Wolf in Heat Read online

  Published by EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ® at Smashwords

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2021 Sam Crescent and Stacey Espino

  ISBN: 978-0-3695-0425-8

  Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

  Editor: Audrey Bobak

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  WOLF IN HEAT

  Mated for Life, 2

  Sam Crescent and Stacey Espino

  Copyright © 2021

  Chapter One

  Heather hated the coming of the full moon—that glow on her skin and the different sensations wreaking havoc in her body. Her wolf lurked right under the surface, and it was when she felt the loss of her family the most. Caleb and Bethany’s pack were wonderful. They were her new family, but it hadn’t been that long ago when she’d lost her own. Their loss was still too fresh and raw to truly move on.

  Some nights she found herself lying awake at night, shaking, sweaty, terrified. The memory of her father’s cries filling the air would stay with her forever. Haunt her. He’d been such a strong man but even he hadn’t been able to combat the rogue bear that had set about a path of destruction. Wrapping her arms around her body, she tried to ward off the cold.

  At the peak of the full moon, they’d all be out in their second form, running, hunting. Her veganism still continued during the hunt. While the rest of the pack hunted rabbits, deer, or whatever animal they could catch, she’d often spend her time running. Stretching out her body so when the moon was gone, she didn’t have to worry about her beast coming to the surface.

  “You’re out here all alone again,” Mika said. Her sister came and stood beside her.

  “What’s wrong with being out here?”

  “Why are you and David avoiding each other?”

  “I don’t know what you mean.” The moment she’d met David, she’d felt this spark, this connection. She wasn’t entirely sure what it was, and anything new in her life tended to freak her out. She struggled with adapting, especially in the ever-changing human world. Where her sister had been able to look at change and make it her bitch, she couldn’t do it. Panic attacks, fits of rage, and sometimes standing still, unable to breathe were the ways she’d coped. It had gotten so bad when her parents had enrolled her in public school, they had no choice but to remove her. They said she was more feral than human, a curse in their day and age. Adaption was key and she didn’t blend in well.

  It was why she tried to live her life finding balance in order to accept change. She couldn’t go to high school, but she’d been able to venture into shops or malls for a short time. Not long, a couple of minutes, and then she’d leave. Baby steps.

  Her parents had been helping her to adapt, only for them to be killed during this process. She was thankful her uncle and her sister knew how bad she suffered with change and had helped her to avoid it every step of the way. Only there had been many new changes recently. Not all of them good. New pack, check. New people, check. New place to live, check. New sets of rules, check. All of it new. It was why she couldn’t sleep. Why the full moon terrified her.

  The new pack was aware of her being a vegan and when that had made the rounds one night at dinner, the questions they’d bombarded her with had nearly overwhelmed her. If it hadn’t been for her sister and uncle, she’d have run and never come back. But running away only offered its own set of problems.

  “Of course, you don’t know what I mean. We’ve all been avoiding the topic of you possibly being David’s mate. It’s starting to get old, Heather.”

  “I’m not his mate. There. Does that make you feel better?” Even as she spoke the words, she felt they were a lie. Her mother had once told her when she found the one, she’d know. There would be no room for second-guessing.

  If she was honest with herself, she knew damn well he was the one—her fated mate.

  The permanence, the surety of that fact, suffocated her. It would be yet another change in a long list, and she didn’t want to deal with that right now.

  David was sweet, kind, and strong. He had this … thing where he liked to watch her, which freaked her out. She wasn’t used to being the center of attention.

  Mika moaned. “I can feel it, you know. It’s so warm.”

  “I’m freezing cold,” she said.

  Her sister frowned and wrapped her arms around her. “It’s okay. It’s not that warm.”

  Heather smiled. “You’re as worried as I am. When a wolf starts to feel the cold and the moon scares the living crap out of her, it means she’s rejecting her pack, doesn’t it?”

  “No. Of course it doesn’t just mean that,” Mika said. “It could mean anything. Why haven’t you told Uncle this?”

  “I don’t want to worry him. He’s been so focused on making this work. He’ll feel obligated to leave or I’ll end up pushing him into a decision to kick me out. I’m fine.” The truth was she wasn’t fine. With everything happening around her, she didn’t want to be without a pack. It was a miracle they’d been accepted into a new pack at all.

  After meeting Caleb, Bethany, and the others, she wanted to belong so badly. The idea of rejecting them scared her. She’d have no place to call home.

  “You know there’s another reason you could be feeling this way.”

  “No, don’t say it. That would be even worse.”

  “Come on, Heather, it could happen. It’s time for you.”

  “I’m not going into heat.” She’d seen her mother just before she’d gone into heat. Her mother and father had been gone for several days once it started. She wasn’t a fool. The heat meant she would have no choice but to find a mate.

  “It could be happening.”

  “No.”

  “You’re so stubborn.”

