Desert Shifters: (Crazy for Cryptids #1) by Cheri Wood

Author:Cheri Wood [Wood, Cheri]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2017-06-11T04:00:00+00:00

Ashley woke up in a man’s arms with the morning sun heating her skin. Startled, she looked over and saw Duncan beside her. Turning slowly, she studied his naked body, his chest covered by a soft mat of copper hair, except for a white scar across one of his pecs. Almost like he’d been scratched by a cat-

She gasped and sat up. No. It wasn’t possible.

Her startled movement roused Duncan, and he sat up, wincing. “Ashley.”

She flew to her feet, her arms wrapped around herself. “What’s going on? What the hell happened last night?”

“He got into a cat-fight, that’s what happened,” Connor said from behind her and she spun around to see him walking over bare-chested and barefoot, holding a cup of coffee.

“You- you’re crazy,” Ashley stuttered, pointing at the two men. “Both of you. You mean to tell me that last night-”

“You came all this way to see the Kelb-el-khela, and now you complain?” Connor clicked his tongue in mock reproach.

“You- no, no, this can’t be real. You drugged me or something. I’m hallucinating. Is this what the desert does to people? You’re a mirage.”

“Sweetheart, trust me when I say that the cheetah packs a mean punch for a mirage,” Duncan said, rubbing his chest.

“I can’t-” Ashley shook her head, rubbing her temples. “This isn’t real, this isn’t real,” she mumbled to herself, hoping she’d wake up at some point.

“Ashley,” Duncan said firmly, putting his hands on her shoulders and holding her still. “Listen to me. You can’t tell anyone what you saw here. We’d all be in grave danger if you did.”

“But, I don’t understand-”

“We’re shapeshifters,” Connor said easily. “That’s why the rumors about the Kelb-el-khela, or the Adjule, never pan out. Because we’re not stupid enough to show ourselves when nosy reporters are around.”

“Present company excluded, apparently,” Hiram muttered, walking up to them.

“I don’t have to justify my actions to you,” Duncan snarled at his friend and it all became perfectly clear to Ashley. Duncan was the Alpha in their little pack, and he’d made the decision for the group when he came to her defense and then stayed with her through the night.

“Question remains, however,” Connor said, leaning in and sniffing the air around her - probably to intimidate her, which totally worked. “How do we ensure our secret stays that way?”

“He makes a good point, Duncan,” Hiram commented soberly.

“Pretty photographer going missing in the territory where she was trying to find the elusive Kelb-el-khela? This place will be crawling with investigators and reporters,” Duncan said. It did little to settle the unease in Ashley’s body, though. It sounded like if they could get away with it, they’d get rid of her for good.

“I won’t tell anyone,” she blurted, drawing their attention. “I mean, I’m a photographer, not a reporter. And I didn’t snap a photo. I dropped my camera when I fell. So there’s no proof. No photo to sell.”

Duncan scratched his scar, drawing her gaze.

“How is it healed already? It looks like an old scar,” she said, reaching out to trace the marks left by the cheetah.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.