Page 3 of Claimed By the Damned

If she had been in her right mind, Amara would have politely declined their offer. That’s what she should have done, especially since she needed to finish closing up the shop so that she could go home. But it didn’t seem like they were going to take no for an answer, and she wasn’t in any position to refuse them either. Not in her current state. Besides, they obviously needed to talk.

She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully, quickly weighing her options. Considering what had just happened to her, it was a stupid decision. She didn’t know the first thing about these guys. However, she knew, deep down, that they weren’t going to hurt her. They couldn’t. And maybe talking to them a bit more would help her to understand what was going on between the four of them. Because there was definitely something going on, even if she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Okay. But just for a minute,” she found herself saying.

Knox instantly wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He tipped his head toward hers and inhaled her hair deeply. “Excellent,” he said a little too cheerfully as he began leading her toward the bar’s back entrance. After quickly disposing of Happy’s body in the dumpster, the other two followed behind them, one more reluctantly than the other.

What the hell had she just gotten herself into?

Chapter Two

Drake

Drake couldn’t help the snarl on his face as he followed behind them. He had his reasons for being pissed off, and they were damn good reasons.

This was not how he thought tonight was going to go.

He and the guys had been in their usual booth at their bar, talking to a few girls and thinking about taking them home, when they heard the gunshot. Because of their shifter hearing, they had been able to hear it over the loud music and numerous voices in the bar. With a girl on his lap, whispering promises into his ear about what she planned to do to his dick, he had heard it plain as day. A quick look at the guys, and he could tell by their changed expressions that they had heard it too. It was a sound they were all familiar with, living their kind of lifestyle.

When they got outside and saw that Knox’s speed dealer was attempting to rob one of the businesses, they knew they had to step in. They may be rogues, but they were not assholes. It was the neighborly thing to do. That, and they didn’t want the place to become a crime scene and fuck with their business. Not everyone at the bar was a saint, and not everyone was clean. Cops sniffing around? That would have caused a few problems.

However, it ended up becoming both a crime scene and a problem anyway.

He knew the moment the girl turned around that she was his fated mate. With her red hair shining despite the lack of light and her wide blue eyes bouncing between the three of them, he knew then and there that she was all three of theirs. Her tits heaved with her deep inhales and exhales, and her larger curves made his wolf howl. It pissed him off. Not because he was supposed to share her – they shared women all the time – but because to him, women were only good for one thing: a good fuck.

Drake didn’t want or need a mate, but the guys seemed to have other plans because now she was in their shared apartment above the bar, and they were doting on her like love-sick puppies.

Practically vibrating with anger, Drake watched her take in the space from beside the closed door. It was a nice apartment, despite it being above the bar. It had three bedrooms, a living room with the largest flat screen TV they could carry out of the store, a dining room with a glass top table Zeke’s tastes couldn’t pass up, and a top-of-the-line kitchen complete with granite countertops and black stainless appliances. A man’s space. Not suited nor meant for a woman, let alone a mate.

Drake ground his teeth and glanced at the moon visible from the glass doors that led to the spacious balcony. It overlooked the alley, but they had a decent view of the town as well.

When the moon gave him no answers to all the problems he could count on both hands, he crossed the space to the breakfast bar and sat on the stool while the guys crowded Amara on the couch. Hands clenched on his thighs, he took in the little hearts in their eyes before observing Amara. She looked awkward and uncomfortable, squashed between them. But she didn’t flinch when Knox brushed her hair away from her cheek and brought it to his nose.

Knox seemed incapable of keeping his hands off of her. Satisfied with the scent of her stuffed up his nose, he leaned in a little more and draped his arm across her shoulders. It made her appear tiny, but still, she showed no fear. Wrong move with Knox. Fear wasn’t the only drug that got him high, but he’d do anything to pull it out of someone.

“So, uh, how long have you guys been in town?” Amara asked.

“A couple of years,” Zeke answered, glaring at Knox, who put his nose back in Amara’s hair and inhaled deeply. “Moved to town and bought the bar on a whim when it went up for sale.”

Amara shivered, and Knox pulled away with a wicked grin on his face. “Cool,” she said, clearing her throat. She leaned forward, grabbed the water that Zeke had brought her, and brought it up to her lips. Knox reached over and took it from her, replacing it with his glass of whiskey.

“Is the shop yours, or do you just work there?” Zeke inquired with genuine curiosity.

“It’s mine,” Amara answered, staring at the caramel liquid that had replaced her glass of water. “It used to belong to my mother, and it was passed to me when she left.”

Drake shifted a little on the stool. That was good to know. He didn’t understand how he could have missed the fact that there was a pack in town. If he had known, he would have chosen someplace else for them to set up roots. Most packs and rogues didn’t get along, which was another reason why their being fated was a mistake.

It was even more of a mistake to have her in their space. It was never going to work out anyway. Pack shifters and rogue shifters did not mix, fated or not.

“And we missed a pretty little thing like you?” Knox chimed in.

A small blush crept into her cheeks and the tip of her nose. “I tend to keep to myself mostly.”

Zeke’s eyebrows pinched together. “That’s strange for a pack girl.”

She just shrugged, which bothered him and grated at his nerves. She was hiding something, he could tell, and he didn’t like secrets. Secrets got people killed.

“What are you to your pack, anyway? A healer?” Zeke pressed on.

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