Free Emerald: Rare Gems Series - Billionaire Wolf Shapeshifter Romance by Kathi S. Barton Page B

with lust? And not just crazy, but damned near insane with the need to have her?”
    “You’re her mate. You know what that is?” Em stiffened in his arms, and he had to hold her tightly or she’d escape again. And right now, the thought of not touching her was making him as crazy as touching her was. Jul wanted her that badly. “Jul? Do you know what it means?”
    “Not a clue.” He let her pull from him a little, but he didn’t let her go. Jul wanted to tell them all to go to hell or anywhere that would leave him time with her, but he needed answers more than he…no, he needed her.
    “I’m a wolf.” He looked at her, then at the rest of them, hoping for someone to tell him it was a joke. “The least you can do is look at me when I’m talking to you. I said I’m a wolf.”
    “I’ve heard this before. I still don’t believe it, but Allen told me the same thing.” He looked at Blair before continuing. “I suppose you’re one too.”
    “Yes. The head wolf. Alpha.” Jul nodded, and he looked at the rest of the people in the large room. “We’re all wolves, shifters, or vampires. Sloan and Opal are vamps. We have a panther wolf in our pack, and there are a few other species as well.”
    “And you all believe this.” Blair nodded and Jul felt the air around him seem to heat up. Before he could let her go, Em went from a spitting mad woman to a giant wolf with sharp teeth and claws. He leapt back from her just as her teeth snapped at his chin. “Mother fuck.”
    She chased him to the door and swiped her paw at him twice before he thought about becoming one with the wall behind him. He glanced over at Allen when he laughed.
    “I told you not to run, didn’t I? I said when we show you, don’t run.” Jul would have given anything if Allen would just call her off. “Now you went and pissed off her wolf. The only way to get it out of her system is to let her chase you down. The good news is she won’t be able to hurt you.”
    “But will she be able to kill me?” No one answered him, but Allen did open the back door for him. “What the fuck are you doing? You can’t seriously think I’m going to take off running?”
    “You wanna see if she can kill you here? This is an awfully tight space here. What if one of her paws accidently swipes your throat and she nicks one of them thick veins there?” Jul eyed the door. “I’ll distract her enough for you to get a head start. You get going and run to them trees you seen me playing in, and you might stand a chance.”
    Allen moved in front of who Jul thought was Em, and Jul took off to the door. He heard a snarl and a laugh, but he was too busy trying to get his feet to get going. As soon as he heard her snarl again, Jul knew he was a dead man. And when her paw swiped at him, he nearly fell but managed to keep going until they were in the trees. Christ, he didn’t want to die this way.
    He ran until he hurt from it. Jul had no idea where he was, or for that matter, where the big wolf was. He’d about convinced himself that he’d been mistaken when she was standing in front of him. Jul backed so quickly that he fell over a log and had the breath knocked out of him. Before he could get up and get going again, she was over him, her paws on either side of his head.
    You can hear me. Jul moaned and closed his eyes when he heard Em speaking to him. Open your eyes and think of me. When you do, you can talk to me.
    All he could think about was her naked, her body slick with sweat from his body. She growled low, and he looked up at her. His body, his cock, was on fire for her. She moved off his body, but not far from him. Jul sat up on his elbows and looked at her as she sat down.
    “You’re a wolf.” The big animal snarled at him and he had to smile. “You do that very well. I’m not sure if I should be afraid or not.”
    You should be scared shitless. He shook his head and sat up on his butt. Why are you doing this? I mean, I know that we almost had sex,