He flicked on the bathroom light and quickly shoved down his sweatpants. He twisted the lever to cold, hoping the chilling spray sluicing down his body would cool his heated blood.

He glanced down at his dick, which refused to soften, and clenched his teeth. He hated mating heat, detested how once a year he kept a constant boner and wished he were a woman. They had it slightly easier. They suffered severe horniness but it wasn’t painful, didn’t drive them out their minds or make them turn into pitiful creatures who jacked off frantically to anything flashing skin, even on television.

He shook his head and tipped it back under the icy blast of water. He knew it wouldn’t work. His cock seemed to have a pulse and a growl tore from his throat. His balls ached too. He quickly washed his hair, turned off the water and snatched a towel off the rack.

The phone rang again. He tilted his head as he dried off while avoiding his middle and perked up when his ex-girlfriend’s voice met his ears. Hope soared that she might want to spend time with him. She was pretty, made him laugh, and he’d had a good time with her until she’d cheated on him with another wolf and insisted that he was to blame. It wasn’t a match made in heaven but he’d take it during mating heat.

“Hey, stranger. Um, this may be a bit awkward but I know you’re still single. My grandma hasn’t gone through menopause yet and well, hell, you’ve got to be hard up since most know to avoid you after learning you’re not looking for anything lasting. She’s been reading these books about cougars. That’s what they call older women who fuck younger guys. She always thought you were hot and wondered what it would be like having a young stud go after her again. She was totally excited when I shared how good in bed you are. I told her you’d be flattered she wants you and you’d go for it. You remember where she lives, right? Just go over there and she’ll take care of you during the heat. You’re welcome!”

Brand dropped the towel, horrified. A memory of Jackie’s grandmother flashed through his mind. The woman had to be past a hundred and actually looked like someone’s grandma. She had baked cookies for the occasion when she’d met her granddaughter’s “nice young man”. He remembered her using a walker to get around after breaking her hip when she’d lost a fight with a bear she’d encountered in the woods. The idea of doing her made his cock lower slightly. He peered down. It remained hard but he could see a little difference until it perked right back up.

“Goddamn it!” he roared. “I’d rather hump a pillow! I hate mating heat!”

He snarled as he stormed to the nightstand and yanked the drawer open in his haste to grab a bottle of lotion. “Her grandmother. Shit. That’s just mean.” The memory of the older woman flashed again and he paused. “No damn way.” He’d rather meet up with Peggy, though he was certain she would try to get him hot enough to lose his mind until he bit into her to seal the mating deal. She’d own him then, her and the nine pups he’d have to care for. He’d be mated and destined to be nothing more than her checkbook and pup wrangler. “I hate my damn life.”

He threw his ass on the bed, opened the lotion bottle and was about to tip it to pour a generous amount into his palm when the phone rang again. He paused. He needed to ease the tension inside his body. He had to get off to stop the pain that had become nearly unbearable.

“Who’s next? Someone trying to shove their three-legged cousin at me? Maybe someone’s going to ask me if I’m hard up enough to do barn animals?”

“Brand? Pick up now,” Jeff ordered. “We have a situation.”

He lunged across the bed, dropping the lotion. He jerked the phone from the cradle to shove it against his ear. “What’s wrong?” Something bad had to have happened for an enforcer on duty to call.

“You’re not going to believe this if I tell you. Just get your ass into town.”

“Where?”

“Oh, you can’t miss it. Just hurry. I’m trying to hold them back but they are going to tear the damn car apart if they get past me.”

“What—”

“Just get here! This—” Howls drowned out anything else Jeff may have said before the connection died.

Brand hung up and ran to the dresser, cursing a blue streak as he tried to zip his jeans over his swollen cock. He grinned though. If he couldn’t fuck, fighting would work. Excitement hit him.

Chapter Two

Charma whimpered and climbed into the back of the car. She’d hoped having the windows up would mask her scent when she’d driven into town but she’d been wrong. The driver’s window hadn’t smashed in yet but it had spider-webbed enough to terrify her. That had motivated her to scramble over the seats.

The entire vehicle shook when someone jumped on the hood. A terrifying howl hurt her ears and a boot slammed into the windshield. The safety glass held but the window cracked in at least a two-foot diameter. Someone else grabbed the passenger door and jerked hard enough to make the car sway. The lock held but the male snarled, enraged that he could not get to her.

“Back off,” another male yelled. “That’s an order! Damn it, get off the car. Back away.”

Bodies nearly blocked out the streetlights as they converged and she knew she only had moments before they managed to tear through some part of the car to reach her. They weren’t going to allow her to talk. She’d hoped they’d just ask her why she’d trespassed into their territory. That had been the plan that had gone terribly awry as soon as she’d turned off the engine. In what seemed like mere seconds, men had rushed at her from all directions.

They rocked the car until it made her slip on the seat. She fell over onto her side, drew her knees up to her chest and huddled into a tight ball. Howls and snarls were nearly deafening. She covered her ears, squeezed her eyes shut, and her heart raced.

She knew death would come soon. Still, it had to be a better one than what her mate planned for her. He’d tried to destroy her soul a day at a time. Now he’d told the enforcers they could take her body if they wanted. She’d rather be killed by werewolves. They were brutal but swift death-bringers.

Glass shattered and rained down over her. She screamed when a hand fisted her hair and pulled. Her body slid closer to the destroyed window and pain stabbed her. The one who held her howled, so close it was deafening, and she screamed again. The hand released her hair though.