Awaken a Wolf by R. E. Butler Page A

not possible.”
    “You won’t tell Adam?”
    “As long as you’re not doing anything dangerous, I can keep what we say between us.”
    Angie’s voice lowered to a whisper.  “I don’t think my mate will be a wolf.  I feel attracted to a certain type of male, but I don’t think Adam would approve.” After a brief moment, Angie continued, “I had a dream a couple years ago about being with two males at the same time.  Wolves would never share their mate, so I know they aren’t wolves, and they bit me, but it wasn’t like a mating bite so much as the way certain supernatural creatures feed.”
    She stared at Cinder intently and it took only a heartbeat before she put together what Angie was trying to say.  Her future sister-in-law wanted to be in a ménage mating with two vampire males.
    Holy crap!
    Cinder’s mouth opened and closed a few times before she managed to say, “I don’t think vampires share either, hon.”
    She shrugged.  “I know what I dreamed.  I don’t think it was a vision, but ever since that night, I haven’t really been happy with anything else.  It all seems so ordinary.”
    Cinder exhaled.  “If you’re curious, one of my Wiccan friends lives with the coven.  Her name is Arissa.  She was really sweet to me when I first moved here, and although she lives at the club, she comes to the Wiccan store once a month.  I could introduce you to her.  Being with her would help to keep you safe.  Shifter blood is addictive to their people, almost as much as Wiccan blood.”  Cinder twisted her wrists and looked at the thin blue veins.  “I don’t even know what to say about my blood now.  A mix of both I guess.”
    “Do you think Arissa would mind me hanging out with her?”
    “I don’t see why not.  You’re an adult, and you can make your own decisions about your life.  Just be safe, no matter what you choose to do, okay?”
    “I promise.”
    They talked for a while longer, until Cinder’s stomach grumbled and Adam’s mom, who seemed to have sonic hearing, appeared with a tray of sandwiches.  Other females came into the room, and they all shared the sandwiches and talked about the full moon and the pack.  Cinder had always thought of the Wiccan coven as being her family, but the she-wolves included her so easily – as if she’d been there her whole life instead of hours, and she couldn’t imagine being anywhere else.
     
    * * * * *
     
    Cinder bolted upright with a scream lodged in her throat, thrashing wildly.  Strong arms pinned her hands to a soft surface and a hard, warm body pressed over top of her.  Panic screamed through her body, but it took only a heartbeat before she realized that it was Adam who covered her body with his own.  As the roar of blood rushing in her ears subsided, she could hear him speaking softly and urgently.
    “Calm down, sweetheart.”
    She inhaled and the dark, woodsy scent of him filled her.  Twisting her wrists, she linked her fingers with his and pressed her forehead to his collarbone.
    “What happened?”
    “I think you were having a nightmare,” he said, rolling off her body and twisting in the process until their positions were reversed.
    She looked down at him.  Moonlight streamed through the curtains, allowing her to see him clearly.  Dark hair tousled from sleep, worry lines around his eyes and mouth.  Letting her head fall farther down, she could see he was shirtless and a shift of her bare legs between his told her he was only wearing underwear.  She pressed a kiss to the center of his chest.
    He growled softly.  “Sweetheart.”
    She extracted her hands from his and bracketed his chest, levering herself over him with straight arms.
    “You’re gorgeous.”
    He chuckled.  “Are you sure you’re awake?”
    She lowered herself until she was hovering over one tiny brown nipple.  Securing it between her teeth, she bit down gently and he groaned.  She licked it, soothing the small pain, and straightened her arms