The Beast's Desire 1-3 (Paranormal Romance, Beast Lust Series) by Emerald Ice Page A

immediately answered, “Because he heard me coming and he knew I’d kick his ass if I saw him with you.”
    “Who says you get to be in charge?” she joked.
    “Yeah, Ronin. Answer that one,” smirked Kane.
    Ronin shook his head and answered, “Among shifters, there is always a leader by birth. I was born first, so the responsibility falls to me to make sure we’re safe. He,” Ronin pointed to Kane, “gets to stay here and play shifter.”
    “Oh, yeah, like that is easy,” laughed Kane. “ Seriously, Ronin is the one who has kept us secluded for all of these years. If it weren’t for him, Apple Creek would be a tourist attraction and shifters would have to find a new place to hide.”
    She looked at Kane, “You mentioned lycanthropy . I’m confused – lycan usually refers to a wolf – you’re definitely not wolves.”
    Ronin answered, “Wolves are the oldest were-beast s in existence. With the discovery of more shifters, lycanthropy has become a generic term for all species of shapeshifter.”
    “So, exactly how did you become shifters?”
    Kane replied, “Our father was a genetics researcher. In the early eighties, he was attempting self-inflicted genetic engineering through the injection of manipulated viruses. His genes mutated all right, and he passed lycanthropy to us.”
    Ronin continued, “The only reason we know about this is because we stumbled onto his research about twenty years ago when we reached adolescence. We had no idea what was wrong with us and we desperately needed answers.”
    A chill ran through Chloe at the thought of experimenting on herself or another human. It was repulsive and ethically against everything she believed in. “What about your parents – where are they now?”
    “When they discovered we were shifters, our mother left and our father set us up with a trust and a caretaker. We’ve never wanted for anything material – we always had a roof over our heads, attended the best schools, were fed and clothed, but we never had parents.”
    Wanting to end the discussion for now, Ronin asked Chloe, “You said something to me about ‘drugging you with my smell’. What were you talking about?”
    “Your scent. It is incredibly intoxicating,” she answered then shivered as she remembered the effect of their musky pheromones. Ronin looked at her as though she was crazy. “What?” she replied to his skeptical look. “You don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”
    “Not a clue,” he answered honestly.
    “I suppose that makes sense – mammals don’t realize they are emitting pheromones – it’s likely you aren’t any different.” She went on to explain the effect their scent had on her, but the men were still confused.
    Ronin shook his head in disbelief, “I’ve had more than one very rude person tell me I reeked and that there wasn’t a deodorant strong enough to cover the stench – no one has ever said I smell intoxicating,” Ronin laughed. “Haven’t you heard that Bigfoot smells terrible?”
    Chloe crinkled her brow and thought about his comment. “It is possible your pheromones are attr active only to me; maybe that’s the reason I find you so irresistible,” she smiled.
    A rustling in the trees alerted the ape-men and they sat up immediately to guard Chloe. Two panthers and one huge wolf emerged from the darkness of the forest.
    Chloe recognized the two enormous were-cats and hid behind her men. The wolf scared her as well, but it seemed more curious than threatening.
    The panthers shifted into human form and came to stand in front of the threesome. Chloe openly stared at the unknown panther-shifter. She couldn’t place the reason, but she really didn’t like him. He was certainly attractive enough with his muscular build and sandy-blond hair – it was his eyes that gave her the creeps; they were cold and empty as they looked at her. She got the distinct feeling he was even more dangerous than the lead panther.
    Jag scented the air and