Loving Her Two Werewolves [Werebears of Shatland, Texas 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 8

  “Yeah, baby. It’s not that you’re ugly or anything. It’s just that you’re not a large woman. We kind of expected you to be a small bear, too.”

  Were they serious? Or were they saying nice things to keep from hurting her feelings? She sat down on her haunches as they squatted next to her.

  “You’ve got to admit this is weird.” Case scratched behind her ear. “I mean, two werewolves and a werebear? We don’t know about you, but we’ve never heard of it happening before.”

  She hadn’t, either. In fact, she could remember her father telling her the rules against different kinds of shifters getting together. But were they werebear laws? Or laws of nature?

  And yet, they were all humans. Didn’t they have the same fears, the same hopes other people did? Didn’t they deserve to have love wherever they found it? In whatever form it came in?

  “Shift back, baby. We need to hold you.” Brennan slid his hand along her long muzzle. “As the sexy woman you are.”

  She did as he asked, letting the change take her again. Her bear protested as it always did whenever she wanted to return to human form, but she ignored it. She, too, needed to hold her men.

  In a short time, she was human again, naked and shivering as the breeze flowed over her body. They pulled her between them once again, forming a loose kind of hug.

  “Watch it, bro. No swords touching.”

  She giggled, enjoying Brennan’s humor as she always did. Pushing them back, she took the chance to again slide her gaze over their bodies. Their cocks had remained flaccid while she was in her bear body, but now they were up and waving at full strength.

  “I can see you two like me better as a woman.”

  “Definitely.” Case nibbled on her shoulder.

  “So I didn’t scare you away with my bear body?”

  “Of course not. Were you grossed out by our wolf bodies?” asked Brennan.

  “Of course not,” she mimicked. “But have you thought about this? How can we be together when we’re so different?”

  “It’s our inner animals that are different. Not the real us.”

  “But my inner bear is a part of the real me, Case. Doesn’t that make being together impossible? What about children? Can I even get pregnant, much less carry a child to full term with its father being two werewolves?”

  She saw her concern reflected in their eyes. Sorrow swept over her, taking away some of the joy of being with them.

  “Look, I don’t have the answers.” Case took her by the chin. “But I do know we wouldn’t have the connection if we weren’t meant to be together. We’ll figure it out. Some way, somehow. You’ve got to trust that we will.”

  “He’s right, baby. We just got back together after dreaming about you for years. Don’t give up before we’ve begun.”

  “I won’t.” If they wanted her to believe, she would.

  “The hell you will.”

  The loud, booming voice sounded way too close. Nicole yelped and scrambled for her clothes, twisting around to see her father standing at the edge of the clearing.

  Shifters were used to seeing family members and others in their “naked human bodies,” but that didn’t mean she wanted to stand there with her father getting an eyeful. She turned to face him right after she’d pulled on her clothes. “Dad, how’d you find me?”

  “Never mind. What do you think you’re doing messing with two damn dogs?”

  The Cagle brothers had come to her in the shifter forms. As far as she knew they’d either left their clothing at home or had stashed it in the woods to be retrieved later. To their credit, they weren’t cowed by her father’s anger.

  Or by the shotgun he held.

  He settled it against his shoulder and pointed the barrel straight at Case. “I’m going to blow your head clean off your body, boy.”

  “Sir.” Case stepped away from her, putting distance between them. “Don’t go doing anything foolish. You wouldn’t want to hurt your daughter by accident.”

  “Trust me, dog. I’m a good shot. What I hit is what I aimed to hit.”

  Brennan took his place beside his brother. “Mr. Monroe, please calm down and let’s talk this out. I’m Brennan Cagle and this is my brother Case.”

  “I know who you are and I know who your father is, too. Damn Carl Cagle.”

  “Yes, sir, that’s right.” Case’s tone held an edge to it. “With all due respect, sir, I’ll have to ask you not to curse my father. If you’ll just put the gun down, we can talk.”