  Heather smiled and she pulled her sister close to her. Mika was like a furnace.

  “You’ve got to talk to Uncle,” Mika said.

  “No. I will if it gets any worse, but you’ve got to promise me you won’t say anything. I won’t worry him for nothing. Promise me.”

  “I don’t like this.”

  “You don’t have to like it. But for me, please?” she asked.

  Mika sighed. “Fine. So long as you’ve got a handle on it. I won’t say anything. Please, don’t let this get so far that you have no choice but to leave.” Her sister held her even tighter. “I can’t lose you, too.”

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  “We’ve already lost so much. We have to stay together. Build a new life.”

  “You’re not going to lose me.” She couldn’t guarantee it, but she couldn’t stand to see her sister upset.

  Mika left her alone and she stared up at the night’s sky and the canvas of stars that had enchanted her since childhood. Her sister had been so warm while all she felt was the cold. Her mother had felt this before the heat had hit. When that had happened, the only man who’d been able to satisfy her was her mate, her husband.

  Heather knew exactly when the changes began in her body. It was when she met David. Her body wanted him even though her mind wasn’t quite ready to take that leap.

  “Please don’t let it be the start of mating heat.” She didn’t know what would be worse, a rejection of the pack or the mating heat. Both of them sounded awful to her.

  She gave the sky one last glance and decided to head back to the house. Caleb and her u
ncle were in plans to build a brand-new property for them. If more wolves were to join, it wouldn’t take long for the main house to be overwhelmed. Currently, she shared a wing of the house with her uncle and Mika.

  Heading back, she came to a stop when she saw David jump out of a truck. In the back, she saw lots of brown paper bags.

  She didn’t want to be rude to him and so she approached, arms folded. “Hi,” she said.

  David jerked around and dropped the keys and the bag within his grasp.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to startle you.” She quickly crouched down and started to pick up the cans of food that had fallen.

  “It’s nothing.”

  She quickly placed them in the bag.

  David smelled so good—an earthy, musky scent that was all male. It reminded her of her runs in the forest.

  “How have you been? We live together and I don’t see you around,” he said.

  “I’ve been helping Bethany and my uncle out.” She’d been avoiding everyone at all costs. It was easy to be around Bethany. Being a human, she didn’t have the same senses as the rest of them, so she didn’t feel judged.

  Caleb had tried to talk to her about David, as did Reese and Brian. Then of course, her uncle had also tried to encourage a mating.

  All their words and attempts had made her too nervous.

  She lifted up a packet and smiled. It was her favorite brand of vegan cheese. Placing it into the pack, she felt this glow from within.

  For the past week, she’d felt this coldness, and with one block of cheese, it faded. Not good.

  She scrambled to her feet and took a step back, looking at David, who inhaled deeply. The hairs on her arms and the back of her neck seemed to stand on end.

  “We’re going to be having a cookout in a couple of days,” David said.

  “Right.”

  “I got you some tofu blocks. I’ve been looking at ways to cook with it.”

  She frowned. “You know how to cook?”

  “No. I … yes, I can cook for you. There’s no reason you can’t be involved in the cookout. I even got a separate grill.” He offered her a smile.

  They were all so nice to her. Finding ways to include her—especially David.

  “Thank you.”

  “I don’t mind, you know. You being a vegan.”

  “Great.” This was why she was never good in many settings. She sucked at socializing.

  ****

  I don’t mind you being a vegan? “Ugh, what the fuck was that?” David slammed the groceries down onto the table. It was the last bag. Heather had already helped and disappeared.

  He’d offered to put everything away.

  She’d been so skittish. She was always like that around him. No matter what he did, she always looked for an escape route. How could they be destined for each other if she couldn’t fucking stand him?

  “Is there a reason you’re talking to yourself?” Brian asked. “Or have you gone off the rails?”

  He hadn’t seen Brain enter the kitchen.

  “No. I’m fine.” He started to put the food away.

  They had all gone into drawing straws when it came to food shopping, but he’d been keeping a close eye on Heather, and had started to see what she liked. The food that put a smile on her face. He’d also been researching all the brands to see what was vegan and not. Her stay within the pack was important to him.

  Even though they seemed to work really well at avoiding each other, he did believe they were in fact mates. He felt something before she even came to their pack. Back in the forest when they were fighting the rogue bear, he felt the pull to Heather. How could a mating be one-sided?

  “I saw Heather helping you.”

  “Yep.”

  “Where is she?”

  “I told her I could handle it.”

  “Dude,” Brian said, picking up another vegan brand of butter with a raised brow. “You have the perfect opportunity here to show your support, and you let her leave? You could have looked like a king here.”

  “It’s not about that. I want her to be happy in the pack.”

  “Because she’s your mate. How long has she been staying here?” Brian asked.

