The Catalyst by Zoe Winters

the
man, his paws on the guy’s chest to hold him down.
    The man started to scream like a little girl. The
pansy display helped tamp down the jealousy just a bit.
    “Wait! Don’t. He’s just human. Just some college kid.
It’s not his fault. I was hungry, I couldn’t help it. But I didn’t…
nothing happened.”
    They both knew the true ending to that sentence was
“yet.”
    Cole looked up at her, growling, frustrated he
couldn’t yell or argue with her in this form. He’d been too angry
at seeing another man near Jane, that he’d lost all reason,
shifting without intending to. He eased off the poor schmuck who
had gotten between a werewolf and his mate.
    Before he released him, the wolf swiped out and
sliced the man’s cheek, causing three deep gashes to appear. He
bent and licked up the pooling blood before backing off of him. The
man scrambled to his feet, clutching his cheek and backing away
while Cole continued to growl. He wanted it to be clear he hadn’t
yet decided to let him live.
    An attractive succubus appeared in the doorway of the
tent. She wore a slinky dress made entirely of gold-colored beads
that left nothing to the imagination. Every time she moved, beads
parted to show an expanse of flesh. A thigh. A breast. A peek at
her navel. She had wavy, black hair and bright violet, mischievous
eyes.
    “So here’s where my meal wandered off to.” She nodded
to Jane. “You must be new. The boss not letting you feed?” The
demon noticed Cole, a look of alarm crossing her face at the sight
of a large, angry animal in one of the tents.
    “I’m Jane. That’s my mate. He’s the Cary Town pack
alpha. You guys let us use the portals,” Jane said by way of
explanation and introduction.
    “Oh. Right. Yeah, we never see the
pack in anything but human form. Wait. Did you say he was
your mate?” The pieces seemed to be snapping into place. She cast a
look of sympathy—or maybe pity—in his direction. “We heard about
that.” She looked back to Jane. “And now you’re a… Oh wow. This is
not my business. I’ll just take my dinner and get out of your way.”
She snapped a finger at the man who still cowered from Cole. The
human looked up at her, his eyes glazing a bit.
    “You’ve been a naughty boy, Sam. Whatever am I going
to do with you?”
    His voice was husky when he responded, “Whatever you
want, Daria.”
    She laughed. “Good answer.”
    He preceded her out. Daria watched him go then turned
back to Cole. “I’m not into killing them. I like having my
regulars. I’ll try to keep my toys within my sights if you try not
to break them. Deal?”
    Cole snorted in response. When she left, he shifted
back to his human form.
    “I’m sorry, Cole. I know how that looked, I just… I’m
starving and…”
    “I’m not mad at you. I acted on instinct. You know
what I am, and I imagine you’ve got similar self-control challenges
now.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair, standing there like an
idiot, willing the tears not to gather in his eyes. He still wasn’t
convinced she was real. Maybe he was passed out in the den,
dreaming. Such a lovely dream. He didn’t want to wake up.
    Of course she’d think he was angry with her. He
hadn’t even touched her, after all. But it wasn’t that. Though he’d
worried on the trip over, the second he’d seen her, he’d known
she’d always be his no matter what she was. Being turned into a
demon changed nothing about the way he felt.
    He reached out and touched her, running his hands
over her arms and torso as if making sure she was there and safe.
He noticed her scars were gone, and she looked a bit more busty
than normal, but he wasn’t about to complain about that—as long as
she hadn’t done it for other men.
    When his eyes moved upward, his fangs elongated. He
felt fur starting to sprout again. No doubt his eyes glowed gold as
well. “Where is my mating mark?” he demanded.
    Jane jumped and took a step back. Now he was angry, and he