead twig snapped from behind him. He sniffed the air, trying to detect what approached, but the breeze kept the scent at bay. Lowering himself to his belly and moving below the brush line, he turned away from the trail and began to slink toward the sound.

  The breeze shifted.

  The enemy’s foul odor assaulted his nostrils a split second before the bushes a few feet away parted and a wolf lunged at him.

  With a threatening growl, Coal leaped from beneath the white and tan, spun, and pounced down on his back. White teeth snapped up at him, one sharp fang catching the side of his snout. Coal barked, deep and low in his throat, swatting a large paw at the wolf’s face. The move might have been human, but it stunned the fool long enough for Coal to pin him to the ground, his dark body covering the lighter one.

  “Who sent you last night?” he demanded. The white and tan struggled beneath him, small yelps escaping his throat as he fought. Coal pulled back his jowls in a snarl, showing off his razor-sharp teeth in the gloomy afternoon. “I have no need for you if you won’t cooperate. One more chance. Who sent you? Laela?”

  “She wants the white.”

  “She won’t get the white.”

  “She won’t stop.”

  “By force, I think she will.” Coal sank his teeth into the tan and white’s throat. The wolf howled, thrashing against Coal and the ground until his struggle slowed and finally ceased. Coal snorted, climbing off the wolf. Licking the blood from his snout, he returned to the scent trail.

  He didn’t manage a yard before he heard the steady, padded approach of another animal. Preparing for a second attack, he lunged back on his haunches and waited.

  “Coal, don’t you fucking jump me. Oh, shit. What the hell did you do to him?”

  Jacy rounded a tree and stood before him, gray fur rustling in the strengthening breeze. Immediately, Coal suppressed his wolf, and his animal body reshaped and molded into his human form.

  “What the fuck are you doing here? I told you to stay with her,” Coal snapped, smacking Jacy’s shoulder.

  Jacy took a swipe at his hand.

  “Don’t, you idiot. You’r
e in for a fucking hell ride should anything happen to her.”

  The gray sat back. He watched his friend’s body contort and conform to the human shape he was familiar with. Naked, just as he, Jacy brushed back hair from his eyes and arched a brow.

  “You really think I would leave her without making sure she’s safe? Christ, Coal. Your house is the next best thing to a high-security federal prison, minus the barbed wire and uniforms. I’m not about to let you take on however many renegade wolves solo.” Jacy leaned in toward him, green eyes ablaze. “Both of us will return to her, as long as we do this together. Don’t go frightening our little pet again, got it?”

  Despite his bristling reaction to Jacy’s response, Coal calmed the anger that ripped through him. His home was safe. Who was he to deny Jacy some bloodshed?

  “Laela wants Shyla. That’s all I got from that one,” Coal said.

  “Tell us something new. You know who he was?”

  “No. I’m not standing around to find out either. There’s another. Shouldn’t be too far ahead.” Coal submitted to his wild wolf. His bones reformed, his joints popped, and his fur grew.

  “Behind—” Jacy never finished the warning. His reshaping body flew past him.

  Coal didn’t have time to react. The force of the blow at his back sent him sprawling to the ground. He rolled onto his back, willing the change to finish. He heard the whoosh of air in his mind as Jacy’s body smacked into a tree.

  Coal drew all four paws into his body and thrust outward, shoving the wolf off him only to have a second leap on top of him. Growling a threat, the second wolf hesitated, but the first wolf attacked.

  Teeth bore into his shoulder. He barked, lifting his hind legs into the tender underbelly of the first wolf. He arched his paws and ripped his nails down flesh. The wolf howled and hopped back. The second wolf began to slink away. Coal flipped over onto his paws and stole a quick look in Jacy’s direction.

  Three wolves had descended upon him, all viciously snapping deadly white fangs at any exposed area on his friend.

  The first wolf leaped at Coal, hooked paws on his shoulders, and dug nails into his muscles. Coal shot his head around and caught the tip of his snout between his teeth. Mewls scraped along his eardrums as he clamped down harder, drawing blood that streamed over his tongue and to the back of his throat. Raw, primal instinct conquered his mind as the second wolf came at him again.

  Battling five blood-hungry, death-hunting wolves, the only thing that could save them was instinct.

  Coal snapped a command at Jacy just before he cut the only remaining thread holding him to his wolf.

  * * * *

  Her lovers filled her dreams, but she woke alone.

  Shyla sighed, stretching her arms over her head before rubbing her eyes.

  The bed shifted beside her. Half expecting to have one of her two men roll on top of her and make love to her, she peeled back her eyelids with a sultry smile.

  “Hello, Shyla. We finally meet after all these years.”

  Shyla shot upright and scrambled to the edge of the bed. The woman grabbed her arm and yanked her back, a dark smile on her mouth. Her eyes, frost blue and nearly translucent, sparked with a basic predator triumph. Her wild blonde hair caped her to the waist. She wore nothing but a sheer pair of panties.

  Shyla tried to twist her arm away as she slid her feet to the floor. Stretched over the mattress, she gained leverage and yanked her arm.

  “No. I don’t think so.”

  The woman latched on farther up her arm. Shyla’s body tumbled back onto the bed, knocking into the woman. She hissed, shoving Shyla off her.

  “Who are you?” Shyla demanded. Her mind worked in overdrive, trying to devise an escape. Whoever this bitch was definitely had the upper hand with strength.

  “I’m the deliverer of your birthright, child. Your other birthright.” The woman chuckled. She pulled something from beneath a pile of black clothing and held it up for Shyla to see.

