Three Fur All

Chapter Six

Mika stared at the makeshift bed he had been sleeping on for the past week. The old, ratty couch had been there when he bought the place. It was more comfortable than it looked. His thoughts turned toward October. Her look had disturbed him. Deep down he knew she saw him as a monster. The numbers on the computer screen blurred while he thought about her. Each night he imagined going back to Elliot’s to see her. Eventually he always talked himself out of it. He ran his fingers through his hair and tugged on the strands. I have to get her out of my head.

“Dude, when are you coming back to the house? We have to discuss what we’re going to do with October,” Elliot said from the doorway.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea that I come back.”

“Stop being a chicken, and get your ass back home. You don’t want to deal with being attracted to her. Honestly, I can’t be alone with her anymore in the house.”

Mika saw the color in his cheeks. Did I hear him right? “What’s the matter?

She getting under your skin?”

Elliot balked. “Of course not. Being alone in the house with her is daunting. She keeps asking what we’re doing to find the man who kidnapped her. I told her that we had hit an elk, but I know she doesn’t believe me. She insists that her captor turned into a wolf. I keep telling her that she imagined that. October told me there was a second abductor. We never thought of that. Dawn’s been over a couple of times to see what else she needs. She’s wearing Dominique’s clothes. All I can see is her, and her perfume is still attached to the fabric. I just . . .” A low growl spilled from his lips.

“She’s not Dominique. Your mind’s playing tricks on you.” His friend collapsed on the sofa next to him. “I know that. But I didn’t tell you that she kissed me the other day.”

His eyes widened. “Really? She kissed me too.”

“Did you enjoy it?” Elliot asked.

His cock moved from the thought of October dressed in only his shirt, showing the dip between her breasts. The way her dark hair cascaded over 31



her shoulders stirred his desire. Her milky calves and the tops of her breasts were something he had to taste. His dick firmed, and he shifted uncomfortably on the couch. Mika met his friend"s inquisitive gaze and then looked down at the floor.

“Her lips were sweet. I wanted to take her that very night. I still think about it. Elliot, I haven’t longed for a woman this way since I wanted Dawn.

After I hit the wall, I wasn’t sure I could trust myself around her. And the way she looked at me when I exploded, I can’t face her looking at me like that again. Are you attracted to her too?”

“She’s smokin’, I give her that. It’s messed up, her dressing in Dom’s clothes. The lines are blurring together. Yeah, I’m attracted to her. We have to keep our heads straight. She can’t know about us, and she’s been asking a lot of questions. We need to find the bastards and then get her back to her life.”


Mika knew his friend was right. October had a life of her own. Once she was healed, she had to return to that life. If they were both drawn to her, then why couldn’t they both try to woo her? That meant he had to go back to the house and apologize for being an ass and losing his temper. He studied his friend and wondered how much October had wormed into his heart. He hadn’t made this much of a fuss over a woman since Dominique, so maybe she was making an impact on him.

“I’ve been going out every night this week, but I haven’t picked up anything. I don’t know how he does it. Or why we haven’t detected the other one. You want to come with me tonight? I sure could use the extra nose.”

“Does that mean you’re coming back to the house?” He nodded. “Yup. The couch is getting lumpy. I really do wish I was in my own bed.”

Elliot clapped him on the back. “Good. Because dinner’s cooking with October looking over it. Let’s go.”

Mika turned off the computer and then locked up the bookstore. He rode back with Elliot. As he got out of the car, his stomach tightened in knots thinking about what he would say to October. He strolled into the kitchen and saw her leaning over the stove on one crutch. Her braided hair 32



hung down her back. He smelled the vanilla of her skin over the spices in the food. He licked his lips at the delectable aroma. She was dressed in a pair of jeans and his blue plaid shirt. A smile curled up his mouth when he saw she was wearing it. When she turned around, the surprise of his return was apparent by the light in her eyes.

“H-Hi!”

“Hello. Are you going to be staying here?”

“Yeah. I wanted to apologize for last week. I lost my temper with Dawn, and you didn’t need to see that. I normally don’t go postal.”

“It’s okay. Elliot told me you and she used to date and it ended badly.

Don’t worry about it. Dinner should be ready in a few minutes.” She grabbed another plate from the cabinet and had to reach up on tiptoe to get it.

October lost her balance when she turned. Mika rushed over and caught her before she dropped the plate. He stared into her eyes and felt the instant attraction flare between them. He lowered his mouth to hers and claimed her lips before he could stop. She tasted like everything he had imagined and then some. He pulled her closer until her breasts pushed against his chest.

Mika kissed along the line of her jaw, then nipped at the column of her throat. October moaned and ran her fingers through his hair. Encouraged, he slid his hand over her shirt and cupped her breast through the material. The nipple tightened at his touch. Everything in him wanted to carry her away and make love to her. Screw dinner. I need her now.

October quivered from his caresses. Her desire filled his nose like a fine wine. “I want you, October. God help me. I need you.” She placed a hand on his chest and shook her head. “I can’t. Not right now.”

“Why?”

“What about Elliot?”

“What about him?” He growled and hated the fact that he did. His friend had admitted he was attracted to October as well.

“He’s been here all week. He’s bent over backward to help me out, and there’s something so broken inside of him. I can’t fight this thing between us, 33



but there’s also something between me and Elliot. He denies it. I don’t want to complicate things more than they already are.” He understood, but that didn’t mean he was going to give up. A strand of her braid had come loose, and he pushed it behind her ear. “Okay.” He backed away and then took the plate that she had in her hand. He brought it out to the table and set another place.

Elliot came in from the garage and smiled at October. Mika noticed how she smiled back and her eyes brightened. She’s drawn to the both of us and doesn’t want to hurt our feelings. God, why does this happen now?

