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STORY EXCERPT

A soft breeze stirred the brush. Micah Holliday took a deep breath, letting it out in a heavy sigh. Since the Zombie trouble settled down and the Packs sorted themselves out, things in Dead Man were downright boring. He almost wished something strange would happen.

His mother’s voice came to him. Be careful what you wish for…

Yeah, yeah, he scoffed. Nothing was going to happen to him. He was too smart for that. Somewhere close by, a mockingbird sang. Cicadas buzzed in the trees. The dry air smelled like mesquite and dust. He became aware of a low rumbling noise. Curious, Micah frowned. He reined Buttercup to a stop, squinting in the glare as he surveyed the area. The two-lane highway into town was not far off. Maybe the sound came from an 18-wheeler. Standing in the stirrups, he could see the deserted, sun-bleached asphalt. Nothing moved for miles. The sound came again. It was closer this time. If he didn’t know better, he’d be looking for heavy machinery. Buttercup gave a little snort of surprise, shivered, and took a few steps to the side. The sound ceased.

Micah took his battered brown Stetson off long enough to run his fingers through his sweat-dampened hair. The sun beat down on the West Texas desert without mercy.

It has to be at least a hundred and twenty degrees out here.

He set the hat back on his head after wiping his face with the faded blue bandana tied around his neck. The action didn’t do much good. The bandana was already too wet with sweat to absorb any more moisture.

Micah let go of the bandana and lowered his hand to his thigh. His fingers rested on his denim-covered leg a few inches from the .45 M1911 handgun he always carried when he was alone out in the desert. He frowned. The breeze carried a faint scent of rot. The thousand tiny noises of the desert went still, as if everything around him had frozen in terror. Buttercup stood like a statue beneath him. The quiet made him nervous. Micah inhaled, testing the air. This time it smelled fresh and clean. The desert lived. The mockingbird began to sing. He allowed himself to relax a little, letting his eyes close. Probably just nerves. I need to get laid.

A sudden gust of hot wind hit him. Startled, Micah’s eyes flew open. The overwhelming stench of rot and blood enveloped him. Birds and cicadas went silent. The odor made his eyes water and his nose sting. Buttercup shook her head in irritation. His ears rang in the quiet. Micah gagged. He sat up straighter, looking around for the source of the smell. The hair on his arms stood up.

This is too far out for anything from Old Town. We got all the Zombies. Didn’t we?

Ten years in Division 9, dealing with unimaginably weird events, taught him to be wary. Policing the paranormal community and protecting the ordinary humans from the things that went bump in the night wasn’t always easy. Micah loosened the strap on his gun. With several of the ranches losing cattle to an unknown predator, he was not taking any chances.

The mockingbird’s song trilled from a nearby tree, and the air smelled fresh and clean once more. The buzzing of the cicadas started up. Micah shivered. Something was not right in the desert, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He swore at himself. This prissing around like a nervous virgin was not getting his job done.

“Come on, Buttercup, let’s go.” He tugged on the reins, turning the buckskin mare in the direction of town. The horse nickered, shaking her head again. Micah blew a strand of damp hair out of his eyes.

Riding toward Old Town, his thoughts turned back to the problem of his sex life. Or lack of one, to be more precise. I could stop in at the nest. He could have his pick of the Vampire groupies, male or female. They would do anything he wanted. Micah entertained the idea for about ten seconds before he shuddered. Hell, no. All that fawning and black makeup got old real fast. On the other hand, Kate might be feeling generous enough to grant him a wish. Sometimes she liked playing fairy godmother. He knew what he’d ask for. The pleasantly dirty thoughts that came to mind concerning a certain blonde woman made him smile. Allie O’Brien was a petite china doll of a woman, her curves in all the right places. Easy on the eyes, his great-grandfather would say. Micah liked her, even if she was a little on the nutty side. He reined the horse around and headed for Dead Man.

The bloodcurdling shriek ripped through the air a split second before Buttercup whinnied in fear. The terrified horse shied, then reared and gave a hard little buck. Micah swore as he toppled from the saddle. His boot caught in the stirrup. Buttercup didn’t waste half a second. As she’d been trained, the horse bolted for home, dragging Micah several yards before his foot slid out of his boot.

What in the deep-fried fucking hell was that? The scream had been nonhuman, but not quite animal. He climbed to his feet, searching the area for the creature that had made the noise. Buttercup was nothing but a cloud of dispersing dust ahead.

Son of a bitch. There goes my water and my radio. I swear I’m going to sell that nag to a glue factory.

“Coward!” he yelled after the horse. Micah grimaced and began brushing the dirt and debris off his clothes. With a hiss of pain, he probed the hip he had landed on. Nothing seemed to be broken. Relief washed over him. Out in the desert with a broken bone was nowhere he wanted to be.

I’ll be black and blue by tonight. Just fucking wonderful.

He’d be lucky to make it into town before midnight. Micah bent to pick up his hat. It was a long walk back to civilization.

