A Shifter Christmas
Read A Shifter Christmas Online
Authors: C.A. Tibbitts
Tags: #paranormal romance, #romance short story, #horse shifter, #shifters romance, #lion shifter romance
A Short Story, Book 0, A Prequel
The Pepper Valley Shifters Series
by
Smashwords Edition
Copyright © 2014 C.A. Tibbitts
Cover artwork by C.A. Tibbitts
Thank you for downloading this ebook. You are
welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced,
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other works by this author. Thank you for your support!
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters,
places, and all actions and storylines are the product of the
author’s imagination.
*NOTE: This short story was originally
published in the Mystical Xmas Box Set in November 2014.
Dedications
To my husband: 18 years and counting! I am so
glad that I met you! Someday, I'll have a computer nerd in a story
and that'll be all you, baby!
To my readers: From those that have read my
stories from the beginning, to those that are new to my writing, I
feel so blessed to have you! I am happy to call you my friends!
Without you, my stories mean nothing. Thank you for reading, from
the bottom of my heart!
Sincerely, C.A. Tibbitts
PEPPER VALLEY SHIFTERS
A Shifter Christmas ~ Pepper Valley Shifters
#0
Shifted For Love ~ Pepper Valley Shifters
#1
Healing A Shifter ~Pepper Valley Shifters
#2
Twice Fated Shifter ~ Pepper Valley Shifters
#2.5
Shifter Under Cover ~ Pepper Valley Shifters
#3
Star Crossed Shifters ~ Pepper Valley
Shifters #4
Shifting into a beautiful bay-colored horse,
she galloped over the dusting of snow to enjoy her last opportunity
of the season to run. The summer had been way too short for Pepper
Valley, Colorado, and the weatherman had forecasted heavy snow that
would begin that very night. August was too early for heavy snow!
She slowed down to a trot at her property line and circled at the
corner to go east.
She went faster until she ran at full speed,
then skidded to a stop as she heard a very loud roar. She turned
her head right, then left, and from her peripheral vision, she
caught something rustling the tall grass. Since there wasn't a way
to hide herself as a horse, she folded her legs and gracefully
dropped to the ground before shifting to her human form.
Remaining on all fours, trying not to pant
too hard since her fogged breath would give her location away, she
remained silent to listen.
Jaxson shook out his lion's mane as he crept
closer to the last place he'd seen the horse. Dinner was served! A
sudden blow to his head caused him to sprawl onto his side, caught
completely off guard. He shifted back to his human form without
meaning to.
"Who are you and what are you doing on my
property?"
"Jaxson," he answered quickly as he looked up
to see a beautiful Asian goddess. She stood over him and frowned
down at him. He cursed her long dark hair as it covered what he
suspected were a lovely set of breasts.
"You do realize you are trespassing?" she
cocked those tiny hips to the side.
If she just cocked that hip a bit
further…
"Eyes up here, buddy."
His eyes snapped up, and he then stood,
enjoying his height advantage over her. He noticed how her
chocolate brown eyes lingered, if only for a second, on his chest.
"I thought this was part of the Preserve."
"The fence should have clued you in. Where
are you from?"
"England. May I know your name, love?"
"No. Stay off my property." She turned away,
deciding she would just walk home in her human form. It wasn't that
far, and the temperature was not quite cold enough to give her a
chill, but it would be soon. She heard footsteps closing in and
knew Jaxson was following her.
"Do you have some tea, love?"
She turned toward him and promptly pushed her
hair behind her shoulders. "Look your fill, and then leave. I don't
like company."
Jaxson's eyes caressed her form as though
he'd touched her, and she felt a shiver run up her spine.
A few flurries whipped around in the air,
causing his shoulder-length blonde hair to blow forward framing his
face, while her own hair remained billowing behind her. She turned
away from him once more, and walked to the house. He continued to
follow her.
The snow was peppering down now, and the
temperature was steadily dropping. Her nipples pebbled as a brisk
cold wind blew across her body.
Walking up the porch stairs, she pulled the
key from under the mat and unlocked the door. "Kate," she
grumbled.
"What's that, love?"
She pushed the door open and turned to face
him. "I said my name is Kate. Get your naked ass inside. I'll get
you some clothes." She knew how to handle herself in a fight in
case he tried anything. Then again, he was so clumsy as an animal,
he surely wasn't that nimble on his human feet either.
Kate walked to her bedroom and pulled on her
soft blue terrycloth robe, cinching it at the waist, before she
went across the hall to the spare bedroom. Opening the closet door,
she paused at the sight of Charlie's old clothes. Her human husband
had died almost twenty years ago, and she still had not been able
to get rid of his belongings. Instead, she took her role as a widow
seriously and remained a hermit, only driving into town when
absolutely necessary. She could have most things delivered. In the
summer, she grew vegetables and hunted animals, non-shifters of
course, for meat.
She pulled out a red flannel shirt that she
could not remember her husband wearing, and a pair of gray
sweatpants. She had not looked at Jaxson's feet, so she had no idea
if the size eleven boots would be too big, too small, or just
right.
She turned at a loud clunk and walked out to
the living room. The naked man was making himself at home. He'd put
a large log in the fireplace and had it lit. "You realize it's
going to be a hundred degrees in here in less than an hour," she
grumbled. She would have to open a window or two to keep from
sweltering.
