ClaimMe (7 page)

She was also terrified of what lay ahead for the three of
them.

They obviously shared similar feelings, because they didn’t
utter a word on the way to her apartment. When they reached her building, the
doorman did his duty and opened the back door of the car. Cray stepped out,
then turned to Jane, not allowing the doorman to continue his job and assist
her from the car. Jude paid the fare and they were just about to enter the
complex when all three of them pulled up short at the same time.

That dark and ominous sensation snaked down Jane’s spine
again.

“Let’s take a walk,” Jude suggested in a strained tone.

The disconcerting scent wafting their way was so faint, of
course a human could never catch wind of it. But they did.

Jane bade her doorman a good evening and walked along with
Jude and Cray, tightly packed between them.

Cray said, “Vincent must have followed us to Manhattan,
wondering why we’d abandoned the chase.”

“If that’s the case,” Jude said, “he would have smelled
Jane’s scent mixed with ours this evening. And now, for sure, he knows about
her.”

They walked stealthily toward the aroma that grew stronger
to their ultra-heightened senses. It felt as though Jane’s heart was lodged in
her throat, but she would show no fear.

Oh fuck.
It was irrelevant for her to hide her fear.
Wolves could smell it. She’d forgotten that part.

Still, she’d made her bed. She’d do whatever she could to
stay out of immortal jeopardy, because that would only comprise her lovers’
safety. She couldn’t suffer through that again.

They rounded the corner and crossed the street to Central
Park. It was past two in the morning and there were very few people milling
about, other than the revelers who’d just left the bars and the homeless who
were looking for someplace to sleep tonight.

Their stealthy advance on Vincent morphed into a predatory
stalking. All dressed in black, they blended into the shadows as they wove
their way through a thick patch of tall trees. They neared their quarry and the
tension escalated amongst them. Jane sniffed the cool evening air…and
discovered Vincent was no longer alone.

Her hand gripped Jude’s arm. He said, “He must have formed a
new pack.”

There were at least two more werewolves in addition to
Vincent. All the wolf scents became difficult to discern and individualize for
Jane. But one thing was certain. They were no longer at an advantage. This
would be a three-on-three fight.

She swallowed down a lump of anxiety and, instead, let her
more primal nature reign.

They stopped in a dense area of forest close to the lake.
She kicked off her high heels and Jude grinned at her, despite his obvious
unease.

“You’re going to make Lara Croft look like a ninny, aren’t
you?”

“No one messes with my family,” she retorted. These were her
people now and she was determined to defend them as much as she would herself.
Not that she expected Jude or Cray to fall short in any way, shape or form. She
had no doubt they were voracious warriors in their own right.

From behind a huge elm came a silver-colored wolf with
glowing green eyes and a low snarl tearing from his lips.

Vincent
.

Where the other two wolves were, exactly, she didn’t know.
She couldn’t dissect the scents enough to separate them and locate the other
two, which frustrated and alarmed her.

In a low voice, Jude said to Cray, “You stay with her.
They’ll try to attack me from the east, but I’ll counterattack.”

Jane tensed. “You can’t take on all three of them.”

Cray actually had the audacity to chuckle. “Watch him.”

Jude moved away from her and Jane felt an instant void, like
half of her was suddenly hollow.

Cray said, “Trust him. He knows what he’s doing.”

A few splinters of moonlight penetrated the bushy-topped
trees surrounding them, partially illuminating the clearing where this
challenge would take place. Jude stripped off his clothes in a hasty fashion.
He was a tall, dark figure for just a few seconds more. Then he lunged forward,
diving into the air and landing as the sleek, dark-as-night wolf she’d imagined
he’d be.

The transformation left her breathless. The virility of him
seemed to shoot out from every lean and furry inch of him. Beside her, Cray
shed his clothes and shifted too. He stood next to her in wolf form, all
shaggy, sandy brown fur and hypnotic blue eyes.

She’d never been a dog lover, but suddenly, she understood
why those who were always seemed ripped apart when theirs went missing. She’d
be devastated too, she knew, as she ran a hand over Cray’s back, feeling the
silky strands of his fur against her skin.

The severity of the situation resonated deep within her. It
only got worse.