  “There isn’t anything to talk about. I found my daughter with you two. All three of you naked as the day you were born. Now you’re going to have to pay.”

  “Dad, stop. We weren’t doing anything.” Thank goodness he hadn’t shown up at The Underground.

  “Trust your daughter, Mr. Monroe. We do.”

  She winced at the jovial tone in Brennan’s voice. Please, don’t make a joke.

  “We weren’t doing anything more than doing a little show and tell. You know. Show me your shifter and I’ll show you mine?”

  Oh, hell. She scowled at Brennan.

  Case hissed at his brother. “Are you fucking kidding me? Not the time, man.”

  Her father’s face went darker as though storm clouds had moved in. “Are you trying to get yourself killed, boy?”

  She couldn’t let him hurt them. Her father wasn’t usually a violent man. Then again, she couldn’t remember him ever getting so angry. But what could she do? She only had two choices. She could either lie her way out of the situation or tell him the truth.

  “Dad, please try to understand what I’m going to tell you.”

  Case shot her a worried look, warning her to be careful. But she’d made up her mind. In the end, the truth was always a better choice.

  “Dad, I met Brennan and Case years ago at a bonfire when we were just teenagers.”

  Her dad’s lip curled into a snarl. “I remember. So what?”

  “I wasn’t sure then because I wasn’t old enough to recognize it, but I know it now. Case and Brennan are my intended mates.”

  Horror replaced fury on her father’s face. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Dad, I’m a full-grown woman. I know exactly what I’m talking about.”

  “No. It can’t happen. Werebears don’t mate werewolves. It’s against nature.”

  “Sir, we love your daughter and we—”

  “Shut the fuck up!” Her father took a couple of steps closer, his body tensing. “You don’t you ever say that again. As for you, girl, get your ass back home.”

  “Dad, you have to listen. You can’t tell me what to do.” She crossed her arms, ready to do whatever she had to do.

  He hesitated, obviously hearing the conviction in her voice. But when he spoke again, it sent a chill down her spine. “As long as you’re living under my roof… As long as you’re my child, you will do what I tell you to do.”

  She started to argue, but he cut her off.

  “Nicole Mary Monroe, you have two choices. You either get your ass out of here and back home, or I shoot your so-called mates dead center between their eyes.”

  “That’s murder, Dad. You wouldn’t kill anyone. I know you and I know you wouldn’t.” And yet, when she met his gaze, she wasn’t sure she knew him at all.

  “Make your choice, girl.”

  “Go, baby.” Case started to reach out to her, then dropped his arm at her father’s low growl. “We’ll get in touch later.”

  “No, you won’t, boy. Not if you value your life.”

  “Just go, Nic.” Brennan took Case’s arm and tugged him back. “We’re leaving, Mr. Monroe.”

  The two of them walked backward, keeping their attention on her father. Once they were at the edge of the clearing, they stopped, gave her meaningful looks, then turned and disappeared into the underbrush and trees.

  She whirled around to face her father. “I will never forgive you if you hurt them.”

  “Nicole, don’t yo
u dare tell me what you will and won’t do. I won’t stand for it.”

  “Dad, I don’t give a crap what you’ll stand for.” She stormed past him, dodging his attempt to grab her arm. By the time she’d gone far enough that she was sure he couldn’t see her, she stopped. Clamping a hand over her mouth, she stifled the sobs racking her body.

  * * * *

  Nicole wasn’t sure why she’d thought her mother would be on her side. Maybe because she’d always thought of her as a romantic person, one who would believe in love in strange packages.

  “Mom, please. I love them. I felt the connection. What more proof do you need that it’s meant to be?”

  Her father had returned home not long after she had and had enlisted her mother’s help in trying to “talk sense” into her.

  “Evelyn, make her listen. She’s your daughter.”

  Her mother sighed, worry lines in her forehead marring her otherwise perfect face. Her mother had been a beautiful woman in her younger days, and she was still striking.

  “She’s your daughter, too, Gaither Monroe. Don’t put this all on my shoulders.”

  “You’ve been too lenient with her. We should’ve cracked down harder on her. If we had, she never would’ve gone to a damn werewolf bonfire and met those dogs.”

  “Dad, I swear, if you don’t stop calling them dogs, I’m going to go crazy. They’re good, hardworking men who happen to turn into werewolves.” That hadn’t come out as she’d wanted it to. She slumped back in her chair, her hands flat on the kitchen table.

  “Do you hear yourself? They ‘happen to turn into werewolves’? We’re werebears.” Her father paced across the small kitchen. “Werebears and werewolves don’t mix. And they sure as hell don’t mate.”

  Their small home was cozy, with its warm colors and comfortable furniture. She’d loved growing up in their house, but right now it felt more like a prison. She stood up, determined to end the harangue.

  “Look. I know you don’t like it. And believe me when I say, if I didn’t get the connection with them, I wouldn’t have anything to do with them.” She wasn’t sure that was true since they’d saved her from the other werewolves at the bonfire. At the very least, she would’ve considered them friends. “What am I supposed to do? They’re my mates. What do you want me to do? Live a lonely life?”

  Had it worked? Her mother looked like she was about to reconsider. At least, until her father opened his mouth again.

  “Yes. Damn it. Yes. I don’t care what you think you felt, you can’t mate with werewolves.”

  “Honey, your father’s right. You’ll be ostracized by both the clan and their pack. Where will you live? How will you live? And what about grandchildren? Don’t you want to have children? Don’t you want to give me grandchildren? It’ll be an impossible situation with them. And even if it were possible, it’s just not done.”

  “I don’t know about the clan or the pack, and I don’t care. As for kids? I don’t know about that, either. If we can’t have children, then we don’t have them.”

  Her mother turned away from her, but not before she saw the tears welling in her eyes. Her mother had often talked about how she’d love and treasure grandchildren. To not give her grandchildren to spoil would kill both of them.

  “Wouldn’t you have loved Dad even if you couldn’t have babies with him?”

  “Of course I would have,” her mother answered in a whisper.

  “And wouldn’t you have loved him no matter what he looked like?”

  “Yes, but this isn’t the same thing.”

  “Yes it is, Mom. If they had one arm or one leg or were horribly disfigured, I still would’ve fallen in love with them. Isn’t that the whole point of the connection? To show you who your mates are no matter what they look like?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “But nothing, Mom. Look, I know this is hard for you. It’s not easy for me. So we don’t know anything about having kids. So what? Lots of couples go into marriage and then find out they can’t have kids. But again, we don’t know. Why can’t we? We’re all humans, too. Doesn’t being human count for anything?”

  The crash of a mug against the wall startled her and her mother. They stared at her father.

  “Stop it. I can’t listen to another word about having babies with those animals.”

  His face was filled with torment. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him, but she couldn’t give up. Somehow she’d have to convince them. She had the right to go against their wishes, but having them accept what she knew in her heart to be true was more important. Losing her family would only making finding her mates less than the joy it should’ve been.

  “Dad, I’m sorry. If you want me to move out, then I will. But I’m not going to give them up.”

  She wanted to hug both of them and tell them everything would be all right. Instead, knowing they’d never allow her to, she walked out of the kitchen. Once more, the tears began.

  Chapter Six

  Case followed Brennan inside their home. The simple house was like so many in the area. Two stories with a wraparound porch and rockers ready to start rocking. The house was furnished with just the basics including a couch, a couple of chairs, and a small round dining table. The galley kitchen had older appliances, but as long as they kept working, they didn’t see a need to replace them. Upstairs were three bedrooms. They each had their own bedroom right now, but once they convinced Nicole to move in with them, they’d all share the big master bedroom at the end of the hall. The two smaller bedrooms would become a nursery and, once a second child was born, another bedroom. If they had more than two children—a hope Brennan knew his brother shared—they had room to build on.

  “We’re not fucking teenagers any longer.” Case grabbed a beer from the fridge and slugged back his first drink.

  “No, but she’s a female werebear. You know how werebears hover over their offspring. They’re worse than a mother wolf with her pack of pups. Plus, she’s still living in their home. I get why, but it makes things more complicated.”

  “Yeah. But remember, living at home kept her in Shatland. If she’d moved away, we would’ve never gotten the clan to tell us where she was.”

  “True enough. But let’s get back to our real problem. It took everything I had not to shift and tear out her father’s throat.”

  Case chuckled, sarcasm lacing his tone. “Oh, sure. Killing her father would’ve made everything better. She’d hate us and the rest of the werebears would be after our asses. I’m not sure Jackson and the rest of the pack wouldn’t have handed us over to keep a war from breaking out.”

  Jackson Carr and his two brothers were the unofficial leaders of the werewolf community of Forever. They were considered by everyone, including werebears, to be reasonable and fair. Jackson was responsible in a large way for maintaining peace between the werewolves and werebears. He even acted as a liaison between the shifters and the vampires.

  “Yeah, I know. Still…”

  Case understood how his brother felt. When her father had shown up, he’d wanted to do nothing more than to let his furious werewolf take over. But, although he wouldn’t have stood for anyone else treating Nicole badly, he was her father and had certain rights. If they were going to have a future with her, then they’d have to learn to coexist with her father. Hopefully, in time, they’d learn to respect each other. That time, however, was a long way off.

  He was starting to calm down and think a little clearer. Strangely, Brennan was getting more fired up.

  “This is ridiculous. We’re grown men and she’s a grown woman. We should’ve told her father to shove it up his ass.”

  “And get a load of buckshot in our asses? No thanks. Buckshot hurts no matter what age you are.”

  Brennan grumbled an answer. He didn’t need to hear the words to get his meaning.

  “We have to take it easy. Just give it some time. Let’s stay low a few days and let things calm the hell down.”

  “And not see her?”
>
  He hated it as much as Brennan did. “Right. Give it time.”

  “And what if he decides to do something in the meantime? Like sending her off somewhere?”

  “He won’t.” Case dragged in another long drink. “Besides, just because she’s still living with her father doesn’t mean she’ll let him send her away. She’s an adult. If he pushes her hard enough, she’ll push back.”

  “What if she thinks we’re giving up on her?” Brennan pulled two beers from the fridge, both for himself. When he was upset, he tended to drink hard and fast. Tonight looked like it was going to be a double-fisted drinking night.

  “We’ll send her a text and let her know. But after that, we go silent for a few days. Then we’ll text her again and get her to meet us at The Underground again. By then we’ll have a plan and know how to handle all this shit.”

  “I don’t like not seeing her.”

  Case grabbed his own second beer. “Looks like we’ll be taking a lot of cold showers.”

  The front door slammed shut. They stepped out of the kitchen. Only one person would dare to come inside their house without knocking.

  Case’s stomach tightened. The hard expression on their father’s face was all the warning he needed.

  Shit. He knows.

  Carl Cagle wasn’t as tall as his sons, but he was stockier and, according to almost anyone in town, a hell of a lot meaner. Fortunately, he was also a reasonable man except for one subject. Talk about werebears and he’d get mad as hell.

  “What’s up, Dad?” Case put his beer down on a side table and saw Brennan do the same out of the corner of his eye. Their father rarely left his ranch to come to theirs. If he wanted to see them, he summoned them to his house.

  “You know what the fuck’s up. Have you two idiots gone crazy?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Brennan made the mistake of getting too close to the older werewolf.

  Case barely had time to cringe at his brother’s two mistakes. Getting too close when their dad was in a rage was bad enough. But to lie and act like he didn’t know what he meant was just plain stupid. He didn’t try to stop their dad from grabbing hold of Brennan and shoving him backward.