  A short silver knife reflected the illumination from the fire like hellish glass. Her blood ran cold.

  “Don’t run. I’m a perfect shot,” the woman warned, her cruel smile still toying with the corners of her mouth.

  “Who are you? How’d you get in here?” Shyla asked, buying time. The knife just lowered her chances of an unscathed escape. If the woman was a perfect shot, Shyla would be an easy target starting out so close.

  “My name is Laela, and I’m the leader of the Dark Moon pack, and all the packs around here. I don’t appreciate you coming and stirring things up. See, first off, the two men who’ve been fucking you like a common whore belong to me. That’s all you are to them, a common little fuck whore.” Laela scoured a frigid gaze over Shyla. The woman raked ice down her front. “Second, we don’t like white wolves here. They’re marked for slaughter. Have you heard of the Blood Moon Legacy?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about, all this white wolf shit,” Shyla spat. Maybe playing ignorance would help her cause.

  Laela scowled. She slid to the edge of the bed and climbed off, brandishing her knife as a stark reminder of who had control. Shyla cast a glance toward the bedroom door and quickly dismissed the obvious means of escape. Laela paced between her and the door.

  “How’d you get in? This place is on lockdown,” Shyla repeated. Laela paused and cast her a subfreezing glance. Shyla stood her ground, sitting on her knees and leaning forward on her fists.

  “They may think they’re smart when, in fact, they’re idiots. Your two alphas have a nose worth envying. I know where Coal lives. It’s not a secret. Everyone knows, especially the women he brings back here.”

  Laela’s cruel grin melted into a cold smile. Her eyes flickered with frost as Shyla’s heart skipped and her stomach rolled. She didn’t like the idea of Coal bringing women here, in this house, in this room.

  Her fingers curled into the satin comforter. The shadow in her mind expanded and teased, whispering for release. It was the very shadow that brought a wolf to life in the place of a human.

  “Jacy left some clothes at Jacob’s cabin. I used them to cloak my scent and slipped into the house behind you. Both of you fools had no idea.” Laela tipped her nose up and inhaled deeply. “The mixture of Jacy and Coal is strong enough to mask a hundred wolves.” She laughed, further freezing blood in Shyla’s veins. “A hundred wolves couldn’t keep you safe from me. I helped kill your mother. I’ll kill you. This is my area, my packs, and my wilderness. My territory.” The knife glinted. “I don’t tolerate trespassers and man thieves.”

  Shyla tucked away the bitterness that erupted in her mind. She wasn’t going to let Laela chisel away her protective barriers by tossing a line at her regarding a mother she never knew.

  The shadow grew until it scraped the walls of her mind. The wolf twisted and turned, wanting to come out. Her fingers flexed and splayed, her body leaning heavily on her hands. Joints in her hands began to ache and change.

  Trying her damnedest to suppress the alien creature threatening to consume her, she halted the subtle beginnings of change. However, her bones didn’t return to normal.

  “Where are they now?” she growled.

  Laela shrugged, then laughed. “Do you really think I’d be here if I didn’t make sure those two were as good as insect food? I have my loyal pack on them as we speak. Coal and Jacy might be admirable and fearless creatures, but not even they can withhold the strength of six wolves. Don’t expect them to come to your rescue.”

  Shyla’s heart raced as adrenaline spurted through her body. She followed Laela as the woman paced the room, the silver knife turning over in her hand, catching the glow of firelight and reflecting the orange against the stark white walls. Shyla sat back on her heels and paused as the woman crossed over to the bedroom door. She had forgotten about the cell phone in her pocket, now digging into her hip. With Laela’s back to her, she dug it out and stuffed it between her legs.

  “I wanted to kill you in front of them. I wa
nted them to watch each cut I make on your pretty little face.” Laela kicked the bedroom door closed, turned, and tipped the edge of the knife to accentuate her point. “Each jab into your pretty little chest. Just like I did with your mother. I stabbed her over and over. I listened as blood filled her lungs. I watched her spirit light her eyes in fear before I extinguished it.”

  Shyla’s shoulders stiffened. She stared at Laela as the creature spun in circles, her hair spreading out around her, exposing her naked body to the room. She lifted her face to the ceiling and laughed. Shyla took the brief opportunity to reach her fingers between her thighs, press the number three on the cell phone keypad, and dial Len. She closed her legs over the phone to silence any noises that might draw attention from the crazed woman twirling like a carefree child.

  Only this child wielded a deadly knife and even deadlier intentions.

  “I never knew my mom. Your attempts to frighten me with her murder do little,” Shyla said, muffling the connecting of the call and Len’s husky “Yeah.” She separated her legs just a tad, enough for the man to hear the conversation and hopefully get the hint she was in trouble. “You killed her, but I still lived. I was hidden from everything and everyone. I grew up knowing nothing about my family, my culture, or these absurd legacies you keep mentioning. I’m not a wolf. Get that through your head.”

  “Oh, Shyla.”

  Laela stopped spinning and focused that icy blue stare on her. She lifted a blonde brow, and a mischievous grin tugged the corners of her mouth. Shyla shifted back on the bed, the cell phone sliding easily over the satin comforter. She had to hide the phone and get away from here.

  “My men told me you shifted into a wolf while Coal claimed you last night. He’s good in bed, isn’t he? That man’s incredible. And Jacy. I’ve had them, and I hoped to continue to enjoy their bed play. But you had to go and ruin it. You ruined everything.”