  David nearly answered but pressed his lips together. “I don’t know.”

  “Bullshit, you know. We all know that you know.”

  Heather had been with them a little over six months. During that time, she’d gotten close to Bethany, but no one else. She tended to keep to herself. When he asked her sister, Mika had said Heather had always been a little different. An outcast within a pack.

  Her uncle avoided the topic.

  She’d lost her parents to the rogue bear. She was awkward.

  He noticed in the past week, she’d been wearing sweaters and cardigans, even though it was still warm.

  As wolves, their blood ran on the hot side. They could sustain themselves in extreme weather, no matter what.

  Heather displayed all the signs of a wolf rejecting her pack, and that scared the shit out of him. He couldn’t lose her before he had a chance to win her heart.

  His wolf rubbed against the surface, and Brian turned to look at him. “It’s not the full moon yet.”

  “I know.”

  “What were you thinking about?”

  “Heather.”

  “And?”

  “I don’t want her to leave.”

  “She’s not going to leave unless you do something stupid like scare the crap out of her by changing. Do I need to get Caleb?” Brian asked.

  “I’m fine. There’s no reason to call him. Everything is more than fine.” David finished putting away the groceries and left to go to his room. He paced back and forth. The need to grab Heather and mate with her was so strong, a feral need he had to get better control of.

  She always avoided him, but he sought her out.

  Heather never knew it, of course. He was good at lurking in the shadows. There were times he felt like a creepy stalker with the way he kept tabs on her. Even the small things like watching her read put him at peace.

  For hours, he’d stayed perched in an uncomfortable spot in the library while she’d read some kind of romance novel. There had been a really muscular man on the cover. Not that he was jealous by a book cover, because that would be totally lame. He was above all of that.

  The truth was he’d spent the whole of the next day without a shirt. When he’d seen her come close, he’d made sure to be in some kind of flex to show off just how muscular he was.

  Caleb, Brian, and Reese had thought it was the funniest thing they’d ever seen.

  Assholes.

  So he’d resorted to strip teasing. Using the sun and sweat to make him look appealing. At night, he’d even started to try eating her vegan food, foregoing meat to show his support. Some nights she didn’t even join them. Mika would make some excuse and the uncle would make a random subject change.

  What were they trying to avoid?

  He didn’t know what the fucking problem was.

  “Dinner!” The word was suddenly bellowed around the house.

  Would Heather join them?

  He took several deep breaths, sure his wolf was in control before he left his bedroom. Arriving in the dining room, he was surprised to see Heather sitting at the table, already loading her plate up with food. This was a good start.

  Reese had left a chair available to him so he could sit opposite her.

  They all had spaghetti. Heather’s was bare of all meat and fats, while theirs had ground beef. There was also garlic bread. Heather’s would be made with different butter. He’d Googled everything he could about veganism, but he was far from an expert.

  He sat down opposite and watched as she twirled her fork in the spaghetti and filled her mouth.

  Such luscious, full lips.

  She rarely ate with them, and never with this kind of relish. Even as she chewed on her spaghetti, she took a large bite of garlic bread. Her hands shook a little,
and he wanted to know what was wrong.

  “I hope that’s okay for you,” Bethany said.

  “It’s amazing.” Heather covered her mouth as she spoke. “It tastes so good.”

  Caleb jerked his head toward her suddenly.

  David watched as her uncle looked in her direction.

  “It’s really good food,” Mika said, laughing. “Bethany, you’re an amazing cook.”

  Heather finished her first full plate and David watched as she filled her plate a second time. He didn’t have a problem with her eating, or the quantity. It was good to finally see her eating anything. Something else was off, and he couldn’t put his finger on it.

  “Are you okay, Heather?” Caleb asked.

  She looked up, swallowing her food, and nodded. “Fine. I didn’t realize how hungry I was.” She’d finished the bowl in record time.

  She looked at her empty bowl.

  “There’s more in the kitchen if you need it,” Bethany said.

  “I’ll go and grab some.”

  Heather left the room. Silence met her departure.

  “Guys, what is going on?” Bethany asked.

  Caleb cleared his throat and looked toward Mika.

  “Seriously, is that your polite way of saying leave? Wow, your manners really suck. Either you’re going to discuss the concern that Heather is rejecting you guys in the pack or she’s going into heat.”

  Another round of silence, and Mika shrugged her shoulders.

  “Which one is it? Are you going to tell me?”

  “She’s not rejecting the pack,” Caleb said. “She’s coming close to heat.”

  “Oh crap,” Mika said. “She doesn’t think it’s that.”

  “What has she said to you?”

  “Is this a big deal?” Bethany asked. “I know when I had mine, you were there.”

  Caleb reached out for Bethany’s hand and kissed her inner wrist. “Babe, you’re not a wolf. It will affect Heather differently. I’m surprised she’s being reluctant at all.”