Instantly, Jude and Vincent became a tangled
black-and-silver blur as they rolled around on the grassy ground, snarling and
snapping at each other, occasionally making contact, which resulted in a
whimper or a howl. Both sounds shredded Jane’s insides.

Frightened for Jude, she took a step forward, but Cray was
quick to move in front of her, blocking her path. Not that she couldn’t have
easily cleared him by jumping over him. But she understood the gesture for what
it was. The other two wolves allowed the alphas to fight, but when Jude took a
vicious bite out of Vincent’s shoulder and the wolf cried out, his two pack
members advanced on Jane and Cray. As though wanting to even the score or
distract Jude.

Jane’s fear escalated but she didn’t back down. She lowered
into a crouch again, prepared to spring. In front of her, Cray growled at the
wolves closing in. One drew up short but then they both continued their path
toward Jane. She was torn between watching Jude and Vincent and being afraid of
what might happen to her and Cray.

With no warning whatsoever, Cray lunged forward, attacking
one of the wolves. The other one rushed Jane. Vampire instincts took over. She
leapt into the air, her body sailing forward and slamming into the wolf. Pain
lanced through every inch of her, but only for a second. They fell to the
ground, Jane on top of the enormous animal. One large paw swiped at her, the
claws digging deep into her arm and drawing blood, causing her to cry out.

Anger overrode agony though. In her fury, her hand closed
over the wolf’s throat, then jerked back, taking a substantial amount of fur
and flesh with her. The shifter made a bloodcurdling sound as its body
convulsed. Jane shot to her feet, prepared to continue the battle. The wolf had
no fight left in him. He rolled onto his side and wheezed his last breath.

Her eyes snapped to Jude and Vincent, still tangled
together, rolling on the ground because neither could gain leverage over the
other. Her gaze moved to Cray just as his sharp teeth sank into the neck of his
attacker. Cray’s head whipped from side to side, ripping the throat from the wolf.

Relief flooded her veins as Cray trotted over to the twisted
mess that was Jude and Vincent. But that relief was short-lived. Blood covered
the grass where they fought and she could smell that most of it was Jude’s. Her
insides seized up. She was about to join the fight when three more, very
distinct, scents filled the small clearing.

She froze in place, her anxiety rising.

Cray’s head turned back to her. He watched as the three
wolves entered the clearing, moving slowly, but stealthily. They surrounded Jane.
When Cray gave a nod of his head toward them, she knew they belonged to Jude’s
pack.

The advantage seemed to give Jude extra momentum, because he
got to his feet and circled the other injured wolf before diving toward the
ground again and going straight for Vincent’s throat. The fight ended a second
later and Jude was the victor.

He shifted back to human form instantly. He dragged on his
briefs and pants, then scooped up his shirt and rushed over to Jane. He wrapped
the material around her bleeding arm, fear and concern stamped across his face.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “I self-heal too.”
Regardless, her body shook at the thought of how close she’d come to losing her
two imprinters. She threw her arms around Jude and pressed her trembling body to
his. Cray shifted and dressed, then joined them. Jane released Jude so she
could embrace Cray.

“We’ll need to dispose of the bodies,” Jude said in a low
tone.

“We’ll take care of them.”

A voice she didn’t recognize made Jane relinquish her hold
on Cray and turn to the other wolves, who’d also changed back to human form,
though they had no clothes on hand to cover themselves.

Jude made the introductions. “This is Brant, Alex and Neil.
My pack.”

“Very nice to meet you,” Jane said as she stepped forward to
shake their hands. “Jane Van Kamp.”

“She’s with us now,” Cray said, a hint of male pride in his
tone.

“We saw you take down one of Vincent’s pack members,” Brant
said. “Nice work.”

“Thank you. I had a lot at stake.” She turned back to Jude
and Cray. “That’s it then? No more danger?”

Jude smiled at her. “No more danger.”

She sighed in relief. Freedom from all constraints and
vulnerabilities and internal yearnings was a damn fine thing.

“Let’s go to Montana,” Cray said in a low voice.

She could think of nothing she’d like better.

Epilogue

Several months later…

Jane was wrong.

There was
one
thing better than Montana.