"I was trying to help." He took the offered
clothes from her hands, careful not to touch her. He tossed the
shirt aside and pulled on the pants.
It would actually be a shame if he covered up
those delectable abs. She frowned, angry at herself for even having
the thought. "I have lavender tea, mint tea, or I can make coffee.
Pick your poison."
"Mint. Thank you, Katherine." He gave her a
small grin as he remained in front of the fire, rubbing his hands
together.
"My given name, if you must know, is Kaitlyn.
Nobody has called me that for fifty years, and neither will you."
She turned and walked into the kitchen. After setting a kettle of
water on the stove to boil, she heard him at the entrance to the
kitchen. She remained with her back to him. "For a lion shifter,
you are not quiet on your feet."
"Do you have a set of cards?"
Kate rolled her eyes, turning to face him.
"Please do not tell me you plan on showing me card tricks over
tea."
"I was rather hoping we could play strip
poker." Jaxon's smile lit up his face, his blue eyes sparkling.
"If you are trying to be charming, you are
not succeeding." She turned away and pulled the box of tea from the
cabinet. Okay, he is a little charming, especially with that
accent, but I will never admit it aloud.
After she poured the tea, she placed both
cups on the round wooden table that sat inside the bay-window niche
at the far end of the kitchen. It was already getting too warm, so
she opened one of the windows, enjoying the cold breeze. The snow
was coming down hard now, accumulating quickly. Jaxson sat down
across from her and she took a moment to study his handsome face.
He had tucked his blonde hair behind his ears. He had faint laugh
lines at the corners of his eyes, and a hint of lines where he
probably furrowed his brow often. His blue eyes were dark, framed
with the longest dark blonde lashes she'd ever seen. And his lips,
they were full and silently promised they could and would do wicked
things. She remained staring at his face instead of looking down at
his bare chest. "How did you wind up in Colorado?"
He dunked his tea bag a few times before
laying it on the delicate pink flowered saucer. "I wanted to
explore the states. The world really, before I choose a new place
to live."
"Where is your next stop?" She had always
been a sucker for an accent, so she assumed that was the reason she
kept asking questions, so she could hear his voice.
"Australia, next week."
Her eyes casually swept down his smooth
muscled chest to look at his hands. She hoped she wasn't too
obvious.
"Would you like to come?"
Her eyes snapped up to his face. "Excuse
me?"
"To Australia?" he added, that teasing
twinkle back in his eyes.
"Why would you want a stranger to travel with
you?" Kate frowned, looking down to dunk her own teabag before
picking up the spoon to add sugar from the small sugar bowl.
"We don't have to be strangers by next week,
Kaitlyn."
Oh, but her full name sounded so good with
his accent that she could not bring herself to scold him for using
it. "What are you offering?" Did those words just come out of my
mouth? Her eyes remained downcast as she repeatedly stirred her
tea. His hand slid over her free hand and she felt a spark of
desire of which she hadn't felt in twenty years.
"The snow is coming down, and the night is
young. We should curl up by the fire and do whatever comes to mind.
Talk, eat…touch."
I should slap him for suggesting such things,
then kick his perfect ass out of my home and off my property. So
why did I turn my hand over and let his fingertips caress my palm?
But the promise of a no-strings-attached affair before he left to
never return had her heartbeat racing. I haven't been touched by a
man, desired by a man, for so long.
Jaxson abruptly stood and pulled her up. He
slid his hands down the sleeves of her robe, then untied the belt
at her waist. His fingertips slid beneath the material to push it
off her shoulders, and the robe fell in a heap around her feet. Her
eyes looked at him with such longing as she ran her hands over his
chest before pushing his borrowed sweatpants down. He leaned in,
but she put her finger to his lips.
"One rule, no kissing," she murmured.
He nodded once and nibbled at her fingertip,
hearing her moan. She took him by the hand and led him into the
living room, taking a blanket that was folded and laying on the arm
of the couch, to spread it over a rug in front of the fireplace.
She sat down and stared at the fire as it crackled and hissed. He
sat down beside her and slid his arm around her, running his
fingertips along her arm.
Kate shivered and her hand gripped his knee
before slowly running up his leg to settle over his cock. Her
gentle touches tightened his groin, and he leaned in to slide his
lips along her neck.
"Lay back, Kaitlyn." She did as instructed,
parting her legs. He slid over her, kissing his way over her chest,
his tongue flicking at the dark peaks of her small breasts. She
moaned and slid her fingers into his hair, gripping a bit tighter
each time he hit a spot that made her writhe beneath him. He moved
further down, breathing over the small mound of dark curls at the
apex of her thighs.
Her legs opened wider as he settled his wide
shoulders just under her thighs, his hands holding her knees apart
as her heels settled against his back. His eyes rolled up in pure
pleasure at his first taste of her, the sweetest taste of
honeysuckle with just a hint of vanilla. His tongue laved at her
opening, feasting on the meal her body provided as she undulated
and cried out in pleasure multiple times.
His body was too insistent to wait any
longer. He sat back on his knees, her legs now wrapped around his
waist, as he guided the head of himself to her opening. He drove in
balls deep and moaned as her body clenched his. Her eyes opened,
dark with passion, and they regarded each other as he leaned in,
sharing her breath, his weight held off her as he kept his forearms
down against the floor on either side of her.