ADULT EXCERPT

Allie stood in the darkness, next to the brass footboard, one hand on the post, one hand holding her robe closed. The antique silk robe flowed over her curves and pooled around her feet. Her pale hair lay over her shoulders like a waterfall of silver in the moonlight. A nudge from Drew sent Micah forward. He stopped in front of Allie and sank to his knees before her. She touched his hair and then his lips with hers. Micah let his hands rest on her hips. He heard Drew, felt Drew’s hands cover his. Allie let go of the robe to thread her fingers through his hair.

The robe slid to the floor. 

Their clothes joined it, and then they were in bed. Allie lay back in Drew’s arms. He brushed his fingers over her body, over Micah’s hands and arms. Micah kissed her throat, her shoulders, the tops of her breasts. Micah swirled the tip of his tongue over her hard nipples, taking first one, then the other into his mouth. She was soft under his hands, softer than the silk of the robe, and warmer than sunshine, wetter than rain. Micah sat back, pulled her up into his arms, slid her down, impaled her slow as a sigh. She moaned his name, her fingers digging into his back.

Micah felt the pressure of Drew’s entrance into her. He gasped and swore, slipping one hand from Allie to grip Drew’s thigh. She muffled her cry against his shoulder. Nothing had ever been so tight, felt so good. Micah flexed his hips, moving inside her, against Drew. Both lovers moaned.

Sweat trickled down Micah’s body. It stung in the scratches Allie left. He gazed over Allie’s shoulder at his best friend, looking deep into Drew’s passion-dark eyes. Micah reached for him, tangled his fingers in Drew’s damp inky-black hair, pulled him into a rough kiss. Micah broke away and dropped a kiss on Allie’s shoulder. Drew groaned.

Micah found Drew’s hand and pushed it between himself and Allie. He licked Allie’s ear, then moved back to Drew’s mouth for another kiss. “Make her come.”

He felt Drew’s hand move, heard Allie’s breathless cry, and his cock swelled. Drew’s gasping moans made him smile. Micah wrapped his arms around both lovers and held them as tight as he could. This was heaven on earth. His balls drew up. He held his breath. Allie cried out again. Drew groaned. The universe exploded in a hot rush.

Micah moaned softly as Drew eased out of Allie. He let her down gently and lay beside her. He sighed. For the first time in his life, he felt complete, right.

* * * *

Drew sat up and stripped off the old condom. His cock was still hard. He got another from the night table and looked across Allie at Micah. He couldn’t remember Micah ever looking so content. Drew smiled and traced circles on Allie’s belly with his fingertip, around her navel and then dipping in. Her stomach muscles fluttered.

Drew leaned down and kissed her. “Are you too tired to take me?”

She shook her head, lifted a hand to his cheek, and he lowered his head to kiss her again. He glanced at Micah and found him lying on his side, watching them. Drew slipped his hand between Allie’s legs. She arched her hips. He moved over her, pushing her legs apart and lifting her knees. Micah took her hand and brought it to his lips, saying nothing.

Drew pushed into Allie. She was tight, even after fucking Micah. Drew took his time, letting her body accept him until he was all the way in. He covered her mouth with his, his tongue dancing with hers. Micah’s fingers trailed down Drew’s back. Drew shut his eyes and shivered. Micah’s hand stopped at the small of Drew’s back. He turned his head toward Micah, but didn’t open his eyes. His lover’s hand on his back while he fucked Allie was doing something Drew had never experienced before. Drew began to move.

Allie was hot, scalding, drawing him into her just as Micah’s hand pulled him back. Drew groaned, grinding his hips into the woman beneath him. Micah’s hand moved in a slow caress over his ass, a long work-calloused finger sliding down the cleft to circle the entrance to Drew’s body.

Drew groaned and thrust harder. “Fuck, yes…” He clenched his fists in the sheets. Sex had never been this good before. Allie whimpered and tightened around him. Drew moaned, gasping. He came hard, seeing sparks.

* * * *

Allie closed her eyes, breathing hard in the aftermath of her third orgasm. Or was it the fourth? She smiled. She couldn’t remember. She’d lost track in the exhilaration of two men making love to her. Hands slipped over her hypersensitive skin. From the way the fingers traced the folds between her legs, spreading her open, and barely brushing over her clit she knew it was Micah. She moaned.

The bed shifted as one of her lovers moved. He knelt between her legs and larger hands joined the one sending shivers of pleasure through her body. Drew. He opened her more. She gasped at the combination of warm breath and cooling moisture as he blew on her wet skin. Micah’s hand slid upward over her belly.

“You’re beautiful. You know that?” Micah’s whisper tickled her ear. Allie shook her head. She wasn’t ugly, but beautiful was stretching it. “You are.”

She started to protest and the sound changed to a moan. Drew’s mouth pressed against her, his tongue thrusting deep. Allie lifted her hips.

Micah chuckled softly. “He’s good at that.”

Allie opened her eyes and followed Micah’s gaze to where Drew lay between her legs, his tongue dancing inside her. Looking back at Micah, she saw his cock lifted hard against his belly. She ran her fingers over the silky flesh, pulling it toward her until she could touch her lips to the head.