Though Cray’s ranch sat on nearly twenty acres of lush land
and rolling hills, all dotted with tall pine trees and featuring two large
ponds—and the house was more of a luxurious winter lodge than a rustic
cabin—there was something more she fell in love with than the Big Sky and the
fresh air and the wide-open spaces.

Two very hot and hunky shapeshifters.

Cray added another log to the fire blazing in the ginormous
bedroom she now shared with him and Jude. She crossed from the dressing room
Cray had designed for her by blowing out a wall to the bedroom next to the
master suite and remodeling it to accommodate her extensive clothing and shoe
collection.

Both men had made concessions for her, actually. Jane had
decided to continue working with Drake at Body Scenes. Because the club was
only open once a month, she was able to do all of her invitation planning via
the Internet in Montana. Then she spent a long weekend in Manhattan every month
to manage the club when it was open. She’d found working was too important to
her to give it up altogether. She also liked that she could spend some time
with Drake and Shana as well as Finn and Yvette when she was in town. And
because she’d taken on the invitation process, Drake and Shana were free to
travel. They just made sure they were in town when Jane was, so they could all
get together.

All in all, it’d turned out to be a doable scenario and Jane
felt she’d gained a vast amount, not lost anything.

But while she enjoyed a weekend in the city from time to
time, returning to Montana felt natural to her, even though both Jude and Cray
traveled with her. There was just something intimate and cozy and seductive
about being in their own space, just the three of them enjoying each others’
company.

Approaching Cray now at the fireplace, she wrapped her arms
around his waist as she stood behind him. She dropped a kiss on his bare
shoulder blade and he covered her small hands with his larger, much warmer
ones.

“You’re happy here, right?” he asked in a low tone, as
though he’d read her thoughts.

“Deliriously.”

“Good to know,” Jude added in his deep voice as he sauntered
into the room. She looked at him over her shoulder, smiling at his devilish
handsomeness as she still embraced her ruggedly gorgeous first imprinter.

“I think we’ve finally found the right balance,” she said to
both of them. “Now that Jude will share a bed with the two of us.” It’d taken a
few days, in the beginning. But they’d found harmony amongst themselves.

Jude let out a low grunt. “It’s not easy sharing you, Jane.
But the alternative isn’t the least bit appealing.”

She’d issued an ultimatum several nights after their arrival
in Montana. If Jude wasn’t going to sleep with her and Cray in the splendidly
huge bed in Cray’s master suite… Well. He could shift into a wolf and sleep on
the floor. She’d taken her threat one step further by offering to install a
doggie door for him. That had propelled him into action and he’d conceded as
Cray had chuckled good-naturedly.

Jude stripped off his shirt now and joined the two of them
at the fireplace. “I thought we were having dinner in town this evening.”

“Jane wanted to stay at the ranch. She’s making rack of
lamb.”

“Perfect. Except… You didn’t quite make it to the kitchen,
did you?”

The question was directed at Jane. She grinned at him. “It’s
chilly tonight. I needed a little extra warmth.”

“Hmph.” He didn’t like leaving her alone with Cray, she
knew. Jude had business to attend to in the city several days a week, as he’d
taken it upon himself to manage some investments for the pack that enabled them
to live in the country so they could take on their more natural forms on a whim
without being hindered by city life and nosy humans.

She admired Jude’s dedication to his pack and also his
strong ties to his family. Though many of them had their own packs, they were
all still very tight and frequently visited the ranch for formal dinners or
casual afternoons. She enjoyed cooking for and entertaining everyone who showed
up. Her self-imposed isolation had left her incredibly lonely over the decades,
even with Drake’s companionship. So to be surrounded by new friends and
family…that was almost as wonderful as being alone in Jude’s and Cray’s
presence every night.

Yes, she’d quickly acclimated to the more rustic lifestyle.
She loved the vast, open land, the fresh air and the wildlife. She felt more
comfortable here than she had anywhere else in the world since she’d become a
vampire. There were no humans on the ranch whom she had to worry about hurting.
She couldn’t injure Jude or Cray or the other pack members and she was finally
able to relax and enjoy her immortality—as well as an eternity with her two
lovers.