They sat down together at the table and ate dinner. Their conversation was very stilted and mostly kept to one- or two-word answers. Her gaze darted between them. At the end of the meal, Elliot gathered the plates. His hand brushed across hers. Her cheeks filled with color. His friend lingered a moment and returned the smile. Part of Mika was glad the other man had found another woman, but the primal part, the wolf, longed to tear his throat out because he was encroaching on his territory. It took all of his self-control to keep quiet and his temper locked away when October settled down next to Elliot on the couch and laid her head on his shoulder. He muttered something under his breath that caught Elliott’s attention. He shot him a look. Halfway into the movie, he couldn’t take it anymore when he squeezed her knee. Mika got up and walked out onto the deck, hoping the fall air would cool his raging wolf instincts. Elliot’s my friend, and I’d never hurt him.

“You okay, bro?”

Mika shook his head. “I don’t know. I saw the way she was with you tonight, resting her head on your shoulder, and your hand on her knee.” He curled his fingers into the wood, feeling the splinters lodge under his nails.

Seeing October with Elliot broke his heart because she wasn’t with him. It cut him to the soul, and he didn’t know how to handle it.

“Whoa! Mika, you need to chill. I told you that you had to come back.

Something about October draws me to her. I look at her and I see Dominique, but I also see her. I’d forgotten how nice it is to have a woman around. We’ve talked, and I’ve gotten to know her. She’s really great. I can’t 34



help it if I’m attracted to her. We have to find a way to get past this. How do you think I felt when I saw you kissing her before dinner?” A wave of cold washed over Mika that helped cool some of his rage. “I didn’t realize you saw us together.”

Elliot pulled out a chair and sat down. “Well, I did. I didn’t rush in and rip out your throat the way I wanted to. I was content with you staying at the store, but she was the one who asked about you.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Really. The simplest solution is to figure out where the kidnappers are hiding. Or at least the one who terrorized her. She’ll be okay in another week. Then we bring her back to her life. Right now October is complicating things.”

What Elliot was saying was true, but Mika wasn’t sure he could let her go.

His dreams over the past week had been riddled with October walking through them. His wolf yearned to possess her. If she desired both of them, then something might have to be worked out. Or she could choose.

“Is everything okay?”

Elliot and Mika looked over to the doorway and saw October. The scratches on her face had healed and were fading. The bruises on her wrists were still visible. She was a strong woman and a fighter.

Her breath was noticeable in the chilled air. She rubbed her arms from the cold breeze, though Mika hadn’t realized it was cold out.

“I think we need to talk about something,” Elliot said.

She sighed and chewed her lip. A few strands of hair floated around her face. She nodded. They went back into the house. October sat at the dining room table and put her leg up on the chair next to her. Mika saw a flash of pain work across her face. It was clear her ankle was still hurting her and she wasn’t faking it. She traced the patterns in the wood and didn’t meet either of their gazes.

“October, you know you can stay here as long as you need to,” Elliot said.

She nodded. “I know. But that isn’t the reason you wanted to talk. I get it.”


35



“Look, it’s obvious that you are attracted to the both of us,” Mika blurted out. Keeping his emotions bottled up was killing him. If he didn’t get this resolved right now, he would find it easier to head back to the bookstore and stay there while October was with them. If she chose Elliot, then he didn’t need to be there at all. I’ll erase her from my mind. Although the thought of losing her made it seem his heart was being stabbed with a dull corkscrew and dug out.

October pulled the elastic from her braid and fiddled with the strands.

Tears glistened along her eyes. “I’m not one of those women who plays with guys’ hearts. Mika, you left, and after everything Elliot told me about you, I couldn’t help but feel close to you. And Elliot’s been wonderful. It’s crazy, but I want the two of you.” She shook her head and got up from the table.

“Then we—”

She made her way back to her room. Mika was about to go after her, when Elliot grabbed his wrist and stopped him. His friend’s firm grip made him think for a moment instead of just reacting. “Let her be, Mika. We were going hunting tonight anyway.”

Mika nodded. He had almost forgotten. The idea of moving his muscles and running was something he looked forward to. “Yeah.”

“Good.”

“I’ll be right back. I have something we need.” Mika ventured back into his room and pulled out October’s torn shirt from the night they had rescued her. He brought it outside and then waited for Elliot. His friend emerged naked. Nakedness wasn’t something new between them, but since things had changed in regards to their guest, part of him saw the other man as a potential threat to a would-be mate. Mika couldn’t shake it. He threw the ruined shirt to Elliot and stripped as well. He folded his clothes and set them on the chair. Mika rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms. Above them hung a sickle moon, giving them only a little light to see by. The valley below was teeming with life. He could feel it and the world around him giving him power to help facilitate the change.

The burn of transformation fired through him. It started with the cracking of his jaw first, as it realigned to make room for longer and sharper 36



teeth. The vertebrae in his back popped. He dropped to all fours, unable to keep balanced on two. His skin itched where fur pushed through his flesh.

He ignored the yearning to scratch at it, but instead focused on his face protruding and his jaw reforming into that of a wolf’s snout. The heat continued to wrap along his nerves until it consumed all of him. A cry of pain left his lips that turned into a wolf’s howl worshipping the moon.

He glanced over at Elliot. His friend had already slipped his skin into that of the wolf. Mika sniffed the shirt one last time, catching in his nose the tangy scent of the wolf that had kidnapped October.

He bounded down the steps and into the woods that surrounded the house, hoping to find the trail that would lead him to the rogues terrorizing innocent women. If he could bring even one of them to justice, then hopefully he could be connected to the pack once more. And get